MODESTO, Calif. – Modesto police say a polite robber explained to his victim he lost his job and needed to feed his family – before taking the man’s money and jewelry at gunpoint Sunday morning.

Police say the robber said “hello” and “good morning” to the shopkeeper as Flowers by HP Papadopoulos in Modesto was opening at 7 a.m.

He then pulled a .45-caliber gun and ordered the shopkeeper to lie face down at the back of the store while he collected the valuables.

Teen changes her name to protest dissections

ASHEVILLE, N.C. – You can call her CutoutDissection.com, Cutout for short, but just don’t call her Jennifer.

The former Jennifer Thornburg – now legally CutoutDissection.com – wanted to do something real to protest animal dissections in schools.

The 19-year-old’s new name is also the Web address for an anti-dissection page of the site for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, where she is interning.

“I normally do have to repeat my name several times when I am introducing myself to someone new,” she told The Asheville Citizen-Times for a story last week.

“Once they find out what my name is, they want to know more about what the Web site is about.”

The Asheville High School graduate said she began opposing dissections in middle school after a class assignment to cut up a chicken wing made her uncomfortable.

She helped create a policy at her high school that allows students who object to dissections to complete an alternative assignment.

Despite the legal change, she said most of her family members still call her Jennifer.

“It will take me a while,” said her dad, Duane Thornburg, who lives in Daytona Beach, Fla. “I understand why she’s done it. Believe it or not, I totally respect it.”