The St. Louis Cardinals were informed this morning by the St. Louis Police Department of the tragic death of pitcher Josh Hancock, 29, who was killed in an auto accident on westbound Highway 64/40 within the city limits. Cardinals' Manager Tony La Russa informed Josh's father of this tragic event. Hancock, who is single, has been a member of the St. Louis Cardinals since February of 2006 and helped the team to its 10th World Series title last Fall. The Cardinals ask that all fans join the team in offering their prayers and condolences to Josh Hancock's family on this very sad day for the Cardinals and Major League Baseball. MORE
Monday, April 30, 2007
ST LOUIS CARDINALS MOURN LOSS OF PITCHER JOSH HANCOCK
The St. Louis Cardinals were informed this morning by the St. Louis Police Department of the tragic death of pitcher Josh Hancock, 29, who was killed in an auto accident on westbound Highway 64/40 within the city limits. Cardinals' Manager Tony La Russa informed Josh's father of this tragic event. Hancock, who is single, has been a member of the St. Louis Cardinals since February of 2006 and helped the team to its 10th World Series title last Fall. The Cardinals ask that all fans join the team in offering their prayers and condolences to Josh Hancock's family on this very sad day for the Cardinals and Major League Baseball. MORE
Thursday, April 26, 2007
Why can't Westerners respect the laws of other countries?
Indian court issues warrant for Gere
Thu Apr 26, 2:54 PM ET
NEW DELHI - A court issued arrest warrants for Hollywood actor Richard Gere and Bollywood star Shilpa Shetty on Thursday, saying their kiss at a public function "transgressed all limits of vulgarity," media reports said. Judge Dinesh Gupta issued the warrants in the northwestern city of Jaipur after a local citizen filed a complaint charging that the public display of affection offended local sensibilities, the Press Trust of India news agency reported.
Gupta earlier viewed television footage of the event, which he called "highly sexually erotic," saying the pair violated India's strict public obscenity laws.
Gere and Shetty "transgressed all limits of vulgarity and have the tendency to corrupt the society," PTI quoted the judge as saying.
Such cases against celebrities — often filed by publicity seekers — are common in conservative India. They add to a backlog of legal cases that has nearly crippled the country's judicial system.
Gere left India shortly after the kissing incident and it was not immediately clear how the warrant would affect him. His publicist, Alan Nierob, said there would be no comment from the actor.
Gere is a frequent visitor to India, promoting health issues and the cause of Tibetan exiles. The Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, has his headquarters in the north Indian town of Dharmsala.
Under Indian law a person convicted of public obscenity faces up to three months in prison, a fine, or both.
Last week, crowds in several Indian cities burned effigies of the 57-year-old star of "An Officer and a Gentleman," "American Gigolo" and "Pretty Woman" after he embraced Shetty and kissed her several times on her cheeks during an HIV/AIDS awareness event in the Indian capital.
Photographs of the clinch were then splashed across front pages in India — where public displays of affection are largely taboo.
The judge lambasted Shetty for not resisting Gere's kisses and ordered her to appear in his court May 5, PTI said.
Shetty, who is on a religious pilgrimage in southern India, was upset by the news, said her spokesman, Dale Bhagwagar.
"She does hurt, she does feel low," Bhagwagar told The Associated Press. "She feels she is being constantly targeted, but anyone who knows her well knows she can't be put down."
"Shilpa wishes that people would focus on the real issue , AIDS awareness, and not three pecks on her cheek," he said, adding that she had not yet received any court summons.
Shetty, 31, has said the embrace was not obscene and that the media should instead focus on HIV/AIDS awareness.
"I understand this is his culture, not ours. But this was not such a big thing or so obscene for people to overreact in such manner," she told PTI last week. "I understand people's sentiments, but I don't want a foreigner to take bad memories from here."
Shetty, already well-known in India, became an international star after her appearance on the British reality show "Celebrity Big Brother" — another controversial public appearance. A fellow contestant, Jade Goody, sparked international headlines by making allegedly racist comments to Shetty. Mobs took to the streets of India to denounce Goody, and Shetty went on to win the competition.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/people_gere;_ylt=Ah2_TSNHpvHWqZkLg6aNXHrlWMcF
Planet Earth
I've posted some photos I found on the internet from the television series "Planet Earth" that aired on the Discovery Channel.
http://asunnyworldrevisited.blogspot.com/2007/04/planet-earth.html
http://asunnyworldrevisited.blogspot.com/2007/04/planet-earth-2.html
You can learn about this breathtaking show here;
http://dsc.discovery.com/convergence/planet-earth/planet-earth.html
http://asunnyworldrevisited.blogspot.com/2007/04/planet-earth.html
http://asunnyworldrevisited.blogspot.com/2007/04/planet-earth-2.html
You can learn about this breathtaking show here;
http://dsc.discovery.com/convergence/planet-earth/planet-earth.html
Oh this is just wrong!
The phone rings and the lady of the house answers,
"Hello."
"Mrs. Ward, please."
"Speaking"
"Mrs. Ward, this is Doctor Jones at the Medical Testing Laboratory. When your doctor sent your husband's biopsy to the lab yesterday, a biopsy from another Mr. Ward arrived as well, and we are now uncertain which one is your husband's. Frankly the results are either bad or terrible."
"What do you mean?" Mrs. Ward asks nervously.
"Well, one of the specimens tested positive for Alzheimer's and the other one tested positive for AIDS. We can't tell which your husband's is."
"That's dreadful! Can't you do the test again?" questioned Mrs. Ward.
"Normally we can, but Medicare will only pay for these expensive tests one time."
"Well, what am I supposed to do now?"
"The people at Medicare recommend that you drop your husband off somewhere in the middle of town. If he finds his way home, don't sleep with him."
"Hello."
"Mrs. Ward, please."
"Speaking"
"Mrs. Ward, this is Doctor Jones at the Medical Testing Laboratory. When your doctor sent your husband's biopsy to the lab yesterday, a biopsy from another Mr. Ward arrived as well, and we are now uncertain which one is your husband's. Frankly the results are either bad or terrible."
"What do you mean?" Mrs. Ward asks nervously.
