Ali OTO

LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) — A man distraught because he could not find work shot and killed his mother-in-law, his wife and three sons and then killed himself inside a home in an upscale San Fernando Valley neighborhood, police said.

Police outside a home where an unemployed father is believed to have killed his sons, wife and mother-in-law.

Authorities said the man had an MBA in finance but appeared to have been unemployed for several months and had worked for major accounting firms, such as Price Waterhouse.

The two-story rented home is in a gated community in Porter Ranch, about 20 miles northwest of Los Angeles.

The shootings were discovered after 8:20 a.m. Monday, after a neighbor called police to report that the wife had failed to pick her up to take her to her job at a pharmacy, Deputy Chief of Police Michel Moore said.

Ed Winter, assistant chief from the Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office, identified the suspect as Karthik Rajaram, 45.

Winter said the victims included Rajaram’s mother-in-law, Indra Ramasesham, 69, and his 19-year-old son Krishna Rajaram, a Fulbright Scholar and honor student at UCLA. Watch police say the gunman was “embroiled in a financial crisis” »

Also dead were Rajaram’s wife, 39, Subasari Rajaram, and their two other sons, 12 and 7. Some of the victims had been shot more than once, and their identities were not immediately confirmed, he said.

“Due to the nature of their injuries, it’s been a little difficult,” Winter said, adding that there were no signs of a struggle.

Police first found the mother-in-law shot in her bed in a downstairs bedroom, Moore said.

Upstairs, the couple’s eldest old son was shot in the master bedroom; the wife in another bedroom with a gunshot wound to the head; the two younger sons in the bedroom they shared, both shot in the head. The 12-year-old was on the floor and the 7-year-old in bed, Moore said. Watch more on what police had to say about tragedy »

The suspect was also in that bedroom, a gun still in his hand.

The killings are thought to have occurred after 6 p.m. Saturday, when the man was last reported seen, Moore said.

Inside the house, police also found three letters, one to law enforcement acknowledging responsibility for the killings, a second to friends and relatives and a third that appears to be the suspect’s will, Moore said.

“He attests to some financial difficulties, and he takes responsibility for the taking of the lives of his family members and himself as a result of those financial difficulties,” Moore said.

Neighbors, family and friends told police that the suspect, who had not worked for several months, had said in recent days he was having had extreme financial difficulties, Moore said.

One of the letters, intended for friends and marked “personal and confidential,” detailed his financial transactions that resulted in “an unfortunate, downward spiral,” Moore said.

“His narrative is one of talking about this tragedy befalling him and his contemplation of an available exit or solution,” Moore said. “One is taking his own life and the other is taking the lives of his family and himself. … He talked himself into the second strategy, believing that was in effect the honorable thing to do.”

Moore said the several-page narrative appeared to have been written over a period of time. “This was something that was not a spur-of-the-moment type of event,” he said.

Moore said it was clear to police that the family members were close and “had an affection for each other.” He said the parents had given up their master bedroom to their eldest — who was spending the weekend home from college — “out of respect.”

“This is a perfect American family behind me that has absolutely been destroyed, apparently because of a man who just got stuck in a rabbit hole, if you will, of absolute despair, somehow working his way into believing this to be an acceptable exit.”

No neighbors reported having heard gunshots, and there was no sign of forced entry at the house, Moore said.

Rajaram was involved in a financial holding company as part owner “at least,” Moore said.

There is no evidence he had had any history of mental difficulties, nor was there an indication he had sought counseling, Moore said.

Neighbor Trish Harrison, who lives three houses from the crime scene, said the family had lived in the community for about a year, but kept to themselves and had little interaction with neighbors. The parents were from India, she said.

The Los Angeles Unified School District was making arrangements for crisis counselors to visit the schools attended by the two younger

Editor’s note: Campbell Brown anchors CNN’s “Campbell Brown: Election Center” at 8 p.m. ET Mondays through Fridays. She delivered this commentary during the “Cutting through the Bull” segment of Monday night’s broadcast.

Campbell Brown says whoever wins should enter the White House with his dignity intact.

NEW YORK (CNN) — By now you’ve probably heard about how ugly things have gotten out there on the campaign trail in the last 48 hours.

