Posted on 10/09/2005 11:22:54 AM PDT by JustaCowgirl
NORMAN - University of Oklahoma officials, the Muslim community, students and others are waiting for the FBI to connect the dots in last week's public suicide of an OU student.
Joel Henry Hinrichs III, 21, was killed Oct. 1 in an explosion that officials say he caused not far from a packed Oklahoma Memorial Stadium.
But the dots cannot be connected, at least at this point, said Stephen Sloan, a former University of Oklahoma professor who is alarmed that far-right extremist groups have taken to the Internet with conspiracy theories attempting to link the actions of Hinrichs to the Muslim community of Norman and to the Middle East.
The FBI has provided little information about its investigation but said last week that there is no known link between Hinrichs and terrorist or extremist organizations. But questions linger as to Hinrichs' intent before he died in an explosion while sitting on a park bench in front of the George Lynn Cross microbiology building about 100 yards west of the stadium.
"No doubt there are a lot of questions to be answered," Sloan said. "But it is unfortunately logical to think that he was trying to get into the stadium."
The terrorism expert said the size of the explosion indicates that it was designed to hit more than Hinrichs. He said it seems more than coincidence that this occurred on the Saturday night of a football game.
A student, Adam Smith, related last week that he learned from a ticket taker at Gate 6 on the north side of the football field that a young man had tried to gain entrance. The ticket taker wanted to examine the man's backpack, which prompted the man to sprint away, Smith said he was told.
The FBI reportedly has confirmed that its review of surveillance cameras in the stadium did not reveal that Hinrichs tried to gain entrance. However, OU President David Boren declined at midweek to say whether cameras are mounted at all entrances.
The FBI has kept mum about the explosive that Hinrichs used and declined to comment on reports that large amounts of explosives were in his apartment.
The explosion that killed Hinrichs also burned a large area around the bench. If the explosion had occurred inside the stadium, it could have killed fans, prompting the question of whether that was Hinrichs' intent all along.
A suicide note apparently has not been found. Hinrichs' father, who had conversations with the FBI, told The Associated Press that his son did not leave a suicide note.
Joel Hinrichs Jr. told the Tulsa World that he knew his son was troubled, but he had no idea he wanted to die.
"I would have been there within whatever the speed limit would allow me to be if I had any inclination that he was this unhappy," the father said from his family's home in Colorado Springs the day after the explosion.
It remains unanswered as to whether Hinrichs could have concocted the explosive device on his own, although there are no indications he acted with others.
Those who knew of him -- from his high school teacher in Colorado Springs to fellow engineering students at OU -- said he was typically a loner who sat by himself in the classroom. He was among the National Merit Scholars whom Boren has attracted to the OU campus.
His father told the Colorado Springs Gazette that at an early age, Hinrichs was fascinated with science. At the time of his death, he was a third-year engineering student at OU.
Boren has said it appears this is an "individual suicide," noting that Hinrichs waited until people were inside the stadium before he took his life.
University officials say they have no record of Hinrichs having a season ticket or purchasing one for the OU-Kansas State game.
OU Vice President of Communications Catherine Bishop added, however, that the university has no way of knowing whether Hinrichs could have purchased a ticket from someone outside the stadium, where many people typ ically sell tickets on game day.
Sloan said the public should note the fact that if Hinrichs did try to get into the stadium, he was stopped.
"If Hinrichs was turned away, that is a positive mark in terms of security awareness," he said.
While Hinrichs' individual actions are still being probed, the Islamic community of Norman is on edge, fearful that this troubling event is somehow linked to Muslims.
"Haven't we learned from the bombing of the Murrah Building (in 1995) in Oklahoma City, when the first reports tried to tie the bombing to a foreigner from the Middle East?" Sloan said. "But that proved to be false.
"It is much too early to render a full judgment," said Sloan, who regrets that some people already are convinced this is a conspiracy.
Hinrichs lived at Parkview Apartments, just a few blocks from the mosque of the Islamic Society of Norman. Also fueling the link to some kind of Middle East terrorism is the fact that Hinrichs' roommate, Fazil Cheema, is from Pakistan. Acquaintances of Cheema's say he is not a practicing Muslim and never attends services at the mosque.
Muslims who attend the mosque also say they are not aware that Hinrichs ever set foot in the mosque.
The quest for the truth, however, has been hindered by the fact that Cheema himself has not made himself available to the media since the incident occurred. He has left the apartment where he lived with Hinrichs, although he is still believed to be in Norman.
Acquaintances say that Hinrichs and his roommate have in common the fact that both could be called loners, and possibly ended up as roommates at Parkview because neither of them had other friends, so they were assigned to live together.
Tariq Alzoubi, a Muslim who has been part of the Islamic community in Norman for several years, said when he found out that the individual who died was white and not Middle Eastern, "I was not happy, but I was relieved. Then the issue came up that his roommate might be Pakistani."
Originally from Jordan and Saudi Arabia, Alzoubi said Muslims have been on edge when something like this happens ever since Sept. 11, 2001.
"Before 9-11, I knew 30 Saudi students at OU; all but two of them left," he said.
"My only concern in all of this is that we stay away from collective punishment for something bad that happened here," he said.
