tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-41624314937766864442024-03-12T20:53:33.720-05:00Another War-on-Terror Blog<b>Welcome to the 21st century.</b> The Cold War, WWII, and WWI are over.<br>The 19th and 20th centuries' class conflicts and colonial issues are behind us. <br>"Oppressed proletariat" and "European expansionism" are no longer relevant. <br><b>Religious fanatics</b> want their beliefs to rule the world. <br><b>Free people</b> want to stay that way. <br><b>Here's my view of the 21st century's great conflict -</b>Brian H. Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13209697542675181894noreply@blogger.comBlogger1484125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4162431493776686444.post-41125647314811828672015-11-07T14:07:00.000-06:002015-11-09T12:14:56.193-06:00Beer Mug Assault and Burning Crosses<a href="http://www.kare11.com/story/news/crime/2015/11/05/charges-woman-attacked-non-english-speaking-applebees-diner/75213368/"><img align="right" src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/201508ff/20151107-635823203217407804-burchard-risch-329.jpg" /></a>I ran into this last night:<br />
<blockquote>
"<a href="http://www.kare11.com/story/news/crime/2015/11/05/charges-woman-attacked-non-english-speaking-applebees-diner/75213368/">Charges: Woman attacked non-English speaking Applebee's diner</a>"<br />
KARE 11 Staff, KARE (November 5, 2015)<br />
<br />
"<i>A woman is charged with assault for allegedly smashing a beer mug across a diner's face at a local Applebee's -- all because the victim wasn't speaking English, according to the complaint.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Jodie Marie Burchard-Risch, 43, was charged with third-degree assault for an incident that occurred on Oct. 30 at the Applebee's in Coon Rapids.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>According to the criminal complaint, Burchard-Risch was dining with her husband when she became upset after hearing the victim speaking in a foreign language in the neighboring booth....</i>"</blockquote>
Managers at Applebee's tried to get Burchard-Risch to leave at that point. She did: after yelling a bit more at the other diner and using her beer mug as a weapon, hitting the other woman's face.<br />
<br />
One of Applebee's managers followed Burchard-Risch out of the restaurant, staying with her until responding officers arrested her.<br />
<br />
The victim has a deep cut across her nose; a cut on her right eyebrow and a big, deep, cut on her lower lip. That's bad, but it could have been worse. Apparently her eyes are okay, and she probably got medical attention promptly.<br />
<br />
Burchard-Rish was charged Monday: and there may be more legal trouble coming.<br />
<br />
<h4>
<a name="hate"></a>Hate Crimes and Attitudes</h4>
<br />
<a href="http://www.startribune.com/cair-calls-for-hate-crime-charges-in-attack-on-diner-at-coon-rapids-applebee-s/341788292/"><img align="right" src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/201508ff/20151107-ows_144682853092050-329.jpg" /></a>I'm not a big fan of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hate_crime">hate crime</a>/bias-motivated crime laws, mostly because I think they wouldn't be needed if America's courts paid attention to earlier legal sanctions against slander and physical violence.<br />
<br />
That said, I think this attack looks a lot like a 'hate crime.'<br />
<br />
The violence of the attack encouraged my suspicion that the 'non-English' language would be Arabic or Spanish. I was wrong. The victim was speaking Swahili:<br />
<blockquote>
"<a href="http://www.startribune.com/cair-calls-for-hate-crime-charges-in-attack-on-diner-at-coon-rapids-applebee-s/341788292/">Attack on diner at Coon Rapids Applebee's being examined for hate-crime charges</a>"<br />
"<b><i>The victim, targeted because she wasn't speaking English, suffered deep cuts on her face in the beer-mug attack, according to assault charges.</i></b>"<br />
Shannon Prather Star Tribune (November 7, 2015)<br />
<br />
"<i>An Anoka County prosecutor said Friday that authorities are looking into possible hate-crime counts against a woman charged with attacking a diner at the Coon Rapids Applebee's because she was speaking Swahili.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The victim suffered deep cuts to her face when she was struck with a beer mug Oct. 30 as she ate lunch with her husband and friends, Anoka County authorities said this week.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Jodie Burchard-Risch, 43, of Ramsey, was charged Monday in Anoka County District Court with third-degree assault.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>On Friday, the Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-MN) called for hate-crime charges against Burchard-Risch....</i>"</blockquote>