But we thought for just a moment we would take you back to kinder, gentler times.

Remember this:

Sen. John McCain: I pledge again a respectful campaign. A respectful campaign based on the issues and based on the stark differences we have on the vision for the future of America.

Sen. Barack Obama: I said I was looking forward to a civil substantive debate on the issues and he agreed.

McCain: I’ve pledged to conduct a respectful campaign and I urge, time after time, various entities within the Republican party to also do that.

Obama: We don’t need John McCain and I to be demonizing each other. You won’t get that from my campaign.

Oh how far we have come in such a short period of time.

To say, as Gov. Sarah Palin is now doing, that Barack Obama pals around with terrorists is just outrageous.

But Obama’s hands aren’t clean either. Here is what he said in May of this year about McCain’s involvement in the Keating Five, a savings and loan scandal that happened in the late 80s.

Obama said, “I don’t think there is any doubt that John McCain’s public record about issues that he’s apologized for and written about is not germane to the presidency.”

And yet this morning the Obama campaign released a mini-documentary, walking voters through all the details of the Keating Five — making it very much germane.

There is just one month left. Please, please don’t let this devolve into a campaign you are sickened by and embarrassed to be part of.

Here’s a purely practical reason: The negativity you are spewing now will only make your job harder after Election Day.

Bipartisanship is really tough to achieve when everyone on both sides is left with a bad bad taste in their mouths.

Here is the new CNN Opinion Research Corp. When asked “How are things going in the country today?” 80 percent said badly. Eighty percent. Pollsters have been asking that question since 1974. Eighty percent is an all-time low. People want to hear solutions from you. They want to hear how you are going to get us out of this mess.

One of you will have to. Don’t you want to be able to walk into the White House with your dignity intact and your head held high?

The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of the

LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) — George W. Bush’s ascent to the presidency was “bigger than fiction,” director Oliver Stone told “Larry King Live” Monday night, describing his soon-to-be released biopic, “W.”

Director Oliver Stone, right, told Larry King there is no “hate or malice” in the movie “W.”

Stone, whose film opens October 17 — less than three weeks before the November 4 presidential election — said he was fascinated by Bush, “a bum at the age of 40 years old.”

“He turned his whole life around and through evangelism and through his faith and his family and he became president,” Stone said.

“It’s a great fantasy and it happened. It’s bigger than fiction,” said Stone.

Stone said while he supports Sen. Barack Obama, the Democratic nominee in the presidential race, his personal politics didn’t influence the film.

“I couldn’t make a movie with hate or malice. There is none in this movie. I see the guy as more like John Wayne, which is to say I don’t like his politics but he’s endearing in a strange, goofy, awkward way, and he did capture the imagination of the country,” he said.

Stone, a Vietnam veteran, is known for his critically acclaimed, yet politically charged films. He’s received Best Director Oscars for “Platoon,” which also won an Oscar for Best Picture (1986), and “Born on the Fourth of July” (1989). He also won an Academy Award for his screenplay adaptation of “Midnight Express” (1978). Watch highlights of Stone’s career »

From “JFK” to “Natural Born Killers,” Stone’s films have made him a lightning rod for controversy — and “W” is unlikely to change that. In the film, he draws a contrast between President Bush and his father, former President George H.W. Bush, whom Stone says was a “far more diplomatic” commander in chief.

“We went to war in Iraq and he did not go all the way,” referring to the elder Bush. “So that becomes a big issue in the movie. He didn’t get rid of Saddam then and the son has to be — feels that he has to act stronger than the father because of emotional reasons and there’s a lot of father-son subcurrent in the movie. He is challenged by his father and he wants to outdo him, he wants to be stronger than him.”

Stone and Bush started their freshman years at Yale University together, but Stone said he didn’t graduate with Bush because he went to Vietnam. “I met him years later,” Stone said.

During the interview, Stone drew parallels between Bush and Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, now Sen. John McCain’s Republican running mate.

“I think she’s — she’s along the lines of ‘Dubya’ [George W. Bush] a bit. That same kind of folksy, common man approach,” he said. “And she — it got Dubya elected. He did very well with that.”