Mick Hinton (405) 528-2465 mick.hinton@tulsaworld.com
If the good professor was either a Cold War hawk, or if he has given an apology for not believing us 'far-right extremists' during the Cold War when we were right about everything we said was a Soviet plot--the nuclear freeze movement, Finnish neutrality, the anti-Vietnam war movement's core,. . .--and about where there were Communist cells and agents--Alger Hiss, Hollywood (Bertold Brecht was the head of the cell there), . . . (except for water flouridation--but I never bought into that one anyway), and admitted that the left was wrong on every point, maybe I'll listen to him. Otherwise he can stuff it.
"If the explosion had occurred inside the stadium, it could have killed fans, prompting the question of whether that was Hinrichs' intent all along."
Gee, ya think? Give that man a cookie.
And those damn far-right wing zealots keep digging them up on the internet...
Profanity brinksmanship...LOL!
Yeah... that damn, unfortunate logic will rear up its ugly head on the most innocent of actions!
Ha.
I stand corrected. Thanks.
YIPPEE...I've gone from a Bush apologist to a right wing extremist. My dad is gonna be so proud.
"YIPPEE...I've gone from a Bush apologist to a right wing extremist. My dad is gonna be so proud.'
Good one.
Sloan evidently isn't even a current University of Oklahoma professor, so he can't have been tapped as an official spokesman for the University. He does not appear to be a local Muslim leader (they found someone else to play that role), so it couldn't be that angle. Was it a random pick? Doubtful. So it has the strong appearance that he was chosen in order to give the article the political spin that was desired, either by the "reporter" or by an editor...
But wait, there's more. There is a Dr. Stephen Sloan who is or was professor of political science at the University of Oklahoma, who appears to have a strong background in simulating terrorist incidents in order to help public and private organizations to, I don't know, maybe come up with strategies for dealing with terrorist incidents? Or maybe counseling clients in how to downplay the possibility of terrorism when an act such as this one occurs? While I can't be certain that this is the same guy, it is plausible: See this bio for more.
If the little twit had gotten into the stadium and blew away a few OU students, what would his spin be? "Oh, we were never able to connect the dots.." Works both ways I guess.
Interesting wording, isn't it? Slip of the tongue, maybe?
"YIPPEE...I've gone from a Bush apologist to a right wing extremist. My dad is gonna be so proud."
Yep. Congratulations.
Could be just that...more than a little funny though.
NORMAN - University of Oklahoma officials, the Muslim community, students and others are waiting for the FBI to connect the dots in last week's public suicide of an OU student. " ...officials say he caused ... "
" .. the dots cannot be connected, ... "
" ... " questions linger as to Hinrichs' intent before he died in an explosion while sitting on a park bench in front of the George Lynn Cross microbiology building about 100 yards west of the stadium." "
"But it is unfortunately logical to think that he was trying to get into the stadium."
" ... a young man had tried to gain entrance."
"... surveillance cameras in the stadium did not reveal that Hinrichs tried to gain entrance."
" ... Hinrichs' intent ... "
" ... A suicide note apparently has not been found."
"It remains unanswered as to whether Hinrichs could have concocted the explosive device on his own, although there are no indications he acted with others."
"... typically a loner who sat by himself in the classroom."
"... fascinated with science. At the time of his death, he was a third-year engineering student at OU."
"Boren has said it appears this is an "individual suicide," noting that Hinrichs waited until people were inside the stadium before he took his life.
The scene I see here is, a 3rd yr. engineering student, fascinated with his chosen field dies in an explosion on or near a park bench a hundred yards from a full stadium of football fans.
Where's any of the inuendo this article idescriminately throws out here.
Good catch. Almost certainly the same person. Rereading the article closely, I think that a lot of the statements that are the most ludicrous are not the Professor's, but the reporter's spin on what the Professor has said. Maybe a little bit of putting words in his mouth, even quoting him out of context?
"Stephen Sloan, a former University of Oklahoma professor"
"terrorist expert".
You are correct. It wouldn't be a stretch to believe the man on the bio and the one in the article are one in the same. My question; what kind of "terrorist expert" would so quickly downplay the possibility, post 9/11, of a muslim connection, especially in light of the troubing "coincidences"?
I wonder too...left-wing spokesman or dhimmi of the day.
I'm not sure which, but I'm sure someone on this blog will come up with info...
Can anybody dig up and post a photo of our disturbed suicidal individual? I recall he looked a little bit.. well, Muslim, what with the Taliban-style beard and all.
It's also interesting to note that the article doesn't mention the fact that the Mosque in Norman was the one attended by Zacarias Moussawi.
Sloan appears to be debating with himself. His statements seem to contradict one another.
Did pick up this?
"The FBI reportedly has confirmed that its review of surveillance cameras in the stadium did not reveal that Hinrichs tried to gain entrance."
"However, OU President David Boren
declined at midweek to say whether cameras are mounted at all entrances."
Interesting...especially knowing that Hinrich's Pakistani room mate, Cheema, worked for the Athletic Dept....it wouldn't be a stretch to say an employee might have had knowledge of where cameras were and which ones were operating...
The article omits a great deal of information, not only as it pertains to Moussawi...
Hey, stop showing yourself as a right-wing extremist by pulling up those facts!
He does, doesn't he?
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