National Public Radio (NPR): Nation
Police: Gunman Planned Long Siege at Amish School
by Larry Abramson
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6184455
Audio file (local)

Vocabulary:

"All Things Considered" (name of NPR program)
Michelle Norris
Melissa Block
to be killed
critically wounded
attack on
Amish
Lancaster County, Pennsylvania
to barricade oneself inside
one-room
West Nickle Mines Amish school
to let s.o. go
to take s.o. hostage
to shoot
to storm a building
by the time
police
to get inside
shooter
to kill oneself
to identify s.o. as
Charles Carl Roberts IV
nearby
Bart
news (press) conference
commissioner
Jeffrey Miller
State Police
reporters
apparently been
to planning the
assault
for some time
quite certain
based on what we know
to have no intention of +Ving
to come out of a place alive
by one's own hand
"suicide by cop scenario"
I mean
the bottom line
to plan s.t. out
meticulously
to go in there
to execute
Again,
"our hearts go out to" s.o
community
unbelievable loss
Larry Abramson
to join us
police officials
what more
to have to say about
to describe
spokesman
to indicate
elaborate preparations
to go through
to stage
long-term siege
building
to pull
pick-up truck
to borrow
the night before
hardware

lumber
one-room
schoolhouse
to hold off
police
600 rounds of ammo
cans of
smokeless powder
stun gun
belt
knife
he was going to
to dig oneself in
to communicate
to leave the property
as soon as he said that
before s.o. could even really do anything
to execute
milktruck driver
it seems to be
deliberate
targeting
motive
to have an explanation for why
conversation
cell phone
right before
incident
to become serious
to try to get revenge for
he would have been
it's difficult to imagine
exactly
to stick with one
for such a long time
any particular
malice toward the Amish
male members
explanation
recent days
rather withdrawn
indication
preparation
outgoing
have you been able to
understandably
because of their faith
to be reticent to be Ved
as dumbfounded as
separation from
rest of the world
to practice
to some degree
the right way to go
evil
society
the kind of thing that happened today
result of
violence
society
the world outside
lone
disturbed
sick
individual
not to be any reason to
to draw conclusions about

Listening comprehension questions:
1. Who are the Amish? Use the Internet. Be brief but clear.
2. Some have proposed that this was a "copycat crime". What are they referring to? Use the Internet.
3. Cite two pieces of evidence that the killer planned the crime very carefully beforehand.
4. Why, apparently, did the killer choose the target he did?
5. What is meant by a "suicide by cop scenario"?
6. Why did reporter Larry Abramson express surprise that the killer committed his crime out of a desire for revenge?
7. Describe two of the reactions of the Amish community to this incident.
8. Describe how you handle something that has upset and bothered you for a long time.

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