At this point, I could start ranting about the dangers of insufficiently-American foreigners, the need for beer mug control laws, or why restaurants breed violence and obesity.<br />
<br />
That would be silly — but no more silly, I think, than many political debates. And that's another topic.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2015/06/charleston-church-shooting-emotions-and.html#life"><img align="right" src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/20150619-1024px-Joseph_F_Keppler_-_Uncle_Sam-s_lodging-house-detail--329.jpg" /></a>I'm not a Swahili-speaking young woman, so why should I care what happened in that restaurant?<br />
<br />
For starters, I don't think 'my end of the boat isn't sinking' makes sense in situations like this. If I don't care when folks who aren't just like me get hurt, I can't reasonably expect sympathy if I'm the next target.<br />
<br />
I don't fit today's 'victim' stereotype, but some 'real Americans' might see folks like me as a threat to 'their' country.<br />
<br />
I look like a <a href="http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=wasp">WASP</a>, but I'm not. I'm a half-Irish Catholic. Happily, most Americans have realized that many Irishmen aren't violence-prone drunkards with criminal tendencies.<br />
<br />
I've discussed attitudes, bias, and internment camps, before. (A Catholic Citizen in America <a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2015/06/charleston-church-shooting-emotions-and.html#life">June 21, 2015</a>; Another War-on-Terror Blog <a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2009/09/tsa-our-tax-dollars-at-work-protecting.html#redwhiteblue">September 12, 2009</a>; <a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2009/01/america-racism-and-what-didnt-happen-at.html#change">January 22, 2009</a>)<br />
<br />
<h4>
<a name="avoiding"></a>Avoiding Hasty Generalizations</h4>
<br />
<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2014/09/remembering-911-living-in-big-world.html#burning"><img align="right" src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/800px-Cross_Lighting_2005-329.jpg" /></a>I've seen a few folks who might speak Swahili in the small central-Minnesota town I call home, but I haven't heard that language here — apart from someone saying the Lord's Prayer in Swahili at the parish church.<br />
<br />
I have, however, heard Spanish more frequently in recent years: mostly while standing in a grocery checkout line: and, rarely, an east-Asian language I didn't recognize.<br />
<br />
My lack of violent response to these 'foreign threats' is no virtue. I see new families moving in as a sign that my town is in good shape, and likely to endure: at least for another generation or two.<br />
<br />
Besides, as an American, I'd be very concerned if folks <b><i>weren't</i></b> pulling up stakes and moving here.<br />
<br />
Maybe it's easier to divide the world into 'people like me' and 'foreign threats.' But that attitude doesn't make sense. Not to me.<br />
<br />
Sure, some folks who speak Swahili, Arabic, Spanish, or Latvian, might try to blow up the post office or kill me. But but assuming that all Africans, Arabs, Hispanics, or whatever, are threats that makes about as much sense as assuming that all Christians are in the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ku_Klux_Klan">Ku Klux Klan</a>. And that, sadly, is not another topic. (A Catholic Citizen in America <a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2015/01/boko-haram-slavery-death-and-love.html#making">January 18, 2015</a>)<br />
<br />
Living with difference:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2015/06/charleston-church-shooting-emotions-and.html">Charleston Church Shooting: Emotions and Reason</a>"<br />
A Catholic Citizen in America (June 21, 2015)<br />
Particularly<ul>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2015/06/charleston-church-shooting-emotions-and.html#our">"Our Country?" Difference, Acceptance, and Murder</a></li>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2015/06/charleston-church-shooting-emotions-and.html#life">Life and Reality</a></li>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2015/06/charleston-church-shooting-emotions-and.html#looking">Looking Out For Each Other</a></li>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2015/06/charleston-church-shooting-emotions-and.html#emotions">Emotions and Reason</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>"<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2014/09/remembering-911-living-in-big-world.html">Remembering 9/11, Living in a Big World</a>"<br />
A Catholic Citizen in America (September 11, 2014)<br />
Particularly<ul>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2014/09/remembering-911-living-in-big-world.html#burning">Burning Crosses</a></li>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2014/09/remembering-911-living-in-big-world.html#freedom"> Freedom: For <i>Everybody</i></a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2009/05/holy-land-foundation-sentencing-its.html">Holy Land Foundation Sentencing: It's About Terrorism, Not Islam</a>"<br />
