Colorado Shooting at Dark Knight Rises Opening

[Kuzu]

So was this guy trying to make his own Batman or what?

[Tornado]

One of the members of another forum I frequent has made the point that tighter gun control laws wouldn't necessarily prevent this from happening.

Edited July 21, 2012 by Gilda

[C.J]

This is terrible! I heard the news on TV last night, very sad and unexpected! RIP to those twelve people who died and I hope the others make a full recovery soon, I also hope the family of victims pull through this awful event soon.

Edited July 21, 2012 by C.J

[MegaMan_EXE]

This is terrible! I heard the news on TV last night, very sad and unexpected! RIP to those twelve people who died and I hope the others make a full recovery soon, I also hope the family of victims pull through this awful event.

[Patticus]

What difference would it have made in this case if he didn't have access to any of the firearms he did use? He had grenades while doing the act and absolutely loaded his house with complex explosives just to taunt the police after the fact.

How did he get hold of grenades and other explosives? Is possessing that kind of thing actually legal?

[Tornado]

I have no idea about the grenades (though I'd have to assume that they weren't, especially not if they were real grenades and not things he made himself; so if they were something needs to be figured out for how he got them anyway), but the crap he filled his apartment with (incendiary bombs and chemical-based explosives) absolutely are not. He made them himself and thoroughly booby-trapped his apartment with them, and I believe the police chief went so far as to say something along the lines of how he had never seen something that advanced made by someone whose job wasn't to make bombs.

Presumably being most of the way through a medical degree had something to do with that.

Edited July 21, 2012 by Gilda

[KittyNakajima]

I don't know if this has been discussed already, but I want to talk about a point that seems to be getting people riled up already. There was one family with two small children in the mist of all that chaos - a 4 month old baby and a 4 year old daughter. The fact that they were originally listed as being victims has people debating about the parent's mindset for bringing kids so young out for something so late and crowded.

It's been stated that the father got separated from his family in reports, but interviews he's given to the media seem to give off the vibe that he hauled ass and drove away while his family was left to possibly die in the chaos. Some reports state that he lost sight of his son, while others say that he put the baby down before bolting out. The mother was shot, but she was also trying to protect her kids and might not have made it out if not for the help of a good Samaritan nearby, who was also shot.

People are also in awe in the fact that this guy had the balls to propose to his girlfriend at the hospital after this was all said and done.

Tragedy aside, I couldn't see bringing kids that young out. The four year old for a number of reasons, mostly falling asleep and missing out or potentially annoying people by having to ask mom or dad to explain something that was happening. And the baby? That's a no-brainer right there - a crying, fussy baby is easily grounds for getting kicked out without a refund. Or potentially starting a fight with someone who doesn't have patience for kids speaking or asking questions during a movie.

I'm also not saying that they couldn't take the kids out at all; they could just as easily chosen a screening time that was less crowded and earlier - like a weekday afternoon/early evening.

Anyway, what do you guys think?

Edited July 21, 2012 by KittyNakajima

[Tornado]

I think it's so completely meaningless even if this hadn't happened that it isn't worth discussing, honestly. Not my kids. Not my perspective. Not my rules. Not my place to judge.

And none of the reports of what happened inside the theater are worth spit.

Edited July 21, 2012 by Gilda

[Gabz Girl]

A 4 year old boy AND a 4 month old baby?? Um...have the parents even seen The Dark Knight? That wasn't a kids movie and I'm sure this isn't either! O__o

I think parents are so ignorant when they do this, taking kids to see a movie which obviously isn't in their age range. They can be noisy and annoying too for other people in the cinema.

Edit: To add, that is besides the point anyway. The massacre itself is a far more serious topic.

Edited July 21, 2012 by Gabz Girl

[Nepenthe]

Bringing children to a movie not intended for children (or a baby to any movie whatsoever) has always been a stupid and inconsiderate decision. But the fact that this shooting happened while children were in attendance doesn't say anything more than that about the parents' rearing capabilities than it does the survival instincts and common sense of the rest of the patrons. This tangent shouldn't have any bearing on the discussion.

[Winston]

A 4 year old boy AND a 4 month old baby?? Um...have the parents even seen The Dark Knight? That wasn't a kids movie and I'm sure this isn't either! O__o

I think parents are so ignorant when they do this, taking kids to see a movie which obviously isn't in their age range. They can be noisy and annoying too for other people in the cinema.

That really doesn't even bother me as much as the fact of them going at 12 AM with their small children.

