Police response to the Covina Massacre on December 24, 2008, was immediate and chaotic, triggered by multiple 911 calls reporting gunfire and an explosion at the Ortega home.[wikipedia +2] Arrival and Initial Actions Officers from the Covina Police Department arrived around 11:30-11:45 p.m., shortly after Bruce Pardo’s attack began, encountering a house partially engulfed in flames with panicked survivors fleeing. They heard ongoing gunfire sounds initially but found the scene “apocalyptic,” with three bodies visible in a cursory search amid heavy smoke; Lt. Pat Buchanan noted the 8-year-old niece shot in the face as a key early detail from witnesses.[abcnews.go +2] Investigation Progression Firefighters were dispatched concurrently to extinguish the blaze by ~1:30 a.m., revealing five more bodies that night and a ninth the next morning. A survivor reached a neighbor, called 911 identifying Pardo, prompting an APB; police secured the burned structure, preserved evidence like shell casings, and began victim identification via autopsies showing 9mm gunshot wounds. By ~3:30 a.m., Pardo’s suicide was discovered in Sylmar after his brother found him; bomb squad handled the booby-trapped rental car explosion nearby.[abc7ny +2]

Key Sequence • ~11:30 p.m.: Bruce Pardo arrives in a rental car, dressed as Santa Claus, carrying four 9mm SIG Sauer handguns and a gift-wrapped air compressor rigged as a flamethrower with racing fuel. His 8-year-old niece opens the door; he shoots her in the face and begins firing indiscriminately at ~25 partygoers.[abc7ny +2] • Moments later: Pardo unwraps the device, sprays fuel throughout the house, igniting an explosion when it hits an open flame; gunfire and flames kill nine (Sylvia Pardo, her parents Joseph and Alicia Ortega, siblings Charles, James, Alicia Ortiz and spouses, nephew Michael Ortiz).[crimeandinvestigation +2] • ~11:30-11:45 p.m.: Survivors flee—a 16-year-old shot in the back, a 20-year-old with a broken ankle from a second-story jump, and the niece (all recover). One survivor reaches a neighbor, calls 911 identifying Pardo.[wikipedia +1] Escape and Suicide • Post-attack (~midnight): Severely burned (third-degree on arms/legs, Santa suit melted to skin), Pardo sheds the suit, drives to brother’s Sylmar home (~40 miles away).[en-wikipedia--on--ipfs-org.ipns.dweb +1] • ~1:30 a.m.: Firefighters extinguish the blaze; initial bodies found.[abc7ny] • ~3:00-3:30 a.m.: Pardo shoots himself in the mouth; brother discovers body. Rental car nearby booby-trapped with suit remnants and ammo, explodes during bomb squad handling. $17,000, plane ticket, and weapons found on him; cocaine in system.[wikipedia +1]

The 2008 Covina Massacre involved Bruce Jeffrey Pardo, a 45-year-old man who targeted his ex-wife’s family during their Christmas Eve party in Covina, California, killing nine people before dying by suicide.[wikipedia +1] Incident Details Pardo arrived around 11:30 p.m. dressed as Santa Claus, carrying multiple 9mm handguns and a gift-wrapped air compressor modified into a flamethrower with racing fuel. His 8-year-old niece answered the door and was shot in the face; he then fired indiscriminately at about 25 partygoers before spraying fuel, igniting an explosion that killed most victims through gunfire or burns. Three survived: the niece (severely injured), a 16-year-old girl shot in the back, and a 20-year-old with a broken ankle from jumping out a window.[en-wikipedia--on--ipfs-org.ipns.dweb +2] Motive and Aftermath The attack stemmed from a bitter divorce finalized December 18, 2008, amid disputes over $30,000 in Sylvia Pardo’s retirement funds and infidelity allegations; Pardo had lost his job and felt humiliated. He fled to his brother’s home in Sylmar, shot himself, and left a booby-trapped rental car with Santa suit remnants and ammunition. Police found a “bomb-making factory” at his Montrose residence.[wikipedia +3]

Notable Cases The 1992 Dayton Christmas murders involved a gang of young perpetrators who killed six people over three days around Christmas Eve, motivated by robbery and silencing witnesses, with random victims tied to the holiday timing. The 2008 Covina Massacre saw Bruce Pardo, dressed as Santa, kill nine at a Christmas party before suicide, driven by divorce rage. Other incidents include the 1929 Lawson family murders on Christmas Day and the 2007 Carnation killings by Michele Anderson.[journal-news +2]

Bringing up the past in a hurtful manner involves weaponizing old memories, mistakes, or traumas against someone to inflict emotional pain, often during arguments to gain control or deflect blame. This tactic, sometimes called “archival abuse” or dredging up history, escalates conflicts by shifting focus from the present issue to unresolved grievances, making the recipient feel attacked and invalidated. Key Characteristics Such behavior typically features selective recall of negative events, exaggerated details, or out-of-context accusations to shame or guilt-trip the other person. It ignores personal growth or apologies, framing the individual as irredeemably flawed. Common in toxic relationships, it erodes trust and prevents healthy resolution.

