Bomb attack in Boston

[patrick1]

It really makes perfect sense for a terrorist of any stripe. Tons of people, big event and plenty of video cameras rolling. You get people scared and you get their attention.

But that's not quite right... unless you're blowing yourself up, blowing up things in such a high-attention location is inevitably going to get you arrested.  Just look at how many videos at how many angles of the explosions have been documented!  There are so many videos of the two hours before the explosions that it's nearly inconceivable to think that the identity of the bombers couldn't be discovered just from them, unless somehow the bombers set things up before the race even started getting set up.  And, from what I've heard, the location where the bombs were set off is high-camera anyway.  Yet, despite those facts, we have just one not-confirmed "person of interest", no one is saying that the likely bomber died in the explosions, and no one has claimed responsibility.

I'm with snowguy here.  This whole thing doesn't make much sense.  Given the camera issues, one might presume this is the work of an amateur, but the precision of the bombs (as well as the scope of the attempted bombing; 5+ unexploded bombs were discovered after the fact) suggests otherwise.  I almost wonder if it was a lone wolf attempting to impress some bigger group; but what's the point of that if you're just going to get caught right away?

You are transposing normal thought patterns and behavior on unnatural actions. Having studied terror attacks in some depth, most of the time there is less thought process and planning, if at all, into getting away with it. Of course, the group/individual affiliation, motivation, dynamic has a lot to do with this.  My gut instinct tells me this is lone wolf or very small cell of a couple people. Someone like the Times Square bomber. People willing to take the martyrdom route only if cornered.  That may also be why BPD, FBI etc etc is being tight lipped.  You could have situation like after Madrid where bombers take themselves out once noose tightens.

[Fuzzybigfoot]

anger anger anger hate hate anger anger anger anger anger anger hate suffering death anger anger hate destruction fear death sadness despair anger anger anger anger.........

[ilikeverin]

It really makes perfect sense for a terrorist of any stripe. Tons of people, big event and plenty of video cameras rolling. You get people scared and you get their attention.

But that's not quite right... unless you're blowing yourself up, blowing up things in such a high-attention location is inevitably going to get you arrested.  Just look at how many videos at how many angles of the explosions have been documented!  There are so many videos of the two hours before the explosions that it's nearly inconceivable to think that the identity of the bombers couldn't be discovered just from them, unless somehow the bombers set things up before the race even started getting set up.  And, from what I've heard, the location where the bombs were set off is high-camera anyway.  Yet, despite those facts, we have just one not-confirmed "person of interest", no one is saying that the likely bomber died in the explosions, and no one has claimed responsibility.

I'm with snowguy here.  This whole thing doesn't make much sense.  Given the camera issues, one might presume this is the work of an amateur, but the precision of the bombs (as well as the scope of the attempted bombing; 5+ unexploded bombs were discovered after the fact) suggests otherwise.  I almost wonder if it was a lone wolf attempting to impress some bigger group; but what's the point of that if you're just going to get caught right away?

You are transposing normal thought patterns and behavior on unnatural actions. Having studied terror attacks in some depth, most of the time there is less thought process and planning, if at all, into getting away with it. Of course, the group/individual affiliation, motivation, dynamic has a lot to do with this.  My gut instinct tells me this is lone wolf or very small cell of a couple people. Someone like the Times Square bomber. People willing to take the martyrdom route only if cornered.  That may also be why BPD, FBI etc etc is being tight lipped.  You could have situation like after Madrid where bombers take themselves out once noose tightens.

Well, I wasn't really suggesting they were going to try to get away with it.  It's more that it seems like if they knew anything at all it would be that they wouldn't get away with it, and, if so, why they haven't surfaced yet...

But I'll defer to your expertise.

[Oswald Acted Alone, You Kook]

So what will be outlawed as a result of this?

[Torie]

I hope this bit of whether it matters whether the perps where of the Left or Right, non political, Christian, Muslim or atheist, or none of the above, is out of everyone's system. There are nutters out there from all stripes, and to make something out of what the nutter(s) believed as opposed to what was done, simply serves no useful purpose that I can think of.

And I say nutter deliberately. No cause can be furthered by this sort of act. It can only be hurt. Most of the planet recoils from the slaughter of the totally innocent. It requires a psychotic mind to go where the perp(s) went here.

[patrick1]

It really makes perfect sense for a terrorist of any stripe. Tons of people, big event and plenty of video cameras rolling. You get people scared and you get their attention.

But that's not quite right... unless you're blowing yourself up, blowing up things in such a high-attention location is inevitably going to get you arrested.  Just look at how many videos at how many angles of the explosions have been documented!  There are so many videos of the two hours before the explosions that it's nearly inconceivable to think that the identity of the bombers couldn't be discovered just from them, unless somehow the bombers set things up before the race even started getting set up.  And, from what I've heard, the location where the bombs were set off is high-camera anyway.  Yet, despite those facts, we have just one not-confirmed "person of interest", no one is saying that the likely bomber died in the explosions, and no one has claimed responsibility.

