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Front Page: School Shooting in Finland, Iran President Blames Economy on War, Germany Bids for Hostages

CitizenSugar — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 07:00:39 -0700

School Shooting in Finland:
Nine people have been killed and the gunman wounded after he opened fire at a vocational school in western Finland this morning. Chaos ensued after the hooded gunman entered the school and began firing with what appeared to be an automatic weapon. The superintendent of police says, ''The incident is over now." The gunman had posted video of himself on YouTube prior to the attack.

Iran President Blames Economy on War:
In New York for the opening of the UN, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said today that the economic crisis could be blamed on global US military intervention and President Bush's "logic of force." He said, "The world economy can no longer tolerate the budgetary deficit and the financial pressures occurring from markets here in the United States." Bush says he's confident Congress will quickly pass a bailout bill.
Germany Bids for Hostages:
Germany continues efforts to free 11 foreign tourists kidnapped in Egypt on Friday. The kidnappers are holding five Germans, five Italians, and one Romanian tourist for a ransom of $15 million. Germany has formed a "crisis team" to deal with the situation as the kidnappers have threatened to kill the captives if any aircraft attempt to reach them.

School Attack Plots in April. Copycats or Coincidence?

CitizenSugar — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 07:51:30 -0700

Students at Chesterfield High School in South Carolina are arriving at school this morning to metal detectors and police presence following a weekend arrest of a student accused of plotting an attack on the school. The alleged mastermind, Ryan Schallenberger, 18, is due in court this afternoon for a bond hearing. He was arrested this weekend after his parents alerted police to the 10 pounds of ammonium nitrate that was delivered to their home and their discovery of a disturbing journal. Police said that he'd kept a journal for more than a year detailing his plans for a suicide attack and including maps of the school and that "he seemed to hate the world. He hated people different from him-the rich boys with good-looking girlfriends."

Earlier this month, a group of third graders in Georgia were discovered to have conceived of a plan to knock their teacher unconscious with a paperweight, bind her with toy handcuffs and duct tape, and then stab her with a steak knife. It seems as though the nine boys and girls divvied up tasks to carry out the plan, with one plotting to cover up the window while another would be assigned to clean up the mess. The students were discovered and have been suspended. These April plots were foiled but there's a huge list that weren't. To consider why, read more.

April is a scary month. In the past 15 years, the month has seen the Virginia Tech massacre and the Columbine shootings, not to forget the Waco incident and the Oklahoma City bombing. All of these events happened within the same week of the month. Historically, both Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King Jr. were assassinated during this month, which also marked the start of both the American Revolution and Civil War.

Do we perceive a cloud of tragedy over the month precisely because news of anniversaries of events like Virginia Tech meets new instances like the weekend arrest in South Carolina and prompts people to pay more attention to the possibility for coincidence? Or have these plots truly become a copycat tribute to atrocities that have come before? Some scientists think that the increased light during the month of April lifts the previously depressed into a manic state. Having had all winter alone with dark thoughts, the mentally disturbed awake with new motivation behind their rage.

Police in South Carolina say that in his journal, Schallenberger said he admired the two attackers who killed 13 people at Columbine High School in Colorado in 1999 before committing suicide. The Columbine attack happened nine years ago Sunday. Did the parents and police discover a copycat catastrophe just in time, or was it just a coincidence? Is it seasonal? What do you think is causing the plague of April?

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Front Page: VA Tech, Iraqi Deserters, CO Fires, India Bus Crash

CitizenSugar — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 07:01:40 -0700

VA Tech: Today marks the one-year anniversary of the shootings at Virginia Tech. The tragic event was the most deadly shooting spree in modern US history, when 23-year-old student Cho Seung-hui shot 27 students and five staff members before killing himself. The day will be marked with ceremonies and remembrance.
Iraqi Deserters: A company of Iraqi soldiers abandoned their positions last night in Sadr City, defying American soldiers commanding them to hold the line against Shiite militias. A US company commander in the 25th Infantry Division confronted the Iraqi major who was leading his troops away from the Sadr City fight, saying, “if you turn around and go back up the street those soldiers will follow you. If you tuck tail and cowardly run away they will follow up that way, too.” The desertion by the 50 Iraqi soldiers left a large and important stretch of frontline road undefended.

CO Fires: Wildfires raged over 11 square miles in Colorado last night, forcing hundreds to evacuate and leaving three dead. The three fires broke out following a dry March, and Gov. Bill Ritter has declared a state of emergency, freeing up state resources to help fight the fires.
India Bus Crash: In India at least 44 people have been killed after their bus plunged into a river. Most of the dead are children as the bus had been transporting students to an exam. Four children have been rescued from the wreckage. Road accidents in India claim thousands of lives every year, and most are blamed on reckless driving and poorly maintained roads.

