Yes, getting a weapon on base is easy - illegally. Just like getting one into a school, courthouse, mall, theater, etc etc is easy. Those of us that are law abiding gun owners respect the fact that the law bans guns in these areas. Its what keeps us from carrying guns in these areas. That, and the fact that we could lose our right to carry if we are caught carrying in many of these areas. Criminals tend to not care about those same laws - thus the uselessness of a gun free zone. I'll never understand how anyone can say a gun free zone makes them safer. It might make them 'feel' safer, but they are really not any safer (and in fact are less safe) unless entry to the area is controlled and everyone is searched throughly before entering. I add this last part because I spent last week at Disney in Florida and can tell you that gun free zone is not controlled. They search bags, but never once did I go through a metal detector, never once was I patted down and my hip bag (where I carry my camera) was searched only half the time (its big enough to carry a full size pistol in and it be concealed). So, I hope their intent is to feel good about those no gun signs, thats about all they are going to get out of them.
As for the issue of mental illness in this case - its irrelevent to the number of people killed / injured and my point in the first place. Yes, mental illness is a big issue in this country. But it should have nothing, NOTHING, to do with the gun arguement in this country. Because as long as their are guns here, people will have a way to get them illegally. Those that try to use mental illness as a reason to control guns have their head up their rear. Sure, we should do our best to identify mental illness and address it, but to make it more difficult to buy guns and ammo because you think it will keep it out of the hands of mentally unstable people is not realistic. Its just another approach the liberals use to push gun control. If they were really worried about mental illness, they would be talking about mental illness. Not guns.
My point was - whether this person was a terrorist, was mentally unstable, was mad at his boss, or for whatever reason - had non MPs on that base been able to carry legally, there would have been a better chance for someone to intervene before the MPs arrived. We will never know if somone would have intervened or not, but we do know that no one could because guns are banned on base and MOST of the military members on that base are going to respect that ban.