I'm with snowguy here.  This whole thing doesn't make much sense.  Given the camera issues, one might presume this is the work of an amateur, but the precision of the bombs (as well as the scope of the attempted bombing; 5+ unexploded bombs were discovered after the fact) suggests otherwise.  I almost wonder if it was a lone wolf attempting to impress some bigger group; but what's the point of that if you're just going to get caught right away?

You are transposing normal thought patterns and behavior on unnatural actions. Having studied terror attacks in some depth, most of the time there is less thought process and planning, if at all, into getting away with it. Of course, the group/individual affiliation, motivation, dynamic has a lot to do with this.  My gut instinct tells me this is lone wolf or very small cell of a couple people. Someone like the Times Square bomber. People willing to take the martyrdom route only if cornered.  That may also be why BPD, FBI etc etc is being tight lipped.  You could have situation like after Madrid where bombers take themselves out once noose tightens.

Well, I wasn't really suggesting they were going to try to get away with it.  It's more that it seems like if they knew anything at all it would be that they wouldn't get away with it, and, if so, why they haven't surfaced yet...

But I'll defer to your expertise.

I wouldn't call it expertise. I was only fortunate enough to study it with  professionals in the field and trust the real experts are following the leads and will catch the perpetrators in due time. (My current line of work is very peripheral and really wholly unrelated to this and I am just a news watcher)  You are right that this is far from the proverbial perfect crime. Should be a whole lot of evidence to work with once you separate the wheat from the chaff.

[patrick1]

I hope this bit of whether it matters whether the perps where of the Left or Right, non political, Christian, Muslim or atheist, or none of the above, is out of everyone's system. There are nutters out there from all stripes, and to make something out of what the nutter(s) believed as opposed to what was done, simply serves no useful purpose that I can think of.

And I say nutter deliberately. No cause can be furthered by this sort of act. It can only be hurt. Most of the planet recoils from the slaughter of the totally innocent. It requires a psychotic mind to go where the perp(s) went here.

While I agree with the spirit of the post, I'd have to disagree with a minor element.  It is instructive as a preventative tool to study the motivations and methodology of the people who carry out these type of attacks.  Of course, the identifiers of the attackers can be twisted into grotesque bigotry or over rationalization of the merits of the motivations of said attackers but hey opinions are like a$sholes.

[DINGO Joe]

The 8-year-old boy who was killed in one of today's Boylston Street explosions lived in the Ashmont section of Dorchester, the Globe is reporting. The boy, Martin Richard, was the son of William and Denise Richard of Carruth Street in Dorchester. William reportedly ran the Marathon while his family waited for him at the finish line. His wife and daughter are in the hospital with grievous injuries; another daughter was unharmed.

via boston.com

[Smash255]

I hope this bit of whether it matters whether the perps where of the Left or Right, non political, Christian, Muslim or atheist, or none of the above, is out of everyone's system. There are nutters out there from all stripes, and to make something out of what the nutter(s) believed as opposed to what was done, simply serves no useful purpose that I can think of.

And I say nutter deliberately. No cause can be furthered by this sort of act. It can only be hurt. Most of the planet recoils from the slaughter of the totally innocent. It requires a psychotic mind to go where the perp(s) went here.

While I agree with the spirit of the post, I'd have to disagree with a minor element.  It is instructive as a preventative tool to study the motivations and methodology of the people who carry out these type of attacks.  Of course, the identifiers of the attackers can be twisted into grotesque bigotry or over rationalization of the merits of the motivations of said attackers but hey opinions are like a$sholes.

Agreed, when it comes down to it we do need to know the reasons this type of crap happens and the motivation that is behind it.  That doesn't mean we have to give credence to the views or reasons that led to this attack or any other attack, but it is important to understand the root causes.  It doesn't even have to be super detailed or indepth, but more than "they hate us for our freedoms" which is something we heard often in the aftermath of 9/11 and the onset of the war in Iraq.

[Tender Branson]

Jordan extremist 'happy to see the horror' of bombing

AMMAN, Jordan (AP) — The head of an extremist Jordanian Muslim Salafi group said early Tuesday that he was "happy to see the horror in America" after the explosions in Boston.

"American blood isn't more precious than Muslim blood," said Mohammad al-Chalabi, who was convicted in an al-Qaeda-linked plot to attack U.S. and other Western diplomatic missions in Jordan in 2003.

"Let the Americans feel the pain we endured by their armies occupying Iraq and Afghanistan and killing our people there," he said early Tuesday.

Al-Chalabi served seven years in prison for his part in the foiled attack. His group is outlawed in Jordan.