And, even though he and McCain are both Vietnam veterans, he opposes McCain’s views on war and disagrees with the candidate’s positions on Iraq and Afghanistan.

Still, Stone said, “Whoever wins this, Obama or McCain, it’s going to be living in the shadow of Dubya. I think he changed the world. I think we’re going to be with him for a generation.”

Stone noted that Bush has earned a historically low approval rating — only 24 percent, according to the most recent CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll. “He’s a young man, Mr. Bush. He’s not — he’s not leaving the scene. He may have low polls, but he’s going to be around.

ASHVILLE, Tennessee (CNN) — A new national poll suggests Barack Obama is widening his lead over John McCain in the race for the White House.

Sen. Barack Obama leads Sen. John McCain by 8 points, according to CNN’s latest poll.

The CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll out Monday afternoon suggests that the country’s financial crisis, record low approval ratings for President Bush and a drop in the public’s perception of McCain’s running mate could be contributing to Obama’s gains.

Fifty-three percent of likely voters questioned in the poll say they are backing Obama for president, with 45 percent supporting McCain.

That 8-point lead is double the 4-point lead Obama held in the last CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll, taken in mid-September. Watch why the economy is hurting McCain

Monday evening’s CNN national Poll of Polls — incorporating our new CNN survey, as well as new tracking numbers from Gallup and Hotline taken October 3-5 — shows Obama leading McCain by 6 points — at 49 to 43 percent.

President Bush may be part of the reason why Obama’s making gains. Only 24 percent of those polled approve of Bush’s job as president, an all-time low for a CNN survey. See the latest polling

“Bush has now tied Richard Nixon’s worst rating ever, taken in a poll just before he resigned in 1974, and is only 2 points higher than the worst presidential approval rating in history, Harry Truman’s 22 percent mark in February 1952,” says CNN Polling Director Keating Holland.

And that’s bad news for McCain, because the poll suggests a growing number of Americans believe the Republican presidential nominee would have the same policies as the current Republican president. Fifty-six percent say McCain’s policies would be the same as Bush, up from 50 percent a month ago.

The financial crisis also appears to be contributing to Obama’s increased lead in the poll. Sixty-eight percent are confident in the Democratic presidential nominee’s ability to handle the financial crisis, 18 points ahead of McCain, and 42 points ahead of Bush.

More Americans appear to have an unfavorable view of Gov. Sarah Palin, and that may also be helping Obama in the fight for the presidency. Forty percent now have an unfavorable view of Palin, up from 27 percent a month ago and from 21 percent in late August, when McCain surprised many people by picking the first-term Alaska governor as his running mate.

“A majority of Americans now believe that Sarah Palin would be unqualified to serve as president if it became necessary, and her unfavorable rating has doubled,” Holland said.

Another hurdle for the Arizona senator is expectations. Six in 10 questioned in the poll predict that Obama will win the November election.

The poll was conducted Friday through Sunday, just after President Bush signed the $700 billion federal bailout into law. By a 53 percent to 46 percent margin, Americans oppose the bill.

“One in five might have supported a different bill, but one in three believe that the government should have stayed out of the crisis completely and let the markets attempt to recover on their own.

“A majority think that the bailout package will not prevent the economy from going into a deep and prolonged recession — but they turn thumbs-down to another bailout package if this one does not work. Only one in five would support more assistance beyond Friday’s $700 billion package,” Holland said.

BEIJING, China (CNN) — Chinese officials in Xinjiang Province reported the death of a fourth baby Thursday in the country’s expanding contaminated infant formula case. The tainted milk powder has already sickened more than 6,200 babies.

A baby is held down as he is given an ultrasound scan for kidney stones in a hospital in Wuhan, Hubei province.

1 of 3

Earlier in the day, authorities announced the arrest of 12 more suspects in the investigation, provincial police said.

The arrests bring to 18 the number of people detained, according to the Hebei Public Security Bureau.

Twelve of those arrested are involved in the collection of milk and the production of milk products, authorities said. Authorities accuse the other six of illegally selling the chemical added to the milk.

