“For young people facing a tough job market, the chances of tragedies increase: suicide rates spike, as does the incidence of violence.”

“So far, there’s not a whole lot known about James Eagan Holmes, the 24-year old whom police say fatally shot 12 people and injured dozens more in a suburban Denver movie theater during the premiere of the new Batman film ‘The Dark Knight Rises.’ As the nation grieves for the families of the victims, questions about the alleged perpetrator are swirling.

“What we do know paints a picture of a young man who might have reasonably harbored high expectations of a successful life. He was raised in a well-tended middle class suburban neighborhood in San Diego. And he earned a scholarship to the University of California, Riverside where he distinguished himself, earning a B.S. neuroscience in the spring of 2010. Chancellor Timothy P. White told reporters Friday that “academically, he was at the ‘top of the top’ and demonstrated ‘obvious intellectual capacity.’

“But after graduating, it seems that Holmes had difficulty finding a job. According to a neighbor, Tom Mai, he ended up working at McDonald’s.

“‘I felt bad for him because he studied so hard,’ said Mai. ‘My brother said he looked kind of down; he seemed depressed.’

“Holmes then went back to school to get another degree, enrolling as a doctoral student at the University of Colorado School of Medicine in Aurora. At the time of the shooting, he was in the process of withdrawing.

“Reports of a syllabus suggest that Holmes may have studied substance abuse, schizophrenia, depression and other disorders. Apparently he was scheduled to present a paper on miRNA markers that contribute to neurological disorders in May. It is not yet known if Holmes had any history of mental illness himself.

“Obviously, a person would have to be gravely disturbed to commit mass murder dressed in full ballistic gear and refer to himself as “The Joker,” the arch-enemy of Batman. Investigators will be searching Holmes’ history for clues as to what triggered a man with no prior record of violence to turn homicidal.

“There may have been many factors that contributed to Holmes’ brutal rampage.” To continue reading this AlterNet article, click here.