"Man fatally stabs 8 schoolchildren in China"

In Nanping City in Fujian province, about nine hundred miles from Beijing, a forty-one year old man attacked. The man "stabbed eight children to death and wounded five others." The kids were students as the Experimental School. The man attacked shortly after seven a.m. on Tuesday, March 23, 2010. The school has more than two thousand students and is "considered one of the best in the city of three million people." The man who committed the crime used to work at a community clinic, he was a doctor. There are mixed opinions and rumors on if he resigned from his job or if he was fired.

There is not a lot of information on this story, but it is still tragic. The poor poor families of these children, I feel for them so much and they will be in my prayers. It is really hard to hear about people killing other people, especially when there doesn't appear to be a reason or if there is a reason it is really petty and insignificant. It is 80 times worse to hear of people killing kids. I can only ask the typical questions, what did the kids ever do to him? Why did they stick out of all other people? Why did he feel the need to kill them? - What's wrong with him? I just don't understand the logic of some people on this planet. I really don't. How people get the feelings inside of them to kill other human beings- other human beings that they don't even know- other human beings who are one hundred percent innocent... I can't comprehend these questions, or the answers to them that people come up with. I really hope that they release more information on this incident. It will be really interesting to find out if the kids who were injured are ok, and how the man is punished (I'm not even sure if they caught him), how he explains his actions, etc. This world seems to need an attitude or action or some kind of adjustment. Let's keep the peace and happiness and goodness and let them run us.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/03/23/china.school.attack/index.html?eref=rss_topstories&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_topstories+%28RSS%3A+Top+Stories%29

"Cold case: Mom, tot disappear during custody dispute"

Mike Kibalo and his wife Ann Yermak were scheduled to have a divorce hearing on February 5, 2001. They had a daughter together, and three weeks after her birth Ann Yermak filed for divorce. The two had agreed on a shared custody agreement for the time until the hearing for their daughter Samantha. Mike Kibalo brought his daughter to the police department in order to follow with the scheduled visitation exchange the day before the court hearing was supposed to take place. It was rumor that Kibalo would receive custody of Samantha during the hearing. However, the hearing did not take place because Yermak and Samantha disappeared. Yermak had shown signs of Munchausen syndrome by proxy which is "a condition where a person attributes sickness to someone else, often a child for whom they are caring, even though the child is not sick." According to Kibalo, after he would drop his daughter off, Yermak would bring her to the hospital saying that he had abused their daughter, there was never any evidence of abuse. Yermak thrived off of the attention she received for taking care of a "sick" child. Samantha was two years old when she and her mother disappeared, now she would be eleven years old. (The picture shows what she looked like at the time of disappearance and a computer generated picture of what she might look like now). There is no evidence saying where the two might have gone. They are most likely using new identities and getting help from someone- possibly from Yermak's family. Kibalo is not giving up, he wants to see his daughter again.

Every time I hear of these types of stories, it just reminds me of how many weirdos and sick people are on this planet. It also puzzles me how it seems that people can simply appear to "disappear" meaning that they are still living somewhere, but no one can find them. It's hard for me to fully understand how that works. With this particular story, I find a few issues. First, if the mother (Yermak) had shown signs of the condition Munchausen syndrome by proxy, I don't understand why the visits she had with her daughter were not supervised, especially because in the article they mention that a psychiatrist had suggested that "Samantha's future visits with her mother should be supervised." So why weren't they? Also, I'm not quite sure why this is just coming out now. The two have been gone since February 4, 2001. This story came out on March 20, 2010... Why have they not mentioned this before? It is a possibility that it has been shared before, but there is no mention of that in the article. I know that bringing these stories out into the public often helps a lot with finding these people and solving cases, that's why it's important. I think that, considering that the mother had shown signs of a condition where she constantly brought her daughter to doctors/hospitals, that pictures of Samantha and her mom should be in every doctor office and hospital. Doing this could possibly bring about some answers. Also, Yermak had been living with her mother according to the article. She has been questioned but "has provided little help," I think that she, along with the rest of Yermak's family should be thoroughly questioned. I hope that soon they find some answers, it appears that the dad (Kibalo) really loves his daughter and will do whatever he can to find her.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/03/22/grace.coldcase.kibalo/index.html?eref=rss_topstories&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_topstories+%28RSS%3A+Top+Stories%29

"Haitian Kids Allegedly Taken by Americans Reunited With Families"

Since late January, when Laura Silsby and a group of Americans tried to take 33 kids from Haiti only to be arrested due to not having the required paperwork, the kids (12months to 4 years in age) have been living in SOS Children's Village. All except one have now been reunited with their families as of Wednesday. Even though when Silsby tried to take the children out of Haiti, she claimed all were orphaned or abandoned, all of the children had at least one parent who took them home. For the one child who has not been reunited with her family, it is not clear when she will see them, the SOS Children's Village is still going over paperwork for her. Authorities say that it has taken a while for the children to be reunited with their families, and this is due to making sure they were giving to the right parents. As for Silsby and the others, they were charged for many things, one including kidnapping of minors. Nine of the ten have been released on bail, Silsby still remains in jail in Port-au-Prince.

