Look at all the mass shootings in this country in the past 40 years--this is so tragic, we mourn, we move on, and it happens again. My question is (I really want to know what people think) why does this seem to happen so much more in the U.S. than elsewhere? Is it that this happens worldwide and we're to U.S. centric for news outlets to notice, or is it actually true that the majority of these mass shootings happen in America?blockquote> Its surely a mixture of all the above. Although these incidents are absolutely not by a long shot exclusive to the U.S, an inordinate number of them do occur here by comparison. Numerous reasons can be attributed as to why. Its also true our incidents get greater media coverage and news of those outside the U.S. dont fully or regularly reach us.
Thanks FAde2Black for the statistics. I guess the field I am studying in, nursing, often makes me think about prevention for any disease or behavior (since crime is a huge public health issue). I think the editorial cartoon hits the point exactly. What point, I'm not so sure, but it just struck me as the perfect tone to this senseless ordeal.
Blunk graduated from high school in Reno, Nev. and served in the Navy from 2004-2009. He had plans to reeinlist with the goal of becoming a Navy SEAL.
Alexander J. Boik, 18
His family issued a statement saying he was dating "a beautiful young lady" who survived the attack.
Jesse Childress, 29
An Air Force reservist with a talent for athletics, Childress worked at the nearby Buckley Air Force Base, where he enjoyed competing in kickball and volleyball tournaments.
Gordon Cowden, 51.
Cowden was an Aurora resident, whose family declined to talk to the press.
Jessica Ghawi, 24
Ghawi was an aspriring sports journalist, who had narrowly avoided the Eaton Centre mall shooting in Toronto last month. She wrote on her blog after the Toronto incident:"I was shown how fragile life was on Saturday. I saw the terror on bystanders' faces. I saw the victims of a senseless crime. I saw lives change. I was reminded that we don't know when or where our time on Earth will end. When or where we will breathe our last breath."
John Larimer, 27
Larimer was a navy cryptologist, whose family plans to return his body home to Crystal Lake, Ill.
Matthew McQuinn, 27
McQuinn died shielding his girlfriend and her brother from gunfire, both of whom survived. His girlfriend was shot in the knee, and her brother was not injured.
Micayla Medek, 23
Medek’s family said though the news of her death was agonizing, it was better than not knowing after a day of waiting.
Veronica Moser-Sullivan, 6
Veronica was in the theater with her mother, 25-year-old Ashley Moser. Moser, who reportedly slips in and out of consciousness, suffered a gunshot wound to her abdomen and has a bullet lodged in her throat. She does not yet know her daughter was killed.
Alex Sullivan, 27
Sullivan planned on celebrating both his 27th birthday and his first wedding anniversary over the weekend. He had gone to the film with friends as part of the celebration.
Alexander C. Teves, 24
Teves had just earned a master's degree in counseling from the University of Denver in June.
Rebecca Ann Wingo, 32
Wingo worked as a customer service representative at a medical imaging company, and was described as having a bubbly personality.
My oldest knew Jessica Ghawi professionally. They both worked for Kroenke Sports. My son works for the Colorado Rapids. Ms Ghawi worked for the Colorado Avalanche and also interned at a sports talk radio station. They would catch up when they met at team events and keep each other appraised on openings within the company. From what he has told me, Jessica was a wonderfully kind young woman.
My oldest knew Jessica Ghawi professionally. They both worked for Kroenke Sports. My son works for the Colorado Rapids. Ms Ghawi worked for the Colorado Avalanche and also interned at a sports talk radio station. They would catch up when they met at team events and keep each other appraised on openings within the company. From what he has told me, Jessica was a wonderfully kind young woman.
. . .and for a parents who took their young children to ANY midnight show is showing behavior I DO NOT AGREE with... sheesh..
That's kind of a moot point. So it's a midnight showing; It's also summer vacation for a lot of kids. What time someone else's parents decide to engage in family activities has no bearing on the perpetrator's actions. One of my fondest memories is attending a midnight 3-D (anaglyph) showing of The Creature from The Black Lagoon with my father. I was probably a bit young for the movie, but going out late with my dad for the purpose of having a good time with dad was the indelible memory that I retained.
