Mass Shooting At Dark Knight Rises Showing In Colorado - 14 Dead

[Sam18]

Sam, I generally enjoy your humor, but no good parent brings a 3 month old child to a midnight movie, shootings or not. Children at that age need to be home or at a sitters. The way theaters are now in terms of surround sound, there is no way this child would have slept the entire time.

I thought we were discussing the shooting not whether babies are loud in theaters?

[TheManKnownAsMecca]

I thought we were discussing the shooting not whether babies are loud in theaters?

I discussed both. The shooting appears to be premeditated and it seems to be a case of wrong place/wrong time. The shooter

I then went on to say that a 3 month old had no business being in a threater at midnight. A baby at that age will not sleep in a theater with the noise coming from the surround sound. Good parents know better.

[Texsahara]

I discussed both. The shooting appears to be premeditated and it seems to be a case of wrong place/wrong time. The shooter

I then went on to say that a 3 month old had no business being in a threater at midnight. A baby at that age will not sleep in a theater with the noise coming from the surround sound. Good parents know better.

Ridiculous and completely untrue. I took all four of my kids to movies when they were infants and I was on maternity leave. Fed them right before going in and they slept like the babies that they are for the next 2j-3 hours. But I guess I should just tattoo ................ty parent across my forehead since the expert dude on a baseball message board believes good parents know better.

[THEBOSS84]

Ridiculous and completely untrue. I took all four of my kids to movies when they were infants and I was on maternity leave. Fed them right before going in and they slept like the babies that they are for the next 2j-3 hours. But I guess I should just tattoo ................ty parent across my forehead since the expert dude on a baseball message board believes good parents know better.

If your baby started crying loudly, would you have left or would you just sit there and let the other paying customers have their movie ruined?

[fredgmuggs]

What is wrong with this world?

Unfortunately there are monsters who walk among us but when events of the world get me down I like to think of the men and women I've been blessed to know who have integrity, compassion, and virtue. They help me remember there is still goodness out there.

[Texsahara]

If your baby started crying loudly, would you have left or would you just sit there and let the other paying customers have their movie ruined?

Crying loudly? I always sat in the last row on the aisle so if the baby made so much as a peep I was out of there. Everyone with a baby is not an inconsiderate pig ya know.

[YankeePride1967]

I wouldn't bring a child to a adult oriented movie or a baby to a movie at all. I've been to far too many movies where right in the middle of the movie there goes a baby crying and of course while most at least take the baby out, some parents can't miss a minute of the movie so we all have to miss hearing what is going on. But to me what's worse is seeing parents bring kids (old enough to know what is going on) to a movie that is clearly adult oriented. I went to see Ted and was sitting in front of a woman with two children, one around 8, the other around 5-6. Unless the woman thought it was about a cute Teddy Bear talking, I have no idea what she was thinking.

[LongLiveBernie51!]

People that were there are saying a guy got up to answer his phone and opened the exit door... Now the question is if that was the shooter or if it was an accomplice... Scary

If that's true, I wonder how they will keep something like this from happening again without having to just outright lock the exits and be in fire code violation.

I've never seen anyone use one of the exits at the front of the theater in 30 years of going to the theater. If anyone ever does, l'll definitely be thinking twice.

[TheManKnownAsMecca]

Ridiculous and completely untrue. I took all four of my kids to movies when they were infants and I was on maternity leave. Fed them right before going in and they slept like the babies that they are for the next 2j-3 hours. But I guess I should just tattoo ................ty parent across my forehead since the expert dude on a baseball message board believes good parents know better.

I know a good tattoo artist if you took them to the movies at midnight...

[BobLoblaw]

I think its weird to bring a kid, especially a baby, to a midnight showing of the TDKR. And I don't buy the "they just sleep" excuse because every movie I've been to lately has had a screaming kid, so annoying

But I definitely don't think this is the time nor place to debate it, victim blaming in this situation is especially ridiculous

[TheManKnownAsMecca]

I think its weird to bring a kid, especially a baby, to a midnight showing of the TDKR. And I don't buy the "they just sleep" excuse because every movie I've been to lately has had a screaming kid, so annoying

But I definitely don't think this is the time nor place to debate it, victim blaming in this situation is especially ridiculous

This is true.