Cookies are small baked treats typically made from flour, sugar, butter or oil, eggs, and flavorings like vanilla, chocolate chips, or nuts. They vary in texture from crisp to chewy and come in countless varieties worldwide, often enjoyed as snacks with milk, tea, or coffee.[wikipedia] Types Common categories include drop cookies (like chocolate chip), rolled cookies (sugar cookies cut into shapes), bar cookies (brownies baked in pans), and no-bake versions using binders like chocolate. Sandwich cookies feature fillings between two wafers, such as Oreos with cream.[wikipedia] History Originating in 7th-century Persia with sugar’s rise, cookies spread via Muslim conquests to Europe by the 14th century. Dutch settlers brought them to America in the 1620s, where “koekje” became “cookie,” with the modern chocolate chip version emerging in the 1930s.[wikipedia] Baking Tips For chewy cookies, use more brown sugar, melted butter, cornstarch, and an extra egg yolk; chill dough to prevent spreading. Bake at lower temperatures longer for softness, and avoid overmixing to maintain tenderness.[sallysbakingaddiction]

Cookies

Pack-on-pack animal attacks refer to rare but intense encounters where groups of predators from one species clash violently with another pack, often over territory, food, or mates. These battles highlight the hierarchical and territorial nature of social carnivores like wolves, highlighting their coordinated aggression. Such events underscore the raw survival dynamics in the wild.[wolf] Notable Examples Wolves frequently engage in pack-versus-pack fights, especially in fall and winter when prey is scarce. Yellowstone wolves, like the Druids versus the Agates, charged in tight formations with raised tails and hackles, defending ridges just 40 meters apart. Larger packs dominate, but intruders can hold ground through unity.[wolf] Interspecies pack attacks on humans include chimpanzee groups mauling intruders, as in a student’s savage assault by enraged males who bit off fingers, nose, ears, and toes while dragging him 30 feet. Dog packs also prey on people, with cases of fatalities from repeated group bites on vulnerable victims aged 11 to 81.[youtube +1] Human Impacts Recent incidents involve stray or owned dog packs killing a 66-year-old man and injuring a mother-toddler duo in Texas, or mauling a North Carolina man with 17 pit bull mixes, leading to owner murder charges. Wildlife like grizzlies or tigers have ambushed hunters in packs, severing spines or slashing torsos.[youtube +2]

I guess science Humans construct invisible “fake walls” as psychological defenses against pain, rejection, or uncertainty, often rooted in past trauma or fear. These barriers limit connections, growth, and openness, trapping individuals in isolation despite their intent to protect. Over time, they become self-imposed illusions that distort reality and hinder authentic living.[undetectednarcissist] Psychological Origins Emotional walls form from survival instincts, shielding vulnerable parts of the self after experiences like abuse, betrayal, or abandonment. Confirmation bias reinforces them, as people seek information aligning with fears while dismissing challenges, creating echo chambers that amplify division. In trauma recovery, these walls manifest as hyper-independence or emotional shutdown, common in intelligence and forensic contexts where trust erosion is frequent.[youtube +1] Digital Amplifiers Online algorithms exploit these tendencies by curating personalized feeds, building “filter bubbles” that prioritize engaging, divisive content over diverse views. This affective feedback loop—pairing human bias with tech—intensifies polarization, making worlds smaller and more hostile. Users in high-stakes fields like law enforcement may encounter this in misinformation or deepfakes, further entrenching defensive mindsets.[sec +1] Breaking the Barriers Dismantling requires self-awareness: question absolute beliefs like “people always leave” and practice vulnerability through mindfulness or therapy. In 5D consciousness shifts, walls evolve from tools to limitations, fostering intimacy via compassion and forgiveness. Historical resistance movements show collective wall-breaking through trust-building, aligning with trauma-informed recovery strategies.[undetectednarcissist]

The Black Death, often called the plague, is caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis, not a virus. This Gram-negative rod-shaped bacterium infects humans primarily through bites from infected fleas, such as Xenopsylla cheopis, which thrive on rodents like black rats. Key Characteristics Yersinia pestis is a facultative anaerobe that survives in flea digestive tracts by forming biofilms, blocking the flea’s gut and prompting regurgitation of infected blood into new hosts. It evades the immune system via proteins like Yop effectors injected through a type III secretion system, leading to rapid bacterial multiplication in lymph nodes. The bacterium spreads via bubonic (lymphatic), septicemic (bloodstream), or pneumonic (lungs) forms, with pneumonic being highly contagious through respiratory droplets.