James Holmes Declares He Was The Joker

As news trickles out there are more updates about the tragedy at the Aurora movie theater.

The suspected Colorado movie mass murderer was a loner and graduate school dropout who dyed his dark hair red in homage to Batman’s arch-nemesis the Joker.

Demented gunman James Holmes declared “he was the Joker, enemy of Batman” after his arrest for the killing spree during a midnight showing of “The Dark Knight Returns,” said NYPD Commissioner Raymond Kelly.

The Aurora PD says Holmes was in possession of an AR-15, a Remington 870 shotgun and a 40 caliber glock handgun when he was arrested this morning. Holmes legally bought the firearms at a Bass Pro Shop and Gander Mountain Guns within the last several months. The first gun was bought in May.

Cops say they found another 40 caliber glock in the shooter's car, located right outside the movie theater.

James Holmes will tentatively appear in court on Monday.

Another Shooting....When Will It End?

Three people at Hampton University were hospitalized after a shooting in a dorm, a spokeswoman for the school said Sunday.

Police believe the shooter is a former student who was one of the three injured early Sunday, spokeswoman Yuri Rodgers Milligan said. A night manager for the Harkness Hall dorm at the school in southeastern Virginia was also hurt. The third victim was not identified but was not a student.

Hampton University is a private school with about 5,700 students. It was founded in 1868 during Reconstruction to educate black leaders for the newly freed slaves.

I used to work in Newport News which is right down the road from Hampton University. As a matter of fact I took a graduate course through them years ago. I also taught with several people who received their degrees from Hampton University and they also had students who served as mentors to our students. We used to hold our graduations on campus and we actually had to wand down the guests. Can you imagine that?

Well it's official. This is what Darryl and I have known was coming for awhile. This is where he used to work. A rail car company in Northwest Georgia has told state officials over six hundred people will be laid off this summer.

Employees at the Trinity North American Freight Car plant in Cartersville make rail road equipment. And by the end of August, that work will be idled as the plant is closed and some 659 fewer employees will be laid off.

Before the elections there were back orders for coal cars. Then when it looked like Obama would win it was rumored that his cap and trade policy would cause coal companies to withdraw orders and/or prevent them from ordering. Darryl shrugged it off. He didn't feel it would happen because the orders seemed to be there. Then Obama won. Within weeks he was laid off and the cancellations for orders had already begun.

My husband is an engineer, eventually he should be able to find a job. There are people in the coal industry who do not have the same options that my husband does. People who work for ancillary companies that feed off the coal companies, they were going to be hurt too. The miners who have mined coal for years are being laid off. Our little scenario is being played out in little towns in Southwest Virginia, Kentucky, and West Virginia. What kind of jobs will these people be able to get? These miners were the ones who ate at the local restaurants. No jobs, no dinner out, diners lay off, towns die.

Green jobs? Darryl's been doing a lot of research and green jobs are economically viable on their own. They will have to be heavily subsidized by the government. How does that happen? Taxes will be raised. Only we won't call them taxes. It's a back door tax. We tax the big corporations and what do you think happens to the rates you pay? They go up. Corporations don't take a loss. So the more the corporations get taxed the more you pay to heat and cool your house.

Congress has backed off on cap and trade for now because the economy is so bad right now. They know if they do that we will fall right into a depression. This does not mean that this is not coming. It's just a matter of when.

My contest on Thrifty Maven was mentioned here.  The contest ends tomorrow evening.

here are the blog contests I entered today:

Prize: 1/2 pound box of Rich Rainforest dark fudge with walnuts from Earth's Sweet Pleasures.

Prize (3): What’s For Dinner gift basket with sample of Creamy Basil Parmesan Chicken Pasta, three coupons, colander, serving spoon and cheese grater.

Prizes (4): Coupon for a free jumbo pack of Pampers and Together We Can Save A Life onesie.

Grand Prize: Tyson branded Jacques Pepin toaster oven.
First Prize: Ten Tyson Frozen Breaded Chicken or Tyson Any'tizers free product coupons (ARV up to $99.90).

Prizes (5): Two Tyson Any'tizers free product coupons.

Prizes (3): Romano’s Macaroni dinner kit gift basket.

Prize: Bride Wars DVD and $25 Paper Shouts gift certificate.

Prizes (2): Box of Electrasol Finish Quantum dishwashing detergent and bottle of Jet Dry Turbo Dry.