[xenadanielle]

Here is a photo of the shooter.

Even if I didn't know he allegedly killed a bunch of people, I'd think he has crazy-eyes.

He was a PhD candidate @ CU.

http://gawker.com/5927722/what-we-kn...t-james-holmes

And his abode is indeed bewby-trapped...

Police Chief Dan Oates said the explosive devices were "pretty sophisticated."
"We could be here for days," he said.
Five buildings have been evacuated.
Jim Yacone, special agent in charge of the Denver FBI, said they were working on "how to disarm the flammable or explosive material."

Read more: Authorities: Aurora theater shooting suspect's apartment "booby trapped" - The
Denver Post http://www.denverpost.com/breakingne...#ixzz21BPGILXL

[YankeePride1967]

I think its weird to bring a kid, especially a baby, to a midnight showing of the TDKR. And I don't buy the "they just sleep" excuse because every movie I've been to lately has had a screaming kid, so annoying

But I definitely don't think this is the time nor place to debate it, victim blaming in this situation is especially ridiculous

I agree, I think it is two separate issues. The only person to blame (that we know of) for the shooting is thankfully in custody.

[krystl]

I think its weird to bring a kid, especially a baby, to a midnight showing of the TDKR. And I don't buy the "they just sleep" excuse because every movie I've been to lately has had a screaming kid, so annoying

But I definitely don't think this is the time nor place to debate it, victim blaming in this situation is especially ridiculous

I agree. And I think the people being so hard on the parents (calling them bad parents, etc) have no kids of their own.

I personally don't agree with kids that young being at a movie (for age appropriate reasons and the late hour, both), but I don't think I would go as far as to call them bad parents. I do think they would have been better off at home though.

What a sad, senseless tragedy.

[BobLoblaw]

Here is a photo of the shooter.

Even if I didn't know he allegedly killed a bunch of people, I'd think he has crazy-eyes. He was a PhD candidate @ CU.

http://gawker.com/5927722/what-we-kn...t-james-holmes

And his abode is indeed bewby-trapped...



Read more: Authorities: Aurora theater shooting suspect's apartment "booby trapped" - The
Denver Post http://www.denverpost.com/breakingne...#ixzz21BPGILXL

I saw a quote somewhere that the police think there may be so many explosives in his apartment they evacuated 5 surrounding buidings

[Soriambi]

I'm not sure how much entering through the exit, etc, matters to the story. I mean, what if he'd entered through the entrance? In my experience, movie theaters aren't exactly heavily guarded. I doubt the ticket taker's going to be able to stop the guy with guns just because he doesn't have a ticket.

[BobLoblaw]

I'm not sure how much entering through the exit, etc, matters to the story. I mean, what if he'd entered through the entrance? In my experience, movie theaters aren't exactly heavily guarded. I doubt the ticket taker's going to be able to stop the guy with guns just because he doesn't have a ticket.

Yeah, and a lot of people were cosplaying and had bulky costumes and stuff... So I don't see how you could tell if he had anything anyway

[RYMASTER or Ryan_Yankees]

I'm not sure how much entering through the exit, etc, matters to the story. I mean, what if he'd entered through the entrance? In my experience, movie theaters aren't exactly heavily guarded. I doubt the ticket taker's going to be able to stop the guy with guns just because he doesn't have a ticket.

But there would likely be cops at a midnight movie, no? I don't remember the last time I was at a movie theatre at night without at least some police presence in the lobby.

[YankeePride1967]

I agree. And I think the people being so hard on the parents (calling them bad parents, etc) have no kids of their own.

I personally don't agree with kids that young being at a movie (for age appropriate reasons and the late hour, both), but I don't think I would go as far as to call them bad parents. I do think they would have been better off at home though.

What a sad, senseless tragedy.

I don't think it's a case of being bad parents but rather not being considerate of others or maybe not using best judgement but I wouldn't call them bad parents.

[Soriambi]

But there would likely be cops at a midnight movie, no? I don't remember the last time I was at a movie theatre at night without at least some police presence in the lobby.