A Mideast counterterrorism official based in Jordan said the blasts "carry the hallmark of an organized terrorist group, like al-Qaeda." He did not give actual evidence linking al-Qaeda to the bombing.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2013/04/15/boston-marathon-explosions-jordan/2086237/

[King]

Jordan extremist 'happy to see the horror' of bombing

AMMAN, Jordan (AP) — The head of an extremist Jordanian Muslim Salafi group said early Tuesday that he was "happy to see the horror in America" after the explosions in Boston.

"American blood isn't more precious than Muslim blood," said Mohammad al-Chalabi, who was convicted in an al-Qaeda-linked plot to attack U.S. and other Western diplomatic missions in Jordan in 2003.

"Let the Americans feel the pain we endured by their armies occupying Iraq and Afghanistan and killing our people there," he said early Tuesday.

Al-Chalabi served seven years in prison for his part in the foiled attack. His group is outlawed in Jordan.

A Mideast counterterrorism official based in Jordan said the blasts "carry the hallmark of an organized terrorist group, like al-Qaeda." He did not give actual evidence linking al-Qaeda to the bombing.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2013/04/15/boston-marathon-explosions-jordan/2086237/

These guys obviously had nothing to do with it and are just trying to take credit.

Maybe it will inspire those behind it to reveal themselves.

[This user has not been convicted of 34 felonies]

If, tomorrow, I tell the press that, like, a gang banger will get shot, or a truckload of soldiers will be blown up, nobody panics, because it's all "part of the plan". But when I say that one little old mayor will die, well then everyone loses their minds!

Good reference.

[Bacon King]

The Taliban has gone on record to say that it wasn't them.

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[Snowstalker Mk. II]

I doubt this was the work of an Islamist group; otherwise the attacks would have been far more refined. It could potentially be a lone wolf, but I don't want to speculate too much.

[Brittain33]

So what will be outlawed as a result of this?

It's a lovely walkable area, with nice shops and lots of on street parking. I'm sure that's all going to be compromised for security now.

[Brittain33]

Dozens and dozens of state trooper cars, unmarked cars, police cars from nearby cities parked on Storrow Drive by the dam this morning. They've brought in a lot of people to sweep the area.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

Well, while it certainly was not worth it, there is one silver lining to this.  It caused my local public radio station to suspend their pledge drive.  Pledge drives are quite irritating, yet I'd gladly prefer to have then go an extra week than have something like this happen.

[John Dibble]

They were interviewing a former bomb squad member who dealt with the 1996 Olympic bombings here in Atlanta on a local radio station. He said that based on the smoke of the bombs in this case that they were likely powder bombs, which he said was indicative of a domestic terrorist.

[opebo]

And I say nutter deliberately. No cause can be furthered by this sort of act. It can only be hurt. Most of the planet recoils from the slaughter of the totally innocent. It requires a psychotic mind to go where the perp(s) went here.

Even psychosis is political, Torie.

[Torie]

What I was trying to say in part is that the tendency to hope that the perps (and their execrable acts) are part of a larger political ideology or whatever that one considers a bete noir, in order to tarnish that ideology through guilt by association, is something to which I take exception. Some of the heat in this thread seemed to be coming from that direction.

[opebo]

What I was trying to say in part is that the tendency to hope that the perps (and their execrable acts) are part of a larger political ideology or whatever that one considers a bete noir, in order to tarnish that ideology through guilt by association, is something to which I take exception. Some of the heat in this thread seemed to be coming from that direction.

I see.  However I just wanted to warn against the idea that this sort of thing is an aberration or some kind of 'act of god' through insanity, etc.  This type of action is normal (though rare).  Such events are part of and inherent to our system.

[DINGO Joe]

Just to clean up some information, there were no unexploded bombs and the bombs were not packed with ball bearings.  Sounds like they were fairly simple.  Whatever the motive, it is looking more and more like a lone individual.

[Brittain33]

What I was trying to say in part is that the tendency to hope that the perps (and their execrable acts) are part of a larger political ideology or whatever that one considers a bete noir, in order to tarnish that ideology through guilt by association, is something to which I take exception. Some of the heat in this thread seemed to be coming from that direction.

I agree, it's why early on I was discomfited by speculation, even though it was innocent. Seeing the NYPost publish 2 hours after the bomb that a Saudi was in custody... it's too easy to latch on to what we already fear. And even if it turns out to be a Saudi, or a [political ideologue of your choice], or whomever, it's ultimately someone whose willingness to murder innocents should not be applied to whoever may or may not share a banner or nationality with them.

[BluegrassBlueVote]

Obama officially calls it an act of terrorism. And of course CNN is now spending time dissecting his use of the word "malevolent".

[Paul Kemp]

Obama officially calls it an act of terrorism. And of course CNN is now spending time dissecting his use of the word "malevolent".

ugh