I'd agree with you regarding the 9-year old that was mentioned in this thread. But a 4-month old was shot. There is no justification for bringing a 4-year old to anything other than a kid's movie and even that is unnecessary since the baby isn't going to enjoy it. The only reason to do so is to piss off the people around you. You didn't say how old you were during your memory with your dad, but I'm guessing you weren't 4 months old or you wouldn't have remembered it.
Isn't that really a moot point. I really support the idea that children should see age appropriate material & nothing above (for example, letting you 10-15 year old watch south park) but that isn't the issue here. The issue is that anyone should be able to go to the movies or any public place with getting shot. Period. So let's not go into the area of who should & shouldn't be there because that isn't the issue. If you want to have a discussion about age appropriateness then we should start another thread to discuss that issue instead of mixing the issues & getting messages crossed, because I'd be willing to discuss that issue at length.
I think it's really easy to get caught up in the details of how someone so young came to be at the site of such a tragic event, but remember... even if it was "wrong" in the sense of lax or irresponsible parenting, the child's life should not have been in danger. The parent had no reason to believe taking a child to the movie would change or end his or her life.
Would I have taken my 4 year old to a Nolan Batman movie? No. At midnight? No. But this deranged individual could have just as easily have struck at a matinee showing of Brave.
I think we all understand that this child's parents will spend an entire lifetime now feeling guilt, in some capacity, for their death. And, sadly, in the grand scheme of things, they did nothing to bring it about.
Living in England where guns are not the norm, carrying a gun round to me feels like it might start compounding the problem. I know in London there was a problem with knife crime and then when some thugs saw that other people were carrying knives they bought hand guns. There's a quote from Jim Gordon in Batman Begins that sticks in my head about the subject of arming up
We start carrying semi automatics, they buy automatics, we start wearing Kevlar, they buy armor piercing rounds
Also studies over here have shown that you are more likely to be stabbed if you carry a knife as it changes when you believe a situation is too dangerous. I know guns and knives are very different but having tight gun laws over here means I can only look at what I know.
I can agree with this on a theoretical level, but the hard truth of it is that if you carry NOTHING, the bad guys still carry something. If every upright citizen got rid of every gun, knife, etc. the bad guys would not.
If you notice, these deathwish/terrorist assholes don't show up in Compton or Oakland, or even Texas, and start shooting, because someone would lay them down in seconds. They choose schools, places of worship, or movie theaters... where people are unsuspecting and unarmed.
Tonebone is correct. Historically terrorists avoid targets and target areas that can offer resistance. Its not productive. When they strike, their first priorities are to immediately take out those who can resist or might fight back. They avoid areas known or suspected to have a high vollume of firearms or having a prominant hunting/shooting culture such as the mid west.
Fortunately(?) some of these worthless shit-stains are surviving their actions despite their expectations and plans. Some of them will live to face a degree of accountability and "punishment" and experts will have the chance to dig around in their heads. Preferably with something sharp and a red hot. Now if only some messure of true punishment would ever happen. The sick sad reality is this monster, *sane or not will get to relish in his much desired fame for a while then a year from now he gets to sit back and watch the DKR on HD blu ray while reading his fan mail and jerking off.
Interesting how this jackass mentions he carried a gun into his showing of the movie, THEN the next day decided to be a dumbass!
Note to self, any instance where I deem it a smart idea to blast away at people, make sure it follows a day when Megs makes me watch a chickflick & I have my pocketknife with me.
A Maine man was arrested when he told authorities that he was on his way to shoot a former employer a day after watching The Dark Knight Rises, Maine state police said Monday.
That one's a stretch even by crazy media standards.
I'm not sure if anyone mentioned but Denver ComicCon is working on some kind of fundraising effort. I've seen some people with their ribbons on various popculture shows.
Sullivan planned on celebrating both his 27th birthday and his first wedding anniversary over the weekend. He had gone to the film with friends as part of the celebration.
Alex's dad Tom is an avid comic book collector and is an active member over at the CGC comic forum.
You may remember this picture of Tom searching for his son after the shootings from the reports
We are running an all proceeds sales thread over at the CGC forums to support Tom and the families affected by the shooting (Red Cross has stopped accepting donations specific to this cause at the moment thanks to the initial outpouring).
What I like is Bale has clearly gone on his own wishes, WB are be very vocal that they did not send him. I think it's far better to see that one grainy picture of Bale and the victim in a hospital bed than to see any more images of that evil man, he does not deserve the screen time.