(May 27, 2009)<br />
Particularly<ul>
<li><a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2009/05/holy-land-foundation-sentencing-its.html#holy">Holy Land Foundation Sentencing: Texophobia??</a></li>
<li><a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2009/05/holy-land-foundation-sentencing-its.html#defunct">The Defunct Holy Land Foundation Isn't Islam</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2009/01/muslim-family-talks-safety-gets-booted.html">Muslim Family Talks Safety, Gets Booted From Flight</a>"<br />
(January 2, 2009)<br />
Particularly<ul>
<li><a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2009/01/muslim-family-talks-safety-gets-booted.html#fbi">The FBI, the Irfan Party, and Airtran: Common Sense and Full-Bore Bias</a></li>
<li><a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2009/01/muslim-family-talks-safety-gets-booted.html#this">This is Very Important: Bombs Bad; Beards Okay</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2008/11/al-aqaeda-leaders-house-slave-remarks.html">Al Aqaeda Leader's "House Slave" Remarks Not Big Hit With American Muslims</a>"<br />
(November 21, 2008)</li>
</ul>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">from anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com</div>Brian H. Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13209697542675181894noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4162431493776686444.post-80435122444938225132015-07-19T13:31:00.003-05:002015-07-19T13:31:29.890-05:00Eid ul-Fitr, and Death in Khan Bani SaadA fifth victim died in raising recent Chattanooga, Tennessee, attack's death toll to six. (<a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-33581753">BBC News</a>)<br />
<br />
As I said Thursday, that's a tragedy. (<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2015/07/dead-marines-in-chattanooga-living-with.html">July 16, 2015</a>)<br />
<br />
However, I think it's prudent to remember that Americans aren't the only ones terrorists kill. <br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/islamic-state-eid-attack-in-iraq-kills-90-as-saudis-arrest-400/story-e6frg6so-1227448129253"><img src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/20150719-129227-d1ff765c-2dbf-11e5-bd9d-04c63fe7bcf0-658.jpg" /></a><br />
(From AP, via The Australian, used w/o permission.)<br />
("<i> A woman grieves at the site of the bombing in Khan Beni Saad, about 30km northeast of Baghdad.</i>"<br />
The Australian (July 20, 2015))<br />
<blockquote>
"<a href="http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/islamic-state-eid-attack-in-iraq-kills-90-as-saudis-arrest-400/story-e6frg6so-1227448129253">Islamic State Eid attack in Iraq kills 90 as Saudis arrest 400 </a>"<br />
AFP, AP; via The Australian (July 20, 2015 12:00 a.m.)<br />
"<i><b>Iraq mourned its dead yesterday as the death toll from one of its deadliest car bombs rose to at least 90.</b></i><br />
<br />
"<i>The suicide attack by Islamic State, which ripped through a busy market north of Baghdad, came as the country marked Eid ul-Fitr, the feast that ends the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan....</i><br />
<br />
"<i>...Muthanna Saadoun, 25, a municipal employee who drives a street sweeper, used his truck to help put out the fires that the blast caused in the market area.</i><br />
<br />
"<i> 'People were burning in their cars because no ambulances or fire engines were able to reach them,' he said yesterday....</i><br />
<br />
"<i>...'What we witnessed yesterday cannot be described. Fire, bodies, wounded, women and children screaming ... Khan is now a disaster zone,' said Salem Abu Moqtada, 34, who sells vegetables in the market....</i><br />
<br />
"<i>...'Every year (during Ramadan) there’s a bombing. We are guilty of being Shia,' Mr Saleh said. 'This is the biggest in Diyala since 2003.'</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi condemned the attack as 'a despicable crime by the Daesh (Islamic State) terrorist gangs'...</i>"</blockquote>
Another spelling of Khan Beni Saad in my language is <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2015_Khan_Bani_Saad_massacre">Khan Bani Saad</a>.<br />
<br />
Either way, the known death toll is about 130 now: 15 of them children. Apparently the attacker drove an ice truck to the market, announced that he was selling ice at a discount because of the Eid al-Fitr holiday, waited for a crowd to gather, and set off the explosion. I suppose the attack was justified — sort of — since there's a claim that the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) was getting even for the killing of Sunni Muslims in Hawija. (<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2015_