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Posted on 10/12/2005 4:45:14 AM PDT by texianyankee
Imagine a man with a bomb strapped to his body making his way into a packed football stadium, reaching his seat and blowing himself up. There would be a heavy death toll in what would be the first successful terrorist act on U.S. soil since 9-11.
Jolting us back to memories of the Oklahoma City bombing, this would obviously be a massive headline in our ongoing war on terror. One would think attention would be heightened even further if such a story were to occur again in Oklahoma.
Well, there's reason to believe it nearly happened, and it was indeed in Oklahoma, making the paltry coverage of the story unfathomable.
On Oct. 1, as the Oklahoma Sooners hosted Kansas State in front of 84,000 fans, University of Oklahoma student Joel Hinrichs III blew himself up outside the stadium.
There is evidence that he sought to enter the game and was turned away by security after refusing to allow his backpack to be searched. Some minutes later, that backpack, containing the chosen explosive of shoe bomber Richard Reid and the London subway bombers, exploded, killing Mr. Hinrichs as he sat on a bench.
There have been some dutiful print and broadcast accounts of this event, all leaning heavily on the favored establishment take – that this was a troubled young man who sought only to kill himself, simply doing so in an offbeat way.
Oh, really?
Well, what if the young man had a Pakistani roommate? What if he had been spending time at the Islamic Center of Norman, Okla., once frequented by "20th hijacker" Zacarias Moussaoui? What if the warrant used in the search of the bomber's apartment had been sealed by federal authorities?
What if explosives had been found in that apartment? What if the young man had tried to purchase ammonium nitrate, the chosen explosive of Tim McVeigh, at a Norman feed store days earlier?
That's a lot of what ifs, and they range from the confirmed to the unconfirmed. But the parts we do know – the Pakistani roommate, the attempted fertilizer purchase, the veil of secrecy around the investigation – should be enough to cast doubt on the simplistic "troubled young man" theory favored by, among others, OU's nervous president, David Boren.
Mr. Hinrichs' father told me his son was not the type to join radical causes and would not want to hurt anyone. But his son's chosen method – blowing himself up in a public place – would seem to cast doubt on his concern for his fellow man.
As for the terrorist angle, Mr. Hinrichs is now the subject of understandably intense scrutiny, virtually none of it from the mainstream media. You might think the story fizzled because there was, in fact, no death beyond the bomber. True enough, but I'd suggest that if a raid revealed some radical plan to bomb an abortion clinic anywhere in America, the suspects would be household names by nightfall without a single fuse lit.
Something about the nature of this event has swallowed almost whole the normal curiosity one would expect from the usual sources.
Is it political, because acknowledging a terror threat on our soil might bolster President Bush's war logic? Is it economic, out of fear of scaring people away from football games? Is it geographic snobbery because it didn't happen on either coast? Or is it a PC fear of seeming to lunge toward a jihadist angle?
Whatever the reason, hunting for details of this shocking story puts you in some offbeat company.
Jayna Davis is a writer who has spent years documenting what she asserts is an Islamic connection to the Oklahoma City bombing. She has a fan in Douglas Hagmann, director of an outfit called the Northeastern Intelligence Network, whose Web site (homelandsecurityus.com) has a conspiracy geek vibe that might spark scoffing.
But the fact of the matter is that these people are breaking fresh news on this story that only later winds up in more conventional news outlets.
I'm not calling for a leap to the conclusion that Mr. Hinrichs was another in a series of Caucasians pressed into service by terror cells for their undercover value. But it seems equally unwise to shrug dismissively at the possibility.
Ping. Some folks in the media are starting to get it.
FYI - I dont know who else to ping this to.....
Jayna Davis knows this too well.
bump
Good morning, TexasCajun. Something went terribly wrong with the FBI in Oklahoma; you're right about that.
Jayna Davis's book is one of the most eye opening books I've ever read. I've lent it to some democrats and it has changed their mind about Iraq and the war!
Mark Davis is a nationally-syndicated conservative radio talk-show host.