"Well, one of the specimens tested positive for Alzheimer's and the other one tested positive for AIDS. We can't tell which your husband's is."
"That's dreadful! Can't you do the test again?" questioned Mrs. Ward.
"Normally we can, but Medicare will only pay for these expensive tests one time."
"Well, what am I supposed to do now?"
"The people at Medicare recommend that you drop your husband off somewhere in the middle of town. If he finds his way home, don't sleep with him."
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
Smart Parenting
Please take this quiz on parenting.
I hope this quiz can benefit you and your children.
I got 100%, I'd thought I wasn't doing some things right.
http://www.familyeducation.com/quiz/0,1399,1-3680,00.html
I hope this quiz can benefit you and your children.
I got 100%, I'd thought I wasn't doing some things right.
http://www.familyeducation.com/quiz/0,1399,1-3680,00.html
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
What a woman should have...
MAYA ANGELOU
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE...
enough money within her control to move out and rent a place of her own,
even if she never wants to or needs to...
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE...
something perfect to wear if the employer,
or date of her dreams wants to see her in an hour...
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE...
a youth she's content to leave behind...
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE...
a past juicy enough that she's looking forward to retelling it in her old age...
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE...
a set of screwdrivers, a cordless drill, and a black lace bra...
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE...
one friend who always makes her laugh...
and one who lets her cry...
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE...
a good piece of furniture not previously owned by anyone else in her family...
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE...
eight matching plates, wine glasses with stems,
and a recipe for a meal, that will make her guests feel honored...
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE...
a feeling of control over her destiny.
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
how to fall in love without losing herself.
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
how to quit a job, break up with a lover, and confront a friend without ruining the friendship...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
when to try harder... and
WHEN TO WALK AWAY...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
that she can't change the length of her calves, the width of her hips, or the nature of her parents...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
that her childhood may not have been perfect...but its over...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
what she would and wouldn't do for love or more...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
how to live alone... even if she doesn't like it...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
whom she can trust, whom she can't, and why she shouldn't take it personally...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
where to go... be it to her best friend's kitchen table... or a charming inn in the woods... when her soul needs soothing...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
what she can and can't accomplish in a day... a month...and a year...
A short explanation
By me posting the video below DOES NOT mean I agree with what happened at Virginia Tech. No the media should not have played this video as much as they had. No Cho should not have done what he did. I do feel that the public does have the right to know what kind of person this horrid man was. If it can help them understand him a little better then I'm all for it. I also feel it helps people learn how some people in our society can become when mental problem go untreated. This video shows us what we all should be looking for in people around us to keep safe. I will no longer explain myself to anyone with what I post. I don't have to. If you don't like what I put on my own personal blog then don't read it.
Saturday, April 21, 2007
Virginia Tech shooter diatribe on video
WARNING: CONTAINS DISTURBING IMAGES
AND VIOLENT DIALOG!
I am in no way condoning what Cho Seung-Hui did to terrorize the innocent people at Virginia Tech on April 16th by posting this video. This was a sick and twisted man with no sense of integrity, honor, or loyalty to his fellow man.
Rock on Steven Tyler!
Singer Steven Tyler of the U.S. rock band Aerosmith performs during their concert in Guadalajara, Mexico, Friday, April 20, 2007. (AP Photo/Guillermo Arias)Alec Baldwin is a shithead
No wonder I've NEVER liked this guy! What a mean old shithead! Can you imagine if any normal person in society were to ever talk to their children like this, they'd be thrown in jail for abuse. It's appalling! No father should ever have this kind of animosity toward their children. Quoted below is what Alec said on a phone message to his child.
"Hey, I want to tell you something, OK? And I want to leave a message for you right now. 'Cause again, it's 10:30 here in New York on a Wednesday, and once again I've made an ass of myself trying to get to a phone to call you at a specific time. When the time comes for me to make the phone call, I stop whatever I'm doing and I go and I make that phone call. At 11 o'clock in the morning in New York and if you don't pick up the phone at 10 o'clock at night. And you don't even have the Goddamn phone turned on. I want you to know something, OK?
I'm tired of playing this game with you. I'm leaving this message with you to tell you you have insulted me for the last time. You have insulted me. You don't have the brains or the decency as a human being. I don't give a damn that you're 12 years old, or 11 years old, or that you're a child, or that your mother is a thoughtless pain in the ass who doesn't care about what you do as far as I'm concerned. You have humiliated me for the last time with this phone.
And when I come out there next week, I'm going to fly out there for the day just to straighten you out on this issue. I'm going to let you know just how disappointed in you I am and how angry I am with you that you've done this to me again. You've made me feel like shit and you've made me feel like a fool over and over and over again. And this crap you pull on me with this Goddamn phone situation that you would never dream of doing to your mother and you do it to me constantly and over and over again. I am going to get on a plane and I am going to come out there for the day and I am going to straighten your ass out when I see you. Do you understand me? I'm going to really make sure you get it. Then I'm going to get on a plane and I'm going to turn around and come home. So you'd better be ready Friday the 20th to meet with me. So I'm going to let you know just how I feel about what a rude little pig you really are. You are a rude, thoughtless little pig, OK?"
Argh, what a pig HE is!
"Hey, I want to tell you something, OK? And I want to leave a message for you right now. 'Cause again, it's 10:30 here in New York on a Wednesday, and once again I've made an ass of myself trying to get to a phone to call you at a specific time. When the time comes for me to make the phone call, I stop whatever I'm doing and I go and I make that phone call. At 11 o'clock in the morning in New York and if you don't pick up the phone at 10 o'clock at night. And you don't even have the Goddamn phone turned on. I want you to know something, OK?
I'm tired of playing this game with you. I'm leaving this message with you to tell you you have insulted me for the last time. You have insulted me. You don't have the brains or the decency as a human being. I don't give a damn that you're 12 years old, or 11 years old, or that you're a child, or that your mother is a thoughtless pain in the ass who doesn't care about what you do as far as I'm concerned. You have humiliated me for the last time with this phone.