The movie theater I generally go to is in a mall, so there are generally mall cops around, but not necessarily in the lobby. Maybe you're right in a standalone theater in certain areas. If there was a police presence in the lobby, though, you'd think there would have been a pretty quick response to what was going on (with the cop(s) going to check it out when they heard gunfire and screaming and people rushing from the theater and whatnot. I haven't heard anything like that, about a cop in the theater engaging, etc. Plus, even if there's a cop or two, I'd think that with the strong element of surprise, the shooter would have been able to take them out before they could do anything.

[RYMASTER or Ryan_Yankees]

The movie theater I generally go to is in a mall, so there are generally mall cops around, but not necessarily in the lobby. Maybe you're right in a standalone theater in certain areas. If there was a police presence in the lobby, though, you'd think there would have been a pretty quick response to what was going on (with the cop(s) going to check it out when they heard gunfire and screaming and people rushing from the theater and whatnot. I haven't heard anything like that, about a cop in the theater engaging, etc. Plus, even if there's a cop or two, I'd think that with the strong element of surprise, the shooter would have been able to take them out before they could do anything.

Fair enough, just saying that perhaps it was a consideration for the shooter in choosing to use an emergency door rather than the main entrance.

[Snatch Catch]

No, parents should know better than to bring a 3 month infant out from 12am-3am PERIOD.

It's an interesting question, and one that the parents can answer better than anyone.

I've had both my kids (2.5 yrs & 8 mos) out for 2 hours in the 12AM-3AM range 5-6 times in the past month, and done so completely voluntarily - I had the option to leave them home with a grandparent watching over, and actively decided that I wanted them out with me. I personally wouldn't bring my infant to a theater because that's a place where the expectation is "quiet", and I want no part in breaking that expectation - even if it's just a singular cry before I can pick her up and sprint out of the theater.

It's really interesting how every single discussion about this tragedy that I've read on the internet involves a significant debate aobut a 3 month old being in a movie theater. Literally every single one.

[Snatch Catch]

I'm not sure how much entering through the exit, etc, matters to the story. I mean, what if he'd entered through the entrance? In my experience, movie theaters aren't exactly heavily guarded. I doubt the ticket taker's going to be able to stop the guy with guns just because he doesn't have a ticket.

This reminded of the most curious part of the CNN article I read:

http://www.cnn.com/2012/07/20/us/col...html?hpt=hp_t1

Quentin Caldwell, who was attending a screening in the adjacent theater, said he wasn't sure at first what was going on, despite hearing a "pop, pop, pop, pop" sound.

"We really didn't know something was happening until someone came from the left entrance and said we should not go outside because somebody with a gun was out there," he said.

Armed guards appeared at the theater exit and demanded audience members raise their arms to ensure they were not carrying weapons, then told them to run, Caldwell said.

My first thought when I read that was "the theater had armed guards?!"

[Snatch Catch]

Jeez, so freaky (and obviously someone is confused given the color choice).

According to New York Police Commissioner Ray Kelly -- who knows Aurora's Police Chief Dan Oates from Oates' time with the NYPD -- says that Holmes had his "hair painted red, he said he was The Joker." He was apparently armed with a shotgun, an AK47, a 9mm and a knife.

[LongLiveBernie51!]

I'm not sure how much entering through the exit, etc, matters to the story. I mean, what if he'd entered through the entrance? In my experience, movie theaters aren't exactly heavily guarded. I doubt the ticket taker's going to be able to stop the guy with guns just because he doesn't have a ticket.

I think it matters quite a bit. The guy was able to pull off a sneak attack on unsuspecting people who were engaged in a movie because he was able to gain access through the back door pretty much.

If he has to go in the front the chances of people getting suspicious and notifying the proper authorities goes up by quite a significant percentage.

Also, I've heard interviews where witnesses thought the him entering through the door in front of them was all part of the show. They said he stood there in silence, most likely lavishing in the attention, before he attacked.

As to the smuggling it in via costume comment.....that would have to be one impressive batman costume to smuggle in a shotgun, an AK47, a pistol and at least two tear gas canisters, and ammunition.