This pisses me off. I get the lawsuit against the theater, but seriously, Warner Bros? Because they produce movies with violence in them? If I break my leg trying to re-enact a dance move from Step-Up Revolution, can I sue the movie company because it depicts people...dancing?!
This is another case of an attorney throwing names up onto a wall and seeing what sticks. Warner Bros has the most money, so they'll be heavily looked at a liable. Stupid.
In other related news, anyone else hear about the 25-ish guy at the movie who ran out as Holmes was shooting, leaving his girlfriend and two infant children? He stopped in the lobby and was thinking about going back, but realized he might get shot and killed, leaving his children as orphans...SO he got into his truck and drove around the mall complex.
Apparently, a 19 year old guy saw the girl and children, used his body as a shield to help get them out of the theater and got shot in the leg. The good news is, the 25-ish year old just proposed to his girlfriend while she was in the hospital...she accepted.
At least the 19 year might have been inspired by Batman to save someone!
I am confused on how the lawsuit can blame the film for violence. This was the first showing in that cinema (and most others across the country) so he saw the first fight scene, lost it and went out and started shooting? No this was a highly planned attack, that isn't WB's fault. Yes you can make an argument that people are desensitised to violence but that is a widespread problem with media not just one company and one violent film.
I am confused on how the lawsuit can blame the film for violence. This was the first showing in that cinema (and most others across the country) so he saw the first fight scene, lost it and went out and started shooting? No this was a highly planned attack, that isn't WB's fault. Yes you can make an argument that people are desensitised to violence but that is a widespread problem with media not just one company and one violent film.
The lawsuit is against the studio, not the film. The shooter allegedly referred to himself as "the Joker", so I assume the person filing this lawsuit wants to make a case that the previous Batman film is partially responsible for what transpired on that horrific night. Personally, I don't think the guy filing the suit has a snowball's chance in Hell of getting a court to rule against Warner Bros.
The lawsuit is against the studio, not the film. The shooter allegedly referred to himself as "the Joker", so I assume the person filing this lawsuit wants to make a case that the previous Batman film is partially responsible for what transpired on that horrific night. Personally, I don't think the guy filing the suit has a snowball's chance in Hell of getting a court to rule against Warner Bros.
True but if WB feels they're going to get a lot of bad publicity they might throw some money to get him to be quiet.
True but if WB feels they're going to get a lot of bad publicity they might throw some money to get him to be quiet.
Sad just got sadder
That's the worst thing the WB could do. This is a highly publicized case. The media is clamoring for any new details it can report. What's the point in giving the guy money in the hopes of keeping him quiet, if the media is just going to turn around and make the payout front page news? In other words, Warner Bros. is going to get bad publicity no matter what they do. They might as well do the right thing and defend themselves form someone who's clearly trying to turn tragedy into profit. WB's best move would be to take a passive, yet assertive when warranted, stance, and let the internet castrate the guy for trying to turn tragedy into personal profit. There's one person to blame here, and he's in custody.
Here's the obvious - you sue who has the money. Sideshow Bob doesn't have any money and he's going to prison for a long time. The movie theater doesn't have any money, or at least I'd imagine not enough to make them worth suing. The WB? An apple ripe for the picking.
Now having said that, I really wish we would get back to the days when a judge could look at a bullshit case like this, then at the plaintiff and just utter something like "Have you absolutely no sense of decency? No feeling of shame for what you're doing? You sicken me, sir, and the world is worse for having you in it."
I also agree with the deep pockets theory and find it equally reprehensible. I'm shocked they didn't include the gun shop and makers. They are closer in proximity to the cause of the harm then the WB. (they would fail, but finding WB liability would be a creative stretch for Justice Cardozo.)
Comments
I thought this was poignant and touching.
No offence is intended
I think the editorial cartoon hits the point exactly. What point, I'm not so sure, but it just struck me as the perfect tone to this senseless ordeal.
The Hollywood Reporter
Would I have taken my 4 year old to a Nolan Batman movie? No. At midnight? No. But this deranged individual could have just as easily have struck at a matinee showing of Brave.
I think we all understand that this child's parents will spend an entire lifetime now feeling guilt, in some capacity, for their death. And, sadly, in the grand scheme of things, they did nothing to bring it about.