And when I come out there next week, I'm going to fly out there for the day just to straighten you out on this issue. I'm going to let you know just how disappointed in you I am and how angry I am with you that you've done this to me again. You've made me feel like shit and you've made me feel like a fool over and over and over again. And this crap you pull on me with this Goddamn phone situation that you would never dream of doing to your mother and you do it to me constantly and over and over again. I am going to get on a plane and I am going to come out there for the day and I am going to straighten your ass out when I see you. Do you understand me? I'm going to really make sure you get it. Then I'm going to get on a plane and I'm going to turn around and come home. So you'd better be ready Friday the 20th to meet with me. So I'm going to let you know just how I feel about what a rude little pig you really are. You are a rude, thoughtless little pig, OK?"
Argh, what a pig HE is!
Friday, April 20, 2007
Channon Christian & Christopher Newsom
There needs to be more attention put on this case!
Missing woman found dead in N. Knox house Police identify victim, 21, as girlfriend of slain man, 23
By DON JACOBS,
jacobs@knews.com
January 10, 2007
Police confirmed Tuesday night that a body found in a North Knoxville house was that of a missing woman whose boyfriend had been killed and left along railroad tracks. Knoxville Police Department spokesman Darrell DeBusk said police determined the body is that of Channon Christian, 21, of West Knox County.
Authorities discovered Christian's body about 2 p.m. at 2316 Chipman St., near where the body of 23-year-old Christopher Newsom was found over the weekend.
Newsom's body was found at 12:24 p.m. Sunday by a Norfolk Southern railway employee who saw it along tracks between Ninth Avenue and Cherry Street, DeBusk said. The spokesman said an autopsy was performed on Newsom's body, but he declined to say how the Halls High School graduate was killed.
"We're not discussing the manner of death or the condition of the body when found," DeBusk said.
Sgt. Tim Snoderly, who commands the KPD investigative unit, declined to say how authorities targeted the Chipman Street residence for a search.
The KPD Special Operations Squad, which is trained to smash into hostile environments, was sent into the house first. Snoderly said the special unit was called "as a precautionary measure."
Snoderly said the residence where Christian's body was found is a rental property. No one was home when police entered, he said.
"We don't know if they're going to come home or not," Snoderly said.
Police seized a Toyota Camry from near the house and had it towed to an impound lot, DeBusk said.
"It was just a vehicle in the area that we thought might be important," DeBusk said.
He declined to say if investigators found any drugs or weapons in the house.
Newsom's father, Hugh Newsom, said Tuesday night that the family had hoped Christian would be found alive.
"It was a letdown when the body was found," Hugh Newsom said.
"We sympathize so much with her family because we've been through this."
Hugh Newsom said he had met Christian several times. He called Christian, a senior at the University of Tennessee, "a fantastic person."
"Chris was just crazy about her," he said.
Police on Monday found Christian's silver 2005 Toyota 4-Runner two blocks from the house where the body was discovered. The vehicle had been abandoned at a stop sign at the intersection of Glider Avenue and Chipman Street.
About four hours after Newsom's body was found Sunday, Christian's mother filed a missing-person report with the Knox County Sheriff's Office, records show. Denna Gail Christian told investigators her daughter probably was with her boyfriend, Newsom.
Denna Christian told the KCSO she had last spoken with Channon Christian about 12:35 a.m. Sunday. At that time, Denna Christian told authorities, her daughter was planning to visit friends on Washington Pike.
Denna Christian told the KCSO that her daughter had no drug or alcohol problem and had not had a recent confrontation with anyone.
Chris Newsom and Channon Christian had been dating since November.
After Denna Christian filed the missing person report, she contacted the Newsoms.
"At that time, we were aware of a body being found, but we had no idea it was Chris," Hugh Newsom said.
By midday Monday, Hugh Newsom said, Snoderly notified the family of their son's death. Snoderly, who is a friend of the Newsoms, was able to identify the body, Hugh Newsom said.
DeBusk declined to say when the couple had been to see their friends at the Washington Pike apartment. He said investigators determined the couple planned to have dinner and then watch movies with friends.
"We're trying to build a timeline of their activities," DeBusk said.
Carl Hunley, who lives next door to the house where the body was found, said a man, a woman and her two preschool-age children moved into the house about three months ago. Behind the house Tuesday were several children's toys, including a tricycle.
Hunley said he didn't speak much to his neighbors. About three weeks ago, he said, there was a drive-by shooting at the house. Police were called about the shooting, Hunley said.
About two weeks ago the woman left with her two children, Hunley said.
"It's been like Grand Central Station since then," he said of numerous visits by people at all hours of the night to his neighbor's residence.
Hunley said he and his family were not at home this weekend when Christian and Newsom went missing.
Misty Boshears, 31, who lives on Chipman Street, said her neighborhood bears the scars of being located next to an industrial area. Police already busted a crack house and a residence used for prostitution in the area, she said.
"I'm shocked, but I'm not shocked," said Boshears, the mother of a girl not allowed to play outside because of the danger.
"If you come down here, you're either visiting someone or you're buying drugs," she said.
The KCSO joined KPD officers during the search for Channon Christian because the missing-person report was filed in the county. DeBusk said Sheriff's Office detectives will continue to assist as police search for those responsible for the two slayings.
DeBusk said KPD is being careful about what is released to the public about the slayings.
"We've got a very active investigation, and we don't want to jeopardize the investigation, so we're being very careful about what we release," he said.
Don Jacobs may be reached at 865-342-6345.
http://tinyurl.com/26yked
Here are more links about this story.
http://mylifeofcrime.wordpress.com/tag/channon-christian/
http://www.wbir.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=41276&provider=top
http://www.volunteertv.com/home/headlines/5133501.html
http://www.wate.com/Global/story.asp?S=5930690
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Channon_Christian_and_Christopher_Newsom_Murder
Missing woman found dead in N. Knox house Police identify victim, 21, as girlfriend of slain man, 23
By DON JACOBS,
jacobs@knews.com
January 10, 2007
Police confirmed Tuesday night that a body found in a North Knoxville house was that of a missing woman whose boyfriend had been killed and left along railroad tracks. Knoxville Police Department spokesman Darrell DeBusk said police determined the body is that of Channon Christian, 21, of West Knox County.
Authorities discovered Christian's body about 2 p.m. at 2316 Chipman St., near where the body of 23-year-old Christopher Newsom was found over the weekend.