More than 1,300 infants are hospitalized, said Li Changjiang, China’s director of quarantine and inspection, on Wednesday. Their conditions include malnutrition, kidney stones and acute renal failure. Watch mothers get their infants tested »

Inspectors have been deployed across the country to test producers’ inventories.

Of China’s 175 baby milk powder production companies, 66 have stopped production, Li said. Investigators are testing samples at the other companies.

Two brothers who sold fresh milk used to produce contaminated baby milk powder were arrested by Chinese investigators Monday. They could face death if convicted, according to China Daily, a state-run newspaper. Watch who has been arrested »

The raw milk had been watered down and a chemical added to fool quality checks, the newspaper said.

Investigators said the brothers confessed to watering down the raw milk and mixing in tripolycyanamide, also known as melamine. They said they did it to recover losses suffered when the factory rejected earlier milk shipments, the paper reported. Learn more about the chemical melamine »

The brothers are charged with producing and selling toxic and hazardous food, which carries a possible death penalty, the paper said.

Health experts say ingesting melamine can lead to kidney stones, urinary tract ulcers, and eye and skin irritation.

The chemical is commonly used in coatings and laminates, wood adhesives, fabric coatings, ceiling tiles and flame retardants.

Thousands of tons of the tainted milk powder have been recalled, including pullbacks by Mengniu Dairy Group, China’s largest milk producer, and the Sanlu Group. Watch angry parents demand answers from Sanlu »

Chinese investigators have found melamine in nearly 70 milk products from more than 20 companies, Li said Wednesday. Products made by Sanlu had the highest concentration of the chemical.

It is not the first time Sanlu has been connected to a scandal involving tainted milk powder, according to China Daily.

In 2004, at least 13 infants in the eastern Anhui province died of malnutrition after drinking milk powder that had little to no nutrition. The illegally manufactured milk was falsely labeled with the Sanlu brand, according to the paper.

The vast majority of the tainted formula was consumed domestically, but it is known to have been exported to Taiwan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Yemen, Chad and Burundi, according to Li.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said no Chinese baby formula has been allowed on the market in the United States. In a statement on its Web site, the FDA said it had reached out to all five companies making formula in the United States and none has used formula or source materials from China.

This episode marks the latest in a string of tainted products produced in China:

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — The ECB says it is banding together with other nations’ central banks to inject more U.S. dollars into global money markets.

The European Central Bank says in a statement that it is joining with the U.S. Federal Reserve, the Bank of  and the Swiss National Bank “to address continued elevated pressures in short-term U.S. dollar funding markets.”

The ECB says the measures are “designed to improve the liquidity conditions” in global financial markets.

The central banks say they are continuing Thursday to work together closely and will take appropriate steps to address the ongoing pressures.

SINGAPORE (AP) — Oil prices fell Thursday in Asia to $96 a barrel on concerns the deepening turmoil in the U.S. financial system will slow global economic growth and cut oil demand.

Light, sweet crude for October delivery fell $1.03 to $96.13 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange midday in Singapore. Overnight, the contract rose $6.01 to settle at $97.16, after dropping $10.03 the previous two trading sessions.

Oil jumped overnight as investors fled equities to crude as a short-term safe haven amid global market turmoil.

“Oil is not viewed as safe a haven as gold, but investors consider it safer than equities,” said Victor Shum, an energy analyst with consultancy Gertz & Purvin in Singapore. “If these financial troubles lead to a world recession however, that’s going to affect demand big-time.”

The Federal Reserve earlier on Wednesday had sought to calm investor fears by rescuing troubled insurer American International Group Inc. with an $85 billion bailout loan. The emergency measure came a day after Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc., a 158-year-old investment bank, filed for bankruptcy after failing to find a buyer.

Stepped up attacks by Nigerian militants against the country’s oil infrastructure helped to support oil prices. In a fifth day of violence, Nigeria’s main militant group said Wednesday that it had destroyed an oil-pumping station and a pipeline crossing southern Nigeria in a rare daylight attack.

A spokesman for Nigeria’s state oil company said Wednesday that militant attacks are now cutting the country’s daily oil production by about 1 million barrels a day, 40 percent of what the country produced before the militant campaign began three years ago.