Headline: School Shooting in California Middle School

LibertySugar — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 11:36:00 -0800

An eighth grader at E. O. Green School was shot by another student this morning inside a classroom at the Oxnard, California, middle school.

The 15-year-old victim is in serious condition and is being treated at St. John’s Regional Medical Center in Oxnard.

The school is on lockdown, and parents are not being allowed to pick up their children.

Headline: Teen Shot in Tennessee School

LibertySugar — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 08:18:03 -0800

A 17 year-old student was shot at a school in Memphis, Tennessee, this morning. The incident involved two students from Mitchell High School. The victim, a 12th grader, was shot in the school's cafeteria and is critically injured. The suspected shooter, an 11th grader at the school, is currently in custody.

The high school is not on lockdown. Parents are arriving to check on their children, but parents are being asked to be patient.

Headline: Teacher Shot at Ohio School

CitizenSugar — Thu, 07 Feb 2008 08:53:35 -0800

In what appears to be a domestic attack, a school teacher was shot while working at an Ohio elementary school this morning. The shooter was apparently the woman's husband. No children were hurt. The teacher was flown to a nearby hospital and nearby schools are on lockdown. The school, Notre Dame Elementary in Portsmouth, is in a community in southern Ohio near the Kentucky border.

Headline: Three Dead After School Shooting in Louisiana

CitizenSugar — Fri, 08 Feb 2008 08:41:06 -0800

Continuing a streak of sad news, this morning a female student killed two classmates and then turned the gun on herself at Louisiana Technical College in Baton Rouge. There were 20 students in the classroom at the time, and no shots were fired outside of the classroom. Officers responding to 911 calls from inside the classroom arrived on the scene to find the three already dead. No other details are known at this time.

Front Page: Home From Summit, Obama Plans to Cut Spending

TresSugar — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 08:00:33 -0700

President Obama has challenged federal agencies to cut spending by $100 million over the next 90 days. - AP
Obama is also defending his friendly greeting of Venezuela President Hugo Chavez at the Summit of Americas, saying that Americans want him to interact with foreign leaders. - Los Angeles Times
Today marks the 10-year anniversary of the Columbine school shootings. - CNN
Waterboarding was administered by the CIA 266 times to two different terrorism suspects, according to the recently released torture memos. - Guardian
Rush Limbaugh says the fact that John McCain was "broken by the North Vietnamese" proves that torture works. - Think Progress
Despite Obama's decision to air Bush's dirty torture laundry, Al-Qaeda's second in command has warned Muslims not to be fooled by President Obama, who is no different than George W. Bush. - Reuters
Zac Efron's movie 17 Again debuted at No. 1 this weekend, bringing in about $24.1 million. - BuzzSugar
If you're curious, check out the "real story" behind 420. - Huffington Post

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Front Page: US Navy Heads to Rescue Captain From Pirates

CitizenSugar — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 07:47:57 -0700

A US Navy warship has arrived off the Somali coast where pirates are holding the captain of a cargo ship hostage. - Telegraph
President Obama has invited friends and aides to a private seder dinner at the White House tonight to mark Passover. - AP
Italian Prime Minister Berlusconi predicts that earthquake
reconstruction will cost several billion euros. - Wall Street Journal
Voters in a Missouri small town have reelected their mayor, four weeks after he died. - AP
Thousands of North Koreans rallied in their capital to celebrate their country's rocket launch. - BBC News
New York's US Senators have introduced legislation that would grant posthumous citizenship to the victims of last week's shootings in Binghampton. - CNN
Twenty-three schools in Detroit are set to be closed next year. - USA Today

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Lawmakers Crack Down on Guns After Shooting Rampages

CitizenSugar — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 10:30:28 -0700

Shooting rampages filled today's headlines. In Alabama, a man killed a dozen people, including the members of his own family. Over in Germany, a 17-year-old boy attacked a high school, killing at least 16 people.

When attacks occur, European countries often hurry to tighten gun laws. Following two school massacres within a year, Finland announced plans today to raise the minimum age for handgun ownership from 15 to 20. In Belgium, lawmakers passed strict gun laws in 2006 after a racially motivated shooting of a toddler and her black babysitter. In Portugal, the parliament is considering denying bail to anyone suspected of a gun crime.

American lawmakers have responded, too. After the Virginia Tech massacre, the governor signed an executive order requiring that anyone ordered by law to get mental health treatment be added to a database of people barred from buying guns.

Do you think this is the correct response to gun-related tragedies?

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