Newsom's body was found at 12:24 p.m. Sunday by a Norfolk Southern railway employee who saw it along tracks between Ninth Avenue and Cherry Street, DeBusk said. The spokesman said an autopsy was performed on Newsom's body, but he declined to say how the Halls High School graduate was killed.
"We're not discussing the manner of death or the condition of the body when found," DeBusk said.
Sgt. Tim Snoderly, who commands the KPD investigative unit, declined to say how authorities targeted the Chipman Street residence for a search.
The KPD Special Operations Squad, which is trained to smash into hostile environments, was sent into the house first. Snoderly said the special unit was called "as a precautionary measure."
Snoderly said the residence where Christian's body was found is a rental property. No one was home when police entered, he said.
"We don't know if they're going to come home or not," Snoderly said.
Police seized a Toyota Camry from near the house and had it towed to an impound lot, DeBusk said.
"It was just a vehicle in the area that we thought might be important," DeBusk said.
He declined to say if investigators found any drugs or weapons in the house.
Newsom's father, Hugh Newsom, said Tuesday night that the family had hoped Christian would be found alive.
"It was a letdown when the body was found," Hugh Newsom said.
"We sympathize so much with her family because we've been through this."
Hugh Newsom said he had met Christian several times. He called Christian, a senior at the University of Tennessee, "a fantastic person."
"Chris was just crazy about her," he said.
Police on Monday found Christian's silver 2005 Toyota 4-Runner two blocks from the house where the body was discovered. The vehicle had been abandoned at a stop sign at the intersection of Glider Avenue and Chipman Street.
About four hours after Newsom's body was found Sunday, Christian's mother filed a missing-person report with the Knox County Sheriff's Office, records show. Denna Gail Christian told investigators her daughter probably was with her boyfriend, Newsom.
Denna Christian told the KCSO she had last spoken with Channon Christian about 12:35 a.m. Sunday. At that time, Denna Christian told authorities, her daughter was planning to visit friends on Washington Pike.
Denna Christian told the KCSO that her daughter had no drug or alcohol problem and had not had a recent confrontation with anyone.
Chris Newsom and Channon Christian had been dating since November.
After Denna Christian filed the missing person report, she contacted the Newsoms.
"At that time, we were aware of a body being found, but we had no idea it was Chris," Hugh Newsom said.
By midday Monday, Hugh Newsom said, Snoderly notified the family of their son's death. Snoderly, who is a friend of the Newsoms, was able to identify the body, Hugh Newsom said.
DeBusk declined to say when the couple had been to see their friends at the Washington Pike apartment. He said investigators determined the couple planned to have dinner and then watch movies with friends.
"We're trying to build a timeline of their activities," DeBusk said.
Carl Hunley, who lives next door to the house where the body was found, said a man, a woman and her two preschool-age children moved into the house about three months ago. Behind the house Tuesday were several children's toys, including a tricycle.
Hunley said he didn't speak much to his neighbors. About three weeks ago, he said, there was a drive-by shooting at the house. Police were called about the shooting, Hunley said.
About two weeks ago the woman left with her two children, Hunley said.
"It's been like Grand Central Station since then," he said of numerous visits by people at all hours of the night to his neighbor's residence.
Hunley said he and his family were not at home this weekend when Christian and Newsom went missing.
Misty Boshears, 31, who lives on Chipman Street, said her neighborhood bears the scars of being located next to an industrial area. Police already busted a crack house and a residence used for prostitution in the area, she said.
"I'm shocked, but I'm not shocked," said Boshears, the mother of a girl not allowed to play outside because of the danger.
"If you come down here, you're either visiting someone or you're buying drugs," she said.
The KCSO joined KPD officers during the search for Channon Christian because the missing-person report was filed in the county. DeBusk said Sheriff's Office detectives will continue to assist as police search for those responsible for the two slayings.
DeBusk said KPD is being careful about what is released to the public about the slayings.
"We've got a very active investigation, and we don't want to jeopardize the investigation, so we're being very careful about what we release," he said.
Don Jacobs may be reached at 865-342-6345.
http://tinyurl.com/26yked
Here are more links about this story.
http://mylifeofcrime.wordpress.com/tag/channon-christian/
http://www.wbir.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=41276&provider=top
http://www.volunteertv.com/home/headlines/5133501.html
http://www.wate.com/Global/story.asp?S=5930690
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Channon_Christian_and_Christopher_Newsom_Murder
Thursday, April 19, 2007
Christopher Barrios Law
I wanted to draw your attention to this important petition that I recently signed:
"Christopher Barrios Law"
Christopher Barrios was a 6 year old boy raped and murdered by convicted child molesters. We MUST change the laws. Our goal is to have a federal law that supercedes the various state laws. If a person is convicted ONCE for molesting a child he/she should spend life in prison without the possibility of parole. The one strike law!
I really think this is an important cause, and I'd like to encourage you to add your signature, too.
It's free and takes less than a minute of your time.
Thank you!
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Clemson University sends condolences to Virginia Tech and talk about security
Upstate Offers Help, Prayers To Virginia Tech
POSTED: 5:15 pm EDT April 16, 2007
UPDATED: 2:42 pm EDT April 17, 2007
GREENVILLE, S.C. -- Many people in the Upstate -- whether or not they have ties to Virginia Tech -- are trying to determine what they can do to help in the wake of Monday’s deadly rampage.
"We'd like to start the healing process as soon as we can with this tragic event,” Tech graduate Tom Carter told WYFF News 4. “All of us are deeply saddened by what happened."
Clemson University has offered to send a team of counselors to Blacksburg to help with the healing process.
Tuesday afternoon, students shared a moment of silence with the students and staff at Virgina Tech at 2 p.m.
A group of Clemson students also had cards and posters outside the school’s library for people to send their condolences.
Ben Whitehead and Dustin Weather worked on a banner that said "Hokies in our hearts." Students, staff and members of the community are signing the card that Whitehead and Weather plan to deliver to Virginia Tech over the weekend.
Whitehead said, "We're thinking about them and praying for them (and) looking forward to going up on Sunday meeting several people telling them Clemson University is praying for them."