“In the last few days, militant attacks in Nigeria have been stirring up again, but that’s on the back burner right now,” Shum said. “I see downward pressure on oil in the near-term, with the key support level at $90.”

Also Wednesday, the U.S. government reported a bigger-than-expected drop in crude supplies, reflecting the shutdown of virtually all Gulf Coast oil production because of Hurricane Ike and Hurricane Gustav.

The Energy Information Administration said U.S. crude stocks fell by 6.3 million barrels for the week ending Sept. 12, much bigger than the 3.7 million barrel drop expected by analysts surveyed by energy research firm Platts expected.

In other Nymex trading, heating oil futures fell 2.81 cents to $2.7966 a gallon, while gasoline prices dropped 3.23 cents to $2.4307 a gallon. Natural gas for October delivery rose 17.9 cents to $8.089 per 1,000 cubic feet.

In London, October Brent crude rose 9 cents to $94.93 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.

JERUSALEM (CNN) — Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni on Thursday declared victory in a narrow race for the Kadima Party leadership, telling reporters she would approach the job “with great reverence,” according to Haaretz.

Kadima candidate Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni is the chief Israeli negotiator with the Palestinian Authority.

With a win, Livni would replace Prime Minister Ehud Olmert as head of the ruling party, putting her in position to take the top post.

Israeli media put her lead over Shaul Mofaz, her nearest rival and more of a hardliner, at 1.1 percent, or 431 votes.

That assessment contrasted sharply with one that emerged as the polls were closing, when television exit polls said Livni had a commanding lead.

Olmert was expected to step down as prime minister amid a corruption scandal.

If Livni wins the official count, she will be given about 42 days to form a coalition government. If she fails to do so, a national election would be held.

More than 70,000 members of Israel’s ruling Kadima Party voted Wednesday for a new party leader and potentially a new prime minister.

Mofaz had dismissed early polls, one of which showed him losing to Livni by nearly 20 percentage points. Mofaz, Israel’s transportation minister, had predicted that he would succeed Olmert.

Olmert, who has been fighting corruption charges on the one hand and trying to negotiate a new peace deal with the Palestinians on the other, has vowed to formally resign as prime minister after Kadima chooses a new party leader. He will stay on as a caretaker prime minister until the new Kadima leader forms a government.

Kadima’s new leader must hold together a fragile coalition government or face new elections that could see another party leader elected as Olmert’s successor. There are many possible scenarios that could take place in the next few months.

Ehud Barak — leader of the Labor Party, which holds the most parliamentary seats among Kadima’s coalition partners — could pull out of the coalition. That could force early elections or force the government to take on new coalition partners who could restrict the Kadima party leader’s ability to negotiate with the Palestinians.

If elections are called, Barak, a former prime minister, could vie for the top spot, but polls show he may not have enough support.

Some observers think former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, head of the opposition Likud Party, could steal the show.

Whoever succeeds Olmert will be handed a set of daunting challenges, including determining the fate of Israel’s talks with the Palestinians, its fledgling indirect talks with Syria and its tough talk on Iran’s nuclear aspirations.

Livni, who is more widely known outside Israel than her main challenger, is the chief Israeli negotiator with the Palestinian Authority as the two sides work toward a peace deal.

She refuses to be tied to the Bush administration’s vision of a peace deal by the end of this year.

“We want to reach an agreement which at the end of the agreement we can find the words ‘end of conflict,’ ” she said. “And in doing so, it takes time.”

To her supporters, she is squeaky-clean and a welcome change to Olmert, whose resignation comes amid mounting corruption charges.

“She’s very honest, very sincere, and I hope she’s going to do whatever she says,” one of her supporters said. “We have to give her a chance, and I’m willing to do it.”

Mofaz said he is in a better position to lead Israel because of his background in security issues as a former defense minister and head of the Israel Defense Forces.

“I want to say ‘yes’ to our ability to give security to the people of Israel. I want to say ‘yes’ to our ability to continue with the diplomatic process, to get peace with our neighbors,” he said.

Mofaz’s supporters are highlighting his decades of experience, compared to Livni, who they say is untested.

