Posted on 10/08/2002 11:34:37 AM PDT by SLB
A warrior's "humanity" or "compassion" can often be tempered by the enemy he faces...
You need only to find one brother - strung up by his elbows with his intestines lying at his feet, partially skinned alive --- and you will become a different person than the one your mother raised....
To stay alive, and extract revenge - can become VERY important....
Men that could not later, forgive themselves or rationalize their actions - ended up as drunks, drug addicts or suicides. They are the uncounted KIAs whose names don't appear on the black stone wall.
But, we're getting way off topic... Just making the point, there are no rules for human behavior that can hold all men in "check" when faced with his own destruction.
Semper Fi
Stay well - stay safe - stay armed - Yorktown
None taken, I agree with your conclusion, that's why the Israelies use(d) the 300 WM. My point is any rifle, although not optimal, is usuable. Don't underestimate their range. Someone posted on a different thread that the 55 grain .223 was really only good out to 300-500 yards, but the .72 grain rounds are good to 600 yards. The 80 grain competition rounds is a hot rod and has an MV in excess of 3000fps. I believe it is a hand load only, and the length is outside of spec.
Actually, this is right up their alley. They've done similar things in Israel, not as Al-Quada but other militant Islamic groups (they share resources so they really are the same enemy). They also have a need to shed America's blood on American soil, as they've promised for over a year now. The duration, planning, and sterility of the crime does not fit a home grown nut-job.
Stay Safe , Armed and CYA ToL !!
Pardon me for smelling a rat, but I think there might have been one recently released. Andrew Sullivan wrote a great column right after the LA Airport incident, exposing the governments penchant for hiding any indication of terrorism, as outlined in the article above. It seems that the establishment liberal unelected professional bureaucracy considers the American populace just a bunch of gun mongering yayhoos on hair-trigger. They think we will start lynching arabs from light poles if the facts about these "non terrorist" incidents get out to the general public. In the meantime, fewer verifiable racial incidents against arabs and muslims have occurred in the US in the time since 9/11 than the viscous anti-Semitic attacks that have been perpetrated by arabs and muslims in France alone, not to mention the rest of the world. Pardon my skepticism, but I think it may be catching, and I think you know why.
Well, i do see your point. However i do still believe that this is the work of some local whack-job and the tarot card they found just further implies it is some weirdo trying to spread some carnage around for any number of psycho reasons.
And as i posted in my previous correspondence if it were Al Queda they would use a stratagem that would produce bigger reverberations (eg instead of having some sniper stay within a certain area they could use fragmentation grenades on a subway system during rush hour or takeout a kindergarten with an AR-15. It would use the same resources and have a bigger impact. Moreover it would send a bigger message whihc is what Al Queda is after).
As for the sniper attacks in Israel (usually the work of Islamic Jihad and lately Hamas) there are several differences from what this perp is doing in Washington. First of all the Sniper attacks in Israel are totally random. The key issue there is to hit at different Jewish settlements at varying times, and then switching to a totally different area. The goal is to disorient the settlers and make then not know where the next shot in the dark will come from. Hence every now and then some Jewish settler will get a bullet through his kitchen window in the dead of night or maybe some innocent lady will get shot in her car in the wee hours of the morning. In essence totally random attacks that occur everywhere but nowhere! The geographical target for the sniper attacks could be anywhere in Israel since by doing so the terror of the unexpected is spread.
However if you look at what is happening here the perp is focussing on a very limited geographical area. He selects targets at random but he seldom moves (although i fear with allthose TV psychologists saying that is his 'comfort zone' he might decide to move). However this is a person who is trying to send a personal message.
I would say he is in the league of Son of Sam. Not the same but basically cut from the same thread. A psycho who satiates his need for greatness or vengeance or lust or reprisal or whatever by becoming terror personified. His message is death and it is personal.
An Al Queda cell on the other hand would try to maximize its meagre resources to the maximum. While picking off some innocent folks would spread terror Al Queda would try to do better. Why spend money on .223 ammo when you could buy simple pens and attack a pre-school using the pens as stabbing implements! In essence if your point is Al Queda is out of cash and thus has to resort to .223 ammo pot shots i would say if that were the case there are still cheaper ways in which they can accomplish their nefarious goals. I can think of literally dozens of ways in which a terrorist group (by terrorist i mean mid-eastern jehadis with a yearning to meet Allah) could wreak much more damage than what this perp is doing, and still do it more expediently and for less cost. And remember what terrorists are after is to spread their message to both their supporters back in their nests of vipers, and also to Americans and other similar minded people. These jehadis are like animals (and i think that insults animals) but an al Queda cell would not waste even one member on a random sniper attack in a limited geographical area when it would be so simple to up the ante and give a bigger message.
Hence my assertion this is a homegrown chap with some chip on his shoulder. He is indeed a terrorist since he is using terror tactics, but just like the Son of Sam he is a lone-wolf and not affiliated with any mid-eastern groups. I just pray they get this fella and punish him for attacking people for no good reason at all (just imagine what those fmailies went through! They woke up on Thursday and by the end of that day their world had changed. If it were up to me i would ensure this killer was thouroughly punished ...and although i am against torture i think i would lift my concerns over it so it could be applied to this fella). It is one thing for a Yemeni terrorist to travel to the uS and blow up Americans .....however when an American does that to his fellow citizens i have to say that is even worse because not only is the guy a killer but he is also a traitor of the worst kind.
However DeadDog let me say all i have written above is speculation. It could turn out the sniper is Al Queda. However i seriously doubt that will be the case.
Unfortunately, it looks like your assessment was proven true within hours.
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