This story is just something strange. First, we hear about a group of Americans trying to take a bunch of kids out of Haiti- you think, oh that's nice, they are taking them to a place where they can get proper food, water, shelter, etc.- only later, you find out that these kids were not orphans and still had parents in Haiti, and that the Americans didn't have the proper paperwork! Your viewpoint changes within seconds. I think it's great that the Americans wanted to help, but if you're going to help, you need to do it properly. These poor people of Haiti, they just suffered through a 7.0 earthquake and are trying to survive, their heads must have been spinning like wild at the time. The article said that some of the parents had let Silsby take their kids in hope that they would have a better life. I just feel bad for the kids, they are too young to understand what's going on in the first place, then their parents send them with some people who they don't know... to add to this, these people then get arrested so the kids end up in an orphanage-like place and not until over a month later are they reunited with their families. Wow. Also, the fact that it took them over a month... I know that things aren't going so well in Haiti, they are trying to pick up the pieces after everything was torn down, but still... a month? I'm not too sure about that one. All in all, through everything, I am very happy that the kids are now with their families once again and hope that all goes well for them. I also hope that soon the last little girl gets reunited with her family.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/americas/03/17/haiti.baptists.children/index.html?eref=rss_topstories&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_topstories+%28RSS%3A+Top+Stories%29

"Couple nurtured virtual child while real baby starved"

A forty-one year old father and twenty-five year old mother living just south of Seoul, South Korea have been arrested after their three month old baby girl died while their virtual child in a game called "Prius Online" thrived. South Korea has outstanding internet networks, able to hold out twenty-four hour high-speed internet cafes. This feature helped out the couple in this story. Both the man and woman had lost their jobs, and they had just had a premature baby girl. As said by a police officer, "They instead played an online game in which they raised a virtual character so as to escape from reality, which led to the death of their real baby." The couple was so absorbed in this game, they would feed their real child only once a day... in between marathon stretches in the internet cafe where they raised their virtual child. During this game they nurture a baby "with mysterious powers who grows and increases her skills as the game progresses." South Korea is said to have a society where if people fall out of the social norm, they experience great stress and pressure.

Wow... this is unbelievable. I can't even begin to grasp the concept this couple had for these actions. First, I must say that there is no excuse for this. The article said that the internet has "provided such people with a paradise to escape to and simply get lost in," it also said that the couple used the game to escape from reality. And it concluded by saying that that people who fall out of the norm can experience extreme pressure and stress. These do not take the blame for anything. First, even if this couple did fall from the norm, the only pressure and stress they get is what they put on themselves, it's all the matter of whether you care what others think of you or not. Second, you can never escape from reality, even if you think you can, it's impossible: reality is reality and it always comes back into your life because it is life. Third, the internet may provide games and other features that can seem like a "paradise" and some people may get "lost" in them, but it was the couple's choice to play the game to begin with. Some of the comments posted by people who read this article said that it wasn't a choice, it's an addiction. I have to disagree with these people. Even with people who smoke, they may be addicted to it, but that doesn't mean they don't have a choice. It was their choice to start smoking, it was their choice to continue smoking, and even if they are addicted, they still have the choice to stop. You control your body, you body doesn't control you. So yes, it was the couple's choice; And now the couple will always have to live with the fact that they chose a computer over a living human being. The couple will have to suffer the (needed) consequences of killing their own living, breathing child for a fake child in a meaningless game.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/03/07/south.korea.baby.dead/index.html?eref=rss_topstories&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_topstories+%28RSS%3A+Top+Stories%29

"SeaWorld Trainer Died from Traumatic Injuries and Drowning"

Dawn Brancheau (shown in the picture), a whale trainer, was killed by a killer whale by the name of Tilikum at SeaWorld in Orlando, Florida on Wednesday February 24th 2010. She died from "multiple traumatic injuries and drowning after one of the park's killer whales pulled her into a pool." The whale has a history of being involved with deaths. In 1991 in British Columbia a trainer was killed by Tilikum after falling into the tank and being dragged down. Also in 1999 a man was found in the whale's tank said to have been killed by the whale's "horseplay." Because of his history and the whale's enormous size, the trainers did not get in the water with this whale. Brancheau was said to be in knee-deep water when Tilikum came up and gabbed her by her ponytail and pulled her underwater. Because of Tilikum's behavior at the time, others had to coax him into a different tank before Brancheau could be reached. This incident has been labeled as a tragic accident. Researchers do not believe that Tilikum tried to kill the trainer, they say he was probably just trying to play with her as they behave that way in nature as well. This incident has been raising a lot of questions regarding the captivity of animals, including issues about space, tricks and situations they are put in.

This truly is a tragic incident. I agree with a lot that has been brought up in this article and with what has been brought up because of this incident. I do believe that the whale did not try to kill Brancheau. From what I have heard, she had been training this whale for a long time and loved it. Just like the article said, he was probably just trying to play... it's just like a little kid, he didn't know any better. No matter what kind of animal it is, if it's in captivity, the wild, or even if it's a family pet, there have been stories of them all acting out at one point or another. It's just the way they are, the way they were made. It's the way the world is and how it works. We have to remember that all animals are exactly that, they are animals they are living creatures, just like us. People act out all the time, just look at all of the crime we have in the world. Humans are animals too, so why do we expect them to be perfect even though we know that we are far from perfect? I also have to agree with what was said about animals in captivity in this article. Everyone loves zoos, and I think it's cool how we have made them available for people to see wild animals up close. However, if we are going to have animals in captivity, we need to think of them first. We need to make sure that they have enough space and have everything that they would have if they were living in the wild. Also we should not be making them do silly little tricks. After all, the animals are wild animals, so it is our job to keep them wild. Isn't it enough to get the chance to see these wild animals? Like I said earlier, animals are just like us, humans are animals too, we don't like to be forced things, so do you think they like to be forced to do things? Think about it.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/02/25/florida.seaworld.death/index.html?eref=rss_topstories&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_topstories+%28RSS%3A+Top+Stories%29