A group of Virginia Tech graduates plan a prayer and remembrance service Tuesday at 7 p.m. at Advent United Methodist Church in Simpsonville.
St. Matthew United Methodist Church in Greenville is also holding a service of prayer and healing at 6:45 p.m. Tuesday that is open to the community. The church is located on Cleveland Street next to the YMCA.
Upstate Families Waiting, Wondering
Monday’s deadly shooting at Virginia Tech had families all across the region waiting and wondering if their loved ones were OK.
Alice Wagner of Greenville is a sophomore at the Blacksburg, Va., school. She was unharmed by the shooting, but not unaffected.
“I can't believe this is happening,” Wagner told WYFF News 4. “We're in Blacksburg, Va., which is a small town and you wouldn't think this kind of thing would happen."
Wagner said that some of her friends had classes in the buildings where the shootings took place and that she did not know if they were harmed or even in the rooms where the shootings took place.
Wagner went to Riverside High School.
Clemson Security
At Clemson University, Monday’s massacre has students and security personnel thinking about safety.
Some Clemson students who have friends who go to Virginia Tech and others who say it’s not hard to imagine that sort of thing happening here.
"I have a lot of friends that go to Virginia Tech, so it was one of those things that hit home," Clemson Student Kevin Fitzsimmons said.
"I mean, realistically, there's no way you can really prevent it,” said student James Burnham. “There's no metal detectors and someone can just walk in. It's a public place, you know."
Clemson’s police said that they work hard to prevent crime, but that effective safety measures require that everony on campus is vigilant.
“There's a finite number of people that are working the police department,” University Police Chief Johnson Link said. “We depend on the other people out there in the buildings to report and to be eyes for the police department to help us to see what's going on in the community."
http://www.wyff4.com/news/12193845/detail.html
POSTED: 5:15 pm EDT April 16, 2007
UPDATED: 2:42 pm EDT April 17, 2007
GREENVILLE, S.C. -- Many people in the Upstate -- whether or not they have ties to Virginia Tech -- are trying to determine what they can do to help in the wake of Monday’s deadly rampage.
"We'd like to start the healing process as soon as we can with this tragic event,” Tech graduate Tom Carter told WYFF News 4. “All of us are deeply saddened by what happened."
Clemson University has offered to send a team of counselors to Blacksburg to help with the healing process.
Tuesday afternoon, students shared a moment of silence with the students and staff at Virgina Tech at 2 p.m.
A group of Clemson students also had cards and posters outside the school’s library for people to send their condolences.
Ben Whitehead and Dustin Weather worked on a banner that said "Hokies in our hearts." Students, staff and members of the community are signing the card that Whitehead and Weather plan to deliver to Virginia Tech over the weekend.
Whitehead said, "We're thinking about them and praying for them (and) looking forward to going up on Sunday meeting several people telling them Clemson University is praying for them."
A group of Virginia Tech graduates plan a prayer and remembrance service Tuesday at 7 p.m. at Advent United Methodist Church in Simpsonville.
St. Matthew United Methodist Church in Greenville is also holding a service of prayer and healing at 6:45 p.m. Tuesday that is open to the community. The church is located on Cleveland Street next to the YMCA.
Upstate Families Waiting, Wondering
Monday’s deadly shooting at Virginia Tech had families all across the region waiting and wondering if their loved ones were OK.
Alice Wagner of Greenville is a sophomore at the Blacksburg, Va., school. She was unharmed by the shooting, but not unaffected.
“I can't believe this is happening,” Wagner told WYFF News 4. “We're in Blacksburg, Va., which is a small town and you wouldn't think this kind of thing would happen."
Wagner said that some of her friends had classes in the buildings where the shootings took place and that she did not know if they were harmed or even in the rooms where the shootings took place.
Wagner went to Riverside High School.
Clemson Security
At Clemson University, Monday’s massacre has students and security personnel thinking about safety.
Some Clemson students who have friends who go to Virginia Tech and others who say it’s not hard to imagine that sort of thing happening here.
"I have a lot of friends that go to Virginia Tech, so it was one of those things that hit home," Clemson Student Kevin Fitzsimmons said.
"I mean, realistically, there's no way you can really prevent it,” said student James Burnham. “There's no metal detectors and someone can just walk in. It's a public place, you know."
Clemson’s police said that they work hard to prevent crime, but that effective safety measures require that everony on campus is vigilant.
“There's a finite number of people that are working the police department,” University Police Chief Johnson Link said. “We depend on the other people out there in the buildings to report and to be eyes for the police department to help us to see what's going on in the community."
http://www.wyff4.com/news/12193845/detail.html
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
Names Of Virginia Tech Shooting Victims
Here is a list of victims of the shootings at Virginia Tech:
Ross Abdallah Alameddine
Christopher James Bishop
Brian Roy Bluhm
Ryan Christopher Clark
Austin Michelle Cloyd
Jocelyne Couture-Nowak
Kevin P. Granata
Matthew Gregory Gwaltney
Caitlin Millar Hammaren
Jeremy Michael Herbstritt
Rachael Elizabeth Hill
Emily Jane Hilscher
Jarrett Lee Lane
Matthew Joseph La Porte
Henry J. Lee
Liviu Librescu
G.V. Loganathan
Partahi Mamora Halomoan Lumbantoruan
Lauren Ashley McCain
Daniel Patrick O'Neil
Juan Ramon Ortiz-Ortiz
Minal Hiralal Panchal
Daniel AlejandroPerez-Cueva
Erin Nicole Peterson
Michael Steven Pohle, Jr.
Julia Kathleen Pryde
Mary Karen Read
Reema Joseph Samaha
Waleed Mohamed Shaalan
Leslie Geraldine Sherman
Maxine Shelly Turner
Nicole White
May you all have peace in the hereafter.