“He is the person with the cool head, the steadfastness and the ability to take the most difficult decisions under pressure,” according to Israeli Deputy Defense Minister Zeev Boim.

But some analysts have said neither candidate is up to the task of forming a new government.

The differences between the two candidates amount to not much more than “personal talents,” according to Sever Plocker, a columnist for Israeli newspaper Yediot Aharonoth.

“If you ask Minister Tzipi Livni what time it is, she will say, ‘Following a comprehensive review of Israel’s position in relation to global time zones: I have a clear stance on this subject, but I won’t reveal it in the media,’ ” Plocker wrote in his column on Tuesday.

MORELIA, Mexico (AP) — Police searched Wednesday for a tall, heavyset man, using a composite sketch provided by witnesses who saw him lob a grenade into an Independence Day crowd, then beg for forgiveness before slipping away.

Mourners gather for a candlelight vigil after a man threw a grenade into a crowd Monday night in Morelia, Mexico.

Local officials and the U.S. ambassador insisted Mexico’s warring drug cartels were behind in the attack that killed seven people Monday night, but federal prosecutors who took over the case said they did not have enough evidence yet to link the attack to organized crime.

“I believe the narco-terrorists have gravely underestimated the courage, valor, and strength of the Mexican people,” U.S. ambassador Tony Garza said in a statement, adding: “They have crossed a line from recklessly endangering civilians in their attacks on law-enforcement officials and rival gangs, to deliberately targeting innocent men, women, and children.”

In Atlanta, Georgia, meanwhile, U.S. authorities announced the arrests of more than 500 alleged members of Mexico’s violent Gulf Cartel, and indictments against three alleged leaders of the cartel in Mexico. But while the Gulf Cartel has a strong hold on parts of Michoacan, U.S. officials said they did not believe Monday’s attack was related.

“They wouldn’t have known about this, since the indictments weren’t handed down until this morning,” Drug Enforcement Administration spokesman Garrison Courtney said.

However, he cautioned that people should expect the worst from the exceptionally violent gang.

“We’re mindful they might try to retaliate,” Courtney said. “We’re preparing for that.”

Two fragmentation grenades blocks apart were used in the attack on a family friendly ceremony marking the start of Mexico’s 1810 war of independence. Seven people were killed and 108 were injured, and Mexicans’ already shaky sense of safety was further rattled.

“Mexicans will not be the same after these cowardly acts,” Michoacan Gov. Leonel Godoy said Wednesday. “But the people of Michoacan and those of Mexico are more than a cowardly act. We know how to rise above this.”

Michoacan is at the center of Mexico’s drug wars. Two of the main drug gangs are believed to be battling for control of lucrative drug routes that include Michoacan’s Lazaro Cardenas port, its remote Pacific coastline and its relatively unpopulated pine-covered mountains.

Mexican President Felipe Calderon has sent more than 25,000 troops to drug hotspots around the country, beginning in late 2006 with Michoacan. After Monday’s attack, he pledged an immediate military response, and he headed Wednesday to Morelia — his hometown — to announce the details.

The attack on the general public appeared to represent a new tactic in the intensifying war between drug cartels and federal authorities. Previously, most violence — including assassinations, massacres and beheadings — targeted rivals, police or soldiers.

Witnesses said a man in his late 20s dressed in black threw a grenade, then begged for forgiveness as another grenade exploded nearby. They provided enough details for a composite sketch, which was distributed to police agencies in surrounding states, according to Michoacan Attorney General Miguel Garcia.

He announced a 24-hour hotline to handle the flood of anonymous tips, many of which he called unsubstantiated, and urged the public to come forward with any photos or video taken during the attacks.

The federal Attorney General’s office, which is leading the investigation, said authorities are looking into illegal arms charges, but do not yet have enough evidence to say for sure that drug cartels were responsible. No arrests have been made and officials declined to say if anyone had claimed responsibility.

Mexicans said the attack made them feel more vulnerable than ever.

“Before we were safe, but now we walk around afraid,” said Sandra Munoz, 22, who stopped in a Morelia church on her way to work to light a candle for the dead. “Everyone is unsafe now.”