[KittyNakajima]

A 4 year old boy AND a 4 month old baby?? Um...have the parents even seen The Dark Knight? That wasn't a kids movie and I'm sure this isn't either! O__o

I think parents are so ignorant when they do this, taking kids to see a movie which obviously isn't in their age range. They can be noisy and annoying too for other people in the cinema.

Edit: To add, that is besides the point anyway. The massacre itself is a far more serious topic.

I mostly brought it up because of the actions of the father verses those of the mother and a nearby person who helped her protect the kids and get them to safety. People seem more WTF that he left his kid somewhere while the mom was thinking about both kids and their safety.

[Jacky]

The bastard Holmes apparently tried to lure someone into his booby trapped apartment as a diversion.

The neighbor, Chris Rodriguez, told 7NEWS he and his girlfriend started hearing loud techno music coming from above them at midnight.

"Usually the complex is very quiet, nobody has parties, so that was the first time we actually had a party or a lot of noise at the complex," said Rodriguez.

After about 15 minutes, Rodriguez's girlfriend decided to knock on the door and ask them to turn the music down.

"She went upstairs to the apartment, and she knocked on the door pretty hard, she knocked two or three times and yelled into the door, 'Hey, can you turn that music down, we are trying to sleep,'" said Rodriguez.

Rodriguez said that no one answered and his girlfriend didn't even hear any footsteps. While she was listening at the door, she noticed that the door moved.

"The door moved a little bit, and the handle jiggled a little, and she was contemplating going into the apartment, but something told her don't do it," Rodriguez said.

[KittyNakajima]

The bastard Holmes apparently tried to lure someone into his booby trapped apartment as a diversion.

Lucky for us that she didn't. And luckier that this dude was so full of himself that he tipped the police off to his booby trapped apartment. This tragedy could have been much, much worse if the police hadn't evacuated the building and called in bomb specialists to secure the area.

[Phos]

How did he get hold of grenades and other explosives? Is possessing that kind of thing actually legal?

No, but the ingredients to make them are.

Even if he didn't have access to tear gas grenades, I imagine roach foggers would have worked about as well.

[Linkabel]

Names of the victims of the massacre and last moments:

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/22/us/in-darkened-movie-theater-heroes-in-life-and-in-death.html?_r=1&smid=tw-nytimes&seid=auto

Some info to the background of the guy that caused the massacre:

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/22/us/pain-and-puzzles-in-wake-of-deadly-colorado-attack.html?smid=tw-nytimes&seid=auto

Police disarm the threats at his apartment:

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/22/us/colorado-movie-theater-shooting-james-holmes.html?smid=tw-nytimes

[Gabz Girl]

I found the Twitter of one of the casualties, Alex Sullivan. It's so disturbing...that Twitter account is now forever stuck in time. .__.

[Winston]

That's just so sad with the thing about Alex Sullivan, he was so happy about seeing The Dark Knight Rises, some maniac pretending to be a insane clown came in and had to kill him and others, on his Birthday to make matters worse.

[Mono]

I was at the movies last night (spider-man) and today (TDKR) and felt really sad sitting there, looking at the exit door and picturing what happened. Those who were lost will be in my prayers

[Johnny Boy]

I feel really sorry for that guy with the twitter account that got killed. And it just did nothing but fuel my hopes that karma will get James Holmes in the most brutal, gruesome, and unforgiving way possible.

[Your Vest Friend]

...I...

Someone hold me back or so help me I WILL THROTTLE SOMETHING.

Those bastards.

[Winston]

...I...

Someone hold me back or so help me I WILL THROTTLE SOMETHING.

Those bastards.

I can't even say how retarded that is with words. I'm wanting to go to Hell now if those are the kinds-of people going to "Heaven".

Edited July 22, 2012 by Winston

[Nepenthe]

Did anyone expect Westboro not to show up? This is their general modus operandi; be douchebags during mourning periods for attention. If we ignore them, it'll be a non-issue and the church will continue slowly disintegrating.

[Soniman]

This is one of those times where I just have to blindly hate humanity.

[Your Vest Friend]

Did anyone expect Westboro not to show up? This is their general modus operandi; be douchebags during mourning periods for attention. If we ignore them, it'll be a non-issue and the church will continue slowly disintegrating.

Oh, the picketing is to be expected, honestly. But this line...

The Westboro blog yesterday had a short post called "Aurora, CO Judgemen"t which started with the line "God Sent The Shooter to Aurora, CO. He killed 12 and injured 50+ Westboro Baptist Church prays for more dead."

That just...urgh.

Edited July 22, 2012 by VEDJ-F