Ross Abdallah Alameddine
Christopher James Bishop
Brian Roy Bluhm
Ryan Christopher Clark
Austin Michelle Cloyd
Jocelyne Couture-Nowak
Kevin P. Granata
Matthew Gregory Gwaltney
Caitlin Millar Hammaren
Jeremy Michael Herbstritt
Rachael Elizabeth Hill
Emily Jane Hilscher
Jarrett Lee Lane
Matthew Joseph La Porte
Henry J. Lee
Liviu Librescu
G.V. Loganathan
Partahi Mamora Halomoan Lumbantoruan
Lauren Ashley McCain
Daniel Patrick O'Neil
Juan Ramon Ortiz-Ortiz
Minal Hiralal Panchal
Daniel AlejandroPerez-Cueva
Erin Nicole Peterson
Michael Steven Pohle, Jr.
Julia Kathleen Pryde
Mary Karen Read
Reema Joseph Samaha
Waleed Mohamed Shaalan
Leslie Geraldine Sherman
Maxine Shelly Turner
Nicole White
May you all have peace in the hereafter.
South Korean Senior ID'd As Virginia Tech Shooter
Apr 17 2007 5:56PMBLACKSBURG, Va. - The gunman suspected of carrying out the Virginia Tech massacre that left 33 people dead was described Tuesday as a sullen loner whose creative writing in English class was so disturbing that he was referred to the school's counseling service.
News reports also said that he may have been taking medication for depression, that he was becoming increasingly violent and erratic, and that he left a note in his dorm in which he railed against "rich kids," "debauchery" and "deceitful charlatans" on campus.
Cho Seung-Hui, a 23-year-old senior majoring in English, arrived in the United States as boy from South Korea in 1992 and was raised in suburban Washington, D.C., officials said. He was living on campus in a different dorm from the one where Monday's bloodbath began.
Police and university officials offered no clues as to exactly what set him off on the deadliest shooting rampage in modern U.S. history.
"He was a loner, and we're having difficulty finding information about him," school spokesman Larry Hincker said.
On Tuesday afternoon, thousands of people gathered in the basketball arena, and when it filled up, thousands more filed into the football stadium, for a memorial service for the victims. President Bush and the first lady attended. Virginia Tech President Charles Steger received a 30-second standing ovation, despite bitter complaints from parents and students that the university should have locked down the campus immediately after the first burst of gunfire.
Steger expressed hope that "we will awaken from this horrible nightmare." "As you draw closer to your families in the coming days, I ask you to reach out to those who ache for sons and daughters who are never coming home," Bush said.
A vast portrait of the victims began to emerge, among them: Christopher James Bishop, 35, who taught German at Virginia Tech and helped oversee an exchange program with a German university; Ryan "Stack" Clark, a 22-year-old student from Martinez, Ga., who was in the marching band and was working toward degrees in biology and English; Emily Jane Hilscher, a 19-year-old freshman from Woodville, Va., who was majoring in animal and poultry sciences and, naturally, loved animals; and Liviu Librescu, an Israeli engineering and math lecturer who was said to have protected his students' lives by blocking the doorway of his classroom from the approaching gunman.
Meanwhile, a chilling portrait of the gunman as a misfit began to emerge. Professor Carolyn Rude, chairwoman of the university's English department, said she did not know Cho. But she said she spoke with Lucinda Roy, the department's director of creative writing, who had Cho in one of her classes and described him as "troubled."
"There was some concern about him," Rude said. "Sometimes, in creative writing, people reveal things and you never know if it's creative or if they're describing things, if they're imagining things or just how real it might be. But we're all alert to not ignore things like this."
She said Cho was referred to the counseling service, but she said she did not know when, or what the outcome was. Rude refused to release any of his writings or his grades, citing privacy laws.
The Chicago Tribune reported on its Web site that he left a note in his dorm room that included a rambling list of grievances. Citing unidentified sources, the Tribune said he had recently shown troubling signs, including setting a fire in a dorm room and stalking some women.
ABC, citing law enforcement sources, reported that the note, several pages long, explains Cho's actions and says, "You caused me to do this."
Investigators believe Cho at some point had been taking medication for depression, the Tribune reported.
Classmates said that on the first day of an introduction to British literature class last year, the 30 or so English students went around and introduced themselves. When it was Cho's turn, he didn't speak.
The professor looked at the sign-in sheet and, where everyone else had written their names, Cho had written a question mark. "Is your name, `Question mark?"' classmate Julie Poole recalled the professor asking. The young man offered little response.
Cho spent much of that class sitting in the back of the room, wearing a hat and seldom participating. In a small department, Cho distinguished himself for being anonymous. "He didn't reach out to anyone. He never talked," Poole said.
"We just really knew him as the question mark kid," Poole said.
The rampage consisted of two attacks, more than two hours apart - first at a dormitory, where two people were killed, then inside a classroom building, where 31 people, including Cho, died after being locked inside, Virginia State Police said. Cho committed suicide; two handguns - a 9 mm and a .22-caliber - were found in the classroom building.
One law enforcement official said Cho's backpack contained a receipt for a March purchase of a Glock 9 mm pistol. Cho held a green card, meaning he was a legal, permanent resident, federal officials said. That meant he was eligible to buy a handgun unless he had been convicted of a felony.
Roanoke Firearms owner John Markell said his shop sold the Glock and a box of practice ammo to Cho 36 days ago for $571.
He was a nice, clean-cut college kid. We won't sell a gun if we have any idea at all that a purchase is suspicious," Markell said. Markell said it is not unusual for college kids to make purchases at his shop as long as they are old enough.
"To find out the gun came from my shop is just terrible," Markell said.
Investigators stopped short of saying Cho carried out both attacks. But ballistics tests show one gun was used in both, Virginia State Police said.
And two law enforcement officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because the information had not been announced, said Cho's fingerprints were found on both guns. The serial numbers on the two weapons had been filed off, the officials said.
Col. Steve Flaherty, superintendent of the Virginia State Police, said it was reasonable to assume that Cho was the shooter in both attacks but that the link was not yet definitive. "There's no evidence of any accomplice at either event, but we're exploring the possibility," he said.
Officials said Cho graduated from Westfield High School in Chantilly, Va., in 2003. His family lived in an off-white, two-story townhouse in Centreville, Va.
Two of those killed in the shooting rampage, Reema Samaha and Erin Peterson, graduated from Westfield High in 2006, school officials said. But there was no immediate word from authorities on whether Cho knew the two young women and singled them out.