While he's not exactly part of the MSM, it's good to see the Dallas Morning News published his editorial.
That THIS is good summary reporting and analysis, although none of it "new" to those of us who have followed the OK bombing from day one here at FreeeRepublic:
Wonder when the mainstream news will "get it"?
(When the OK bombing will benefit Hillary? Or when it will harm Bush?)
I'm not holding my breath for CNN or even FNC to get it.
It's movement in the right direction at least. Good for him for writing that editorial.
This story and the Able Danger story are the two biggest "media" disappointments of the year, for me.
Often I find myself defending at least some journalists (in part because two of my best friends are journalists), but I can't defend journalists with a straight face any more. How many thousands of man-hours have been spent by journalists over the past five years trying to find cover-ups and scandals coming from the upper levels of government? Well, here's two cover-ups of seeming enormous implications that are begging to be reported, and America's journalists have shied away like frightened puppies.
But the laud a moron for going to jail for a couple of months "on principle" who had already been released from confidentiality by the source she was "protecting." Give me a break. For $1.2 million I'd spend a couple months in jail - there's no overhead and you get three meals a day.
Agreed - Mark Davis didnt tell us anything new, but at least it is out there.
I heard Mark Davis' interview with the bomber's father. The poor misguided dad is in total denial. But the point of this piece is how this has not really been 'national' news. Sure the kid was misguided....by jihdist influences. I think Davis is convinced there is a jihadist effort to enlist willing non-arab participants in their cause in the USA. I don't think Davis is off the mark.
It's about time that this story saw the light of day. Of course, the media is more concerned with Tom DeLay and the Republican infighting over Miers.
FNC did about three minutes on this around lunchtime on Friday. They called in two talking heads. One guy said it smelled like a terrorist hit to him, the second guy (who IIRC was law enforcement though not directly related to this case) said it was just a kid looking to go out with a bang ... so to speak.
Thanks for the link! You do those things quite well. Much appreciated.
What if he used the same brand of backpack used by thousands of peaceful students? Would that make him okay?
There's a lot that might indicate the possibility of an intentional attack, but to use the explosives information in this way is silly.
I wish more stations near Chicago carried him. I used to listen to Mark when we lived in Granbury, Tx before we moved to near Chicago. My wife in particular really liked him.
The mainstream press is actually TALKING about this..
Interesting stuff.
What radio station is he on? I probably cant pick him up down here in College Station.
Good. He brings up many of the salient points without making flat accusations, just reporting 'rumors'. Nicely done.
Today's Oklahoman newspaper reported that the FBI told Congressman Tom Cole that Hinrichs had no jihadist material in his apartment and no known connection with terrorists. They also said that there was nothing to indicate Hinrichs attended the mosque. I wonder if the FBI would be interested in some swampland in Florida I have for sale.
I just answered my own question, I clicked on the link - I see he is on WBAP
The question I have is whether Joel was a volunteer or a conscript. The month in Iraq has been at times to hold a family hostage to force the suicide run.
Oh, and don't forget them fringe benefits. Hopefully you ain't small in stature..
Cole's been studying Baghdad Bob.
While there is still not enough information to reach a firm conclusion, this incident is highly suspicious, and I believe the public has the right to be fully informed.
You're thinking of prison. Jail ain't so tough.
He is on WBAP which has a web site and broadcasts on the net. But..Davis is nationally syndicated on the radio...I just dont know what stations and where. Maybe the web site would tell you.
I meant to say the FBI, not Cole.
Great post. Thanks.
I do not believe this is a "Just a suicide".
I do believe this was designed to be a terrorist suicide mission.
I do believe the kid was a jihadist and was in the mosque as has been reported.
I do believe that he was mixing explosives in his room and there were other explosives materials in his room and had jihadist reading material, did the reading material belong to Hinnricks or Cheema or did Cheema use it to convert Hinnricks? If not why did the FBI say they had sealed indictments.
I do believe this Cheema character is involved up to his ears. I also believe that Cheemas's statements he is an athiest is BS and a smake screen.