Farrah Fawcett Hospitalized; Family Gathers

What girl who hit her teens in the mid-seventies didn't know who Farrah Fawcett was? She was the woman who's picture was pinned up on your boyfriend's bedroom wall, the woman he secretly wished was his. This was the woman who appeared weekly on Charlie's Angels (another show I never watched). It was Farrah's hair that every girl wanted to emulate.

There were a couple of really good tv movies in which she appeared. One was "The Burning Bed" and the other was " and "Small Sacrifices." I had read the book Small Sacrifices by Ann Rule and I found Farrah's portrayal to be very compelling.

I also remember her from Cannonball Run because that was a very popular series of movies back in the 1980s. It was campy, slapstick comedy movie released in 1981 that starred Burt Reynolds, Roger Moore, Dom DeLuise and Farrah Fawcett. The premise is very similar to the earlier Cannonball and The Gumball Rally (both 1976). It also has two sequels, 1984's Cannonball Run II and 1989's Speed Zone! The latter was also known as Cannonball Fever and is sometimes overlooked as being part of the series.

Her long term relationship with Ryan O'Neal was fodder for Grocery store rags. Her son Redmond had his share of troubles.

Farrah, 62, was diagnosed with anal cancer in 2006 and later pronounced cancer free at a press conference. She has been hospitalized and is critical but stable in a Los Angeles-area hospital. They also say she is unconscious and has been hospitalized for days.

Sometimes actors die and I feel sad in a passing sense. I think it's always sad when someone dies. Sometimes though I feel their death a little more closely. This is a person who's life was played out every week as public fodder. She is a woman of whom I emulated and was jealous of all the same. I will feel sad at her passing.

Ryan O’Neal has been by Farrah’s bedside, as has troubled son Redmond, who bolted from rehab earlier this week.

Here is an update on the tragedy that happened in Pittsburg. Friends of Richard Poplawski (23 year-old)said he feared the Obama administration was poised to ban guns.

One friend, Edward Perkovic, said Poplawski feared "the Obama gun ban that's on the way" and "didn't like our rights being infringed upon."

Another longtime friend, Aaron Vire, said he feared that President Obama was going to take away his rights, though he said he "wasn't violently against Obama."

Perkovic, a 22-year-old who said he was Poplawski's best friend, said he got a call at work from him in which he said, "Eddie, I am going to die today. ... Tell your family I love them and I love you."

Mr. Perkovic got his GED and then joined the Marine Corps. He was dishonorably discharged from the corps during basic training. Friends said he wanted out so he could rejoin his girlfriend.

When that relationship failed, Mr. Poplawski moved for two years to Florida where he worked as a glazier, helping to asemble and replace windows. He returned here in 2006 or 2007.

The fight between the Poplawski and his mother was over a dog urinating in the house.
The fight escalated to the point that she threatened to kick him out and called police to do it, according to a 12-page criminal complaint and affidavit filed late Saturday that contains her account.

When officers Paul Sciullo III and Stephen Mayhle arrived, Margaret Poplawski opened the door and told them to come in and take her 23-year-old son, apparently unaware that he had grabbed a long rifle and was standing behind her, according to the court papers. She told investigators she heard gunshots, spun around and ran to the basement, shouting, "What the hell have you done?"

Darryl and I had talked about where this country is headed as the recession gets worse. People don't know if we are headed for a depression or a period of hyper-inflation. While we were having this conversation we were interrupted by another news bulletin. This time a father killed his five children.

The father killed his children, Ages 7 To 16 in their trailer. The father's body was found miles away. Four of the children were shot in their beds and the fifth was shot in the bathroom in Graham, 15 miles southeast of Tacoma, Pierce County deputies said.

In this case the man and his oldest daughter had caught his wife with another man at a local store. They argued and he begged her to come. She didn't. He was upset that his wife was threatening to leave him.

This has been such a busy day and it seems as though I got nothing done. Here are the blog contests I entered:


Prize: Exergen TemporalScanner thermometer.

Prize: Windex Outdoor All-In-One Glass Cleaning Tool starter kit.

Prizes (2): Crest Whitestrips Advanced Seal.

Prize: Exergen TemporalScanner infrared thermometer.

Prize: Exergen TemporalScanner thermometer.

Prize: Windex Outdoor All-in-One Starter Kit.

Prize: Exergen TemporalScanner thermometer.

Prizes (5): Pair of Keds Green Label shoes.

Prize: Deep covered baker from The Pampered Chef (ARV $70).

Prize: Pizza Hut e-gift card good for PANormous pizza, drinks, and dessert.

Prize: The Tudors The Complete First Season and The Complete Second Season DVDs.