I can agree with this on a theoretical level, but the hard truth of it is that if you carry NOTHING, the bad guys still carry something. If every upright citizen got rid of every gun, knife, etc. the bad guys would not.
If you notice, these deathwish/terrorist assholes don't show up in Compton or Oakland, or even Texas, and start shooting, because someone would lay them down in seconds. They choose schools, places of worship, or movie theaters... where people are unsuspecting and unarmed.
Fortunately(?) some of these worthless shit-stains are surviving their actions despite their expectations and plans. Some of them will live to face a degree of accountability and "punishment" and experts will have the chance to dig around in their heads. Preferably with something sharp and a red hot. Now if only some messure of true punishment would ever happen.
The sick sad reality is this monster, *sane or not will get to relish in his much desired fame for a while then a year from now he gets to sit back and watch the DKR on HD blu ray while reading his fan mail and jerking off.
http://www.boston.com/metrodesk/2012/07/23/maine-state-police-man-arrested-with-multiple-weapons-car-says-carried-gun-into-batman-movie-showing/8RPMuRtoYRCySKXcSnbi0H/story?s_campaign=MobAppShare_EM
Interesting how this jackass mentions he carried a gun into his showing of the movie, THEN the next day decided to be a dumbass!
Note to self, any instance where I deem it a smart idea to blast away at people, make sure it follows a day when Megs makes me watch a chickflick & I have my pocketknife with me.
M
http://www.boston.com/ae/movies/articles/2012/07/24/3_arrested_in_separate_dark_knight_incidents/?s_campaign=MobAppShare_EM
M
I'm not sure if anyone mentioned but Denver ComicCon is working on some kind of fundraising effort. I've seen some people with their ribbons on various popculture shows.
http://www.denvercomiccon.com/NewsBar/our-thoughts-are-with-you/
I'll expect a call from the Associated Press to cover this within the hour.
You may remember this picture of Tom searching for his son after the shootings from the reports
We are running an all proceeds sales thread over at the CGC forums to support Tom and the families affected by the shooting (Red Cross has stopped accepting donations specific to this cause at the moment thanks to the initial outpouring).
You can see the donation/sales thread here: boards.collectors-society.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=5864704#Post5864704
You can read one report about Tom here, but it is heartbreaking.cleveland.com/nation/index.ssf/2012/07/one_fathers_pain_brings_colora.html
Thoughts and prayers go out to all the families affected.
Whatever my thoughts are on the movie - the man just became *my* Batman. Apologies to Adam West...
http://www.denverpost.com/breakingnews/ci_21147699
=D>
I think it's far better to see that one grainy picture of Bale and the victim in a hospital bed than to see any more images of that evil man, he does not deserve the screen time.
Matthew
This is another case of an attorney throwing names up onto a wall and seeing what sticks. Warner Bros has the most money, so they'll be heavily looked at a liable. Stupid.
In other related news, anyone else hear about the 25-ish guy at the movie who ran out as Holmes was shooting, leaving his girlfriend and two infant children? He stopped in the lobby and was thinking about going back, but realized he might get shot and killed, leaving his children as orphans...SO he got into his truck and drove around the mall complex.
Apparently, a 19 year old guy saw the girl and children, used his body as a shield to help get them out of the theater and got shot in the leg. The good news is, the 25-ish year old just proposed to his girlfriend while she was in the hospital...she accepted.
At least the 19 year might have been inspired by Batman to save someone!
M.
Yes you can make an argument that people are desensitised to violence but that is a widespread problem with media not just one company and one violent film.
Personally, I don't think the guy filing the suit has a snowball's chance in Hell of getting a court to rule against Warner Bros.
The lawsuit is against the studio, not the film. The shooter allegedly referred to himself as "the Joker", so I assume the person filing this lawsuit wants to make a case that the previous Batman film is partially responsible for what transpired on that horrific night.
Personally, I don't think the guy filing the suit has a snowball's chance in Hell of getting a court to rule against Warner Bros.
True but if WB feels they're going to get a lot of bad publicity they might throw some money to get him to be quiet.
Sad just got sadder
Now having said that, I really wish we would get back to the days when a judge could look at a bullshit case like this, then at the plaintiff and just utter something like "Have you absolutely no sense of decency? No feeling of shame for what you're doing? You sicken me, sir, and the world is worse for having you in it."
But then that'd be a whole new lawsuit.
M