I do believe the FBI and the local police are covering this up, I don't think they were fast enough to conceal all the information from the public.
Is it possible the next threat comes, not from ARAB terrorists, but from the twisted minds of members of ANSWR or fringe group ... from the American converts?
You can be sure that they are 'slow'.
I plead the fifth.
I am often fascinated at what the mainstream media choose to cover and to ignore. In 1997, for example, a baby died at the hands of a babysitter. One would think such a story would generate only local interest in the community where it happened, but the mainstream media picked up on it, and it remained at the top of the national news for weeks, becoming one of the biggest news stories of the year. On the other hand, they have virtually ignored the Oklahoma suicide bombing and the bomber's possible ties to Islamist terrorist networks.
bttt
Thanks for the ping. Maybe the rest of the MSM will start digging. It's about time.
The Plot Thickens PING!
This story has been virtually non-existant here in the Northeast, and it needs to grow legs...
The fact that the person also had contact with Muslims radicals adds to my suspicion.
Kid just went to pieces. Pieces here, pieces there. Has anyone seen a "Before" pic of this a-hole???
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Just another example of how the MSM betrays Americans.
Here's the latest from the Tulsa World.
No one else involved in bombing, FBI tells lawmaker
By JIM MYERS World Washington Bureau
10/12/2005
View in Print (PDF) Format
WASHINGTON -- U.S. Rep. Tom Cole said Tuesday that the FBI told him there is no indication anyone else was involved in the apparent suicide bombing that took the life of University of Oklahoma student Joel Henry Hinrichs III earlier this month.
Citing a point of frustration expressed by law enforcement, the Oklahoma Republican said, the agent who briefed him on the investigation questioned why no one with knowledge of Hinrichs' lengthy interest in explosives had ever contacted the bureau or some other agency.
"That is illegal activity," Cole said. "It is not like having a firearm and being a hunter."
No situation involving the making of a bomb even for private use is legal, he said, adding the agent clearly thought public awareness should be increased on that issue.
A two-term member of Congress whose district includes OU, Cole said he asked for an FBI briefing on the case that has generated an unusual amount of attention from those inside and outside the university community.
"No. 1, we don't have any reason to believe this was anything other than an individual suicide," Cole said, again quoting the FBI agent.
"We feel pretty good that there
is not terrorist activity."
Cole said the FBI, while still careful about ruling certain things in or out in the ongoing investigation, said law enforcement has looked at the 21-year-old student's phone records, e-mails and personal records.
"They checked out every acquaintance they could find," he said, including his roommate.
"He didn't have a lot of friends."
No evidence such as jihadist material has been found linking Hinrichs to others, Cole said.
"There is no indication he was acting in concert with anybody," he said.
Asked if Hinrichs had left a suicide note, Cole said the FBI told him "there was no note."
One of the questions that continues to generate speculation involved the timing and location of the bombing, which occurred close to a packed Oklahoma Memorial Stadium.
Cole said the FBI has not come up with a reason why Hinrichs picked that location and time for the bombing, adding, however, that that area is the first place that offers a place to sit down near the stadium.
As to the ongoing speculation that Hinrichs had attempted to enter the stadium only to be turned away by security, Cole said the FBI briefer conceded "honestly, we don't know," but added no confirmation of those reports has been found.
He said the FBI also cannot confirm the path Hinrichs took right before the bombing.
The FBI, the congressman said, praised the reaction of the local community, including those in the Islamic community, law enforcement and OU President David Boren.
Cole said he was told members of the Islamic community "went above and beyond" to cooperate with the investigation and no connection to the local mosque has been found.
U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., received an FBI briefing on the incident last week.
Danny Finnerty, special assistant to Inhofe, said the senator also received assurances that Hinrichs was acting alone when he killed himself.
Finnerty said the FBI also told Inhofe it could not confirm reports Hinrichs had attempted to enter the stadium.
Jim Myers (202) 484-1424
jim.myers@tulsaworld.com
Yet they conclude this was a suicide? Where is the evidence? Maybe it was accidental?
BTTT!!!!!
BTTT
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