"He was very quiet, always by himself," neighbor Abdul Shash said. Shash said Cho spent a lot of his free time playing basketball and would not respond if someone greeted him. He described the family as quiet.
South Korea expressed its condolences, and said it hoped that the tragedy would not "stir up racial prejudice or confrontation." "We are in shock beyond description," said Cho Byung-se, a Foreign Ministry official handling North American affairs.
Classes were canceled for the rest of the week. Norris Hall, the classroom building, will be closed for the rest of the semester.
Many students were leaving town quickly, lugging pillows, sleeping bags and backpacks down the sidewalks.
Jessie Ferguson, 19, a freshman from Arlington, left Newman Hall and headed for her car with tears streaming down her red cheeks.
"I'm still kind of shaky," she said. "I had to pump myself up just to kind of come out of the building. I was going to come out, but it took a little bit of 'OK, it's going to be all right. There's lots of cops around."'
Although she wanted to be with friends, she wanted her family more. "I just don't want to be on campus," she said.
Until Monday, the deadliest shooting in modern U.S. history was in Killeen, Texas, in 1991, when George Hennard plowed his pickup truck into a Luby's Cafeteria and shot 23 people to death, then himself.
Previously, the deadliest campus shooting in U.S. history was a rampage that took place in 1966 at the University of Texas at Austin, where Charles Whitman climbed the clock tower and opened fire with a rifle from the 28th-floor observation deck. He killed 16 people before he was shot to death by police.
Associated Press writers Stephen Manning in Centreville, Va.; Matt Barakat in Richmond, Va.; and Vicki Smith, Sue Lindsey and Justin Pope in Blacksburg contributed to this report.
Virginia Tech Shooting Victim Had Ohio State Ties
Apr 17 2007 5:56PMCOLUMBUS, Ohio - An Ohio State University graduate was among the 32 people who were killed by a gunman on the Virginia Tech University campus Monday morning.
Dr. Kevin P. Granata was listed among the victims Tuesday morning. Granata was an engineering science and mechanics professor at Virginia Tech, according to Ishwar K. Puri, the head of the school's engineering science and mechanics department.
According to his biography on the Virginia Tech Web site, Granata received his Ph.D. from Ohio State in 1993 and was a research scientist in Columbus from 1993-97. Granata also graduated from Ohio State in 1984 with a Bachelor's of Science degree in engineering physics and electrical engineering.
Granata was a great bio-engineering professor, but to his former colleagues at Ohio State, he was a dear friend.
"We'd sit in this office for hours and have these wonderful conversations about where the field was going, what needed to be done, and how you'd going about doing it," said Dr. Bill Marras, OSU Biodynamics Lab.
Marras told 10TV he emailed his friend the minute he learned of the shootings, to make sure he was okay.
"I didn't hear back from him, so I called his wife about 5 p.m. last night and at that time she hadn't heard from him," Marras said.
Granata was married and had three children, ages 14, 10 and 8, 10TV News reported.
Granata's office was located in Norris Hall, the site where a gunman wielding two handguns and carrying multiple clips of ammunition stormed the building.
The classroom shooter was later identified as Cho-Seung-Hui, 23, a senior from South Korea who was in the English department at Virginia Tech and lived in a different dorm on campus. Cho committed suicide after the attacks, and there was no indication Tuesday of any possible motive.
Granata also spent time at Johns Hopkins University, the University of Virginia and Wake Forest University, according to the Virginia Tech Web site.
Stay with 10TV News and refresh 10TV.com for continuing coverage.
Reported by Angela An
Monday, April 16, 2007
Virginia Tech witness/Ohio State University security
Apr 16, 6:18 PM EDT
Ohio students escape shooting spree in dorm
One Ohio student was sleeping in her dorm at Virginia Tech when Monday's shooting spree started on the floor above. Another was leaving the dorm for class. Both were a little rattled, but unharmed.
Freshman Ashlee Goodwin, of Granville, was awakened when a friend called her to tell her about the shooting.
"I was going to get up early this morning and go for a jog, and thank goodness I was lazy," Goodwin told The (Newark) Advocate.
Goodwin said she was shaken by the shooting.
"That freaked me out; I slept through a gunshot," she said.
Goodwin said that, following the shooting, she and fellow dorm residents were told to stay in their rooms unless they needed to use the bathroom.
"All today, I'm afraid to walk down the hall," Goodwin said.
Freshman Courtney Campbell, also of Granville, left the dorm for an 8 a.m. class. She said she didn't hear anything unusual, but did see what she now believes were some paramedics. However, she said things seemed pretty normal as she walked to class.
A gunman opened fire in the dorm about 7:15 a.m. and two hours later in a classroom across campus, killing 32 people and himself.
"It makes me a little bit uneasy, but it doesn't make me paranoid," Campbell said in a telephone interview from West Ambler Johnston Hall.
After Campbell arrived at her class, she and some fellow students drove to nearby Christiansburg to pick up some school supplies. That's when she began hearing reports of the shootings.
Campbell returned to her dorm in the afternoon and talked with fellow students there, who were being flooded with calls from family and friends.
"We're all just sitting in the room. The phone calls just keep coming in. It's going haywire," she said. "My roommate - she's a little bit upset. She knows a few people who were injured."
Student Travis Nebel, whose parents live in the Columbus suburb of Powell and whose father once taught at Virginia Tech, said he was off-campus when the second series of shootings occurred.
"This has really shaken me up, and I'm sure everyone else," Nebel said. "It seems almost surreal, watching it on TV. ... It's like your brain doesn't pick it up, or maybe I don't want to pick it up yet."
Campbell said she has never felt unsafe on the campus.
"It's unfair that their (Virginia Tech's name) would be tainted with this," she said. "The students here are all wonderful."
Campbell said she knows a few students who have gone home.
"I'm planning on staying here," she said. "If school is canceled later in the week, I'll go home with my roommate."
Nebel's father, Ray Nebel, found to his immense relief Monday that his two sons who attend the school where not victims of the shooting rampage on campus.
He said he immediately called 19-year-old Travis his youngest son, a freshman who shares an apartment with his older brother, Ryan, 23.
"They were both there and were OK," said Nebel.
He said the school was a big part of the community of about 30,000 or so.
"It's a very close campus and very much a college town," he said. "It just goes to show that if it can happen there, it can happen anywhere. It seems to have been a random act of violence and nothing associated with the school itself."
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/O/OH_VIRGINIA_TECH_OHIO_OHOL-?SITE=WBNSTV&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT
Campus Security Examined After Shootings
Apr 16 2007 6:33PM
COLUMBUS, Ohio The shock of what happened 300 miles away from Columbus on Monday resonates on college campuses that work every day to secure their students.
Students on the Ohio State campus said what happened in Virginia could just as easily happen in Columbus. Students told 10TV the university is all-access, and maybe too open.
"I could absolutely see how somebody could bring a couple of guns into class and nobody even notice," said Ohio State engineering student Stefan Kalbi.
Ohio State dormitories are restricted access and an ID is needed to get any further than the front door. However, OSU police agreed that it is an open university and little can be done to prevent an attack.
"So our planning is just to respond to an incident such as this with the ultimate goal to reduce loss of life," said OSU police Assistant Chief Rick Amweg.
The university's critical incident plan and comprehensive emergency management plan are secret for security reasons, but spelled out in detail for police and emergency responders.
The OSU Police Critical Response Team routinely trains with Columbus SWAT officers so officers are ready to execute what OSU calls 'quick action deployment plans'.
Those plans do little to comfort students like Kalbli, who decided to stay home from class.
"It kind of rattles you, Kalbi said. You're not in a bubble. Anything could happen."
Ohio State police said the campus has the advantage of being located in an urban setting, where Columbus police, the Ohio Highway patrol, and the Franklin County Sheriff's office are just a phone call away.
Stay with 10TV News and 10TV.com for continuing coverage
http://www.10tv.com/?sec=&story=sites/10tv/content/pool/200704/1234188074.html
Ohio students escape shooting spree in dorm
One Ohio student was sleeping in her dorm at Virginia Tech when Monday's shooting spree started on the floor above. Another was leaving the dorm for class. Both were a little rattled, but unharmed.
Freshman Ashlee Goodwin, of Granville, was awakened when a friend called her to tell her about the shooting.
"I was going to get up early this morning and go for a jog, and thank goodness I was lazy," Goodwin told The (Newark) Advocate.
Goodwin said she was shaken by the shooting.
"That freaked me out; I slept through a gunshot," she said.
Goodwin said that, following the shooting, she and fellow dorm residents were told to stay in their rooms unless they needed to use the bathroom.
"All today, I'm afraid to walk down the hall," Goodwin said.
Freshman Courtney Campbell, also of Granville, left the dorm for an 8 a.m. class. She said she didn't hear anything unusual, but did see what she now believes were some paramedics. However, she said things seemed pretty normal as she walked to class.
A gunman opened fire in the dorm about 7:15 a.m. and two hours later in a classroom across campus, killing 32 people and himself.
"It makes me a little bit uneasy, but it doesn't make me paranoid," Campbell said in a telephone interview from West Ambler Johnston Hall.
After Campbell arrived at her class, she and some fellow students drove to nearby Christiansburg to pick up some school supplies. That's when she began hearing reports of the shootings.
Campbell returned to her dorm in the afternoon and talked with fellow students there, who were being flooded with calls from family and friends.
"We're all just sitting in the room. The phone calls just keep coming in. It's going haywire," she said. "My roommate - she's a little bit upset. She knows a few people who were injured."
Student Travis Nebel, whose parents live in the Columbus suburb of Powell and whose father once taught at Virginia Tech, said he was off-campus when the second series of shootings occurred.
"This has really shaken me up, and I'm sure everyone else," Nebel said. "It seems almost surreal, watching it on TV. ... It's like your brain doesn't pick it up, or maybe I don't want to pick it up yet."
Campbell said she has never felt unsafe on the campus.
"It's unfair that their (Virginia Tech's name) would be tainted with this," she said. "The students here are all wonderful."
Campbell said she knows a few students who have gone home.
"I'm planning on staying here," she said. "If school is canceled later in the week, I'll go home with my roommate."
Nebel's father, Ray Nebel, found to his immense relief Monday that his two sons who attend the school where not victims of the shooting rampage on campus.
He said he immediately called 19-year-old Travis his youngest son, a freshman who shares an apartment with his older brother, Ryan, 23.
"They were both there and were OK," said Nebel.
He said the school was a big part of the community of about 30,000 or so.
"It's a very close campus and very much a college town," he said. "It just goes to show that if it can happen there, it can happen anywhere. It seems to have been a random act of violence and nothing associated with the school itself."
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/O/OH_VIRGINIA_TECH_OHIO_OHOL-?SITE=WBNSTV&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT
Campus Security Examined After Shootings
Apr 16 2007 6:33PM
COLUMBUS, Ohio The shock of what happened 300 miles away from Columbus on Monday resonates on college campuses that work every day to secure their students.
Students on the Ohio State campus said what happened in Virginia could just as easily happen in Columbus. Students told 10TV the university is all-access, and maybe too open.
"I could absolutely see how somebody could bring a couple of guns into class and nobody even notice," said Ohio State engineering student Stefan Kalbi.
Ohio State dormitories are restricted access and an ID is needed to get any further than the front door. However, OSU police agreed that it is an open university and little can be done to prevent an attack.
"So our planning is just to respond to an incident such as this with the ultimate goal to reduce loss of life," said OSU police Assistant Chief Rick Amweg.
The university's critical incident plan and comprehensive emergency management plan are secret for security reasons, but spelled out in detail for police and emergency responders.
The OSU Police Critical Response Team routinely trains with Columbus SWAT officers so officers are ready to execute what OSU calls 'quick action deployment plans'.
Those plans do little to comfort students like Kalbli, who decided to stay home from class.
"It kind of rattles you, Kalbi said. You're not in a bubble. Anything could happen."
Ohio State police said the campus has the advantage of being located in an urban setting, where Columbus police, the Ohio Highway patrol, and the Franklin County Sheriff's office are just a phone call away.
Stay with 10TV News and 10TV.com for continuing coverage
http://www.10tv.com/?sec=&story=sites/10tv/content/pool/200704/1234188074.html
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