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While the actions of Mr Wilcox are commendable and no doubt he confronted the lunatic with the best of intentions, he lost his life w/o altering the outcome.
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We know he lost his life.
We don't know whether he changed the outcome. The BGs retreated and killed themselves just as the cops arrived. Was that their plan? Or were they planning to take hostages? Or were they planning to snipe officers from inside the building somewhere? Did he delay them just long enough to allow officers inside the building when they'd planned to have more time to set up the next phase?
We don't know.
Coulda-woulda-shoulda is such an easy game to play, but even in hindsight,
we don't know (and never ever could know) what would have happened if. We only know what
did happen -- and not even that much, since all we have to go by are news accounts, which are notoriously unreliable.
pax
We should be careful to get out of an experience only the wisdom that is in it – and stop there; lest we be like the cat that sits down on a hot stove-lid. She will never sit down on a hot stove-lid again – and that is well; but also she will never sit down on a cold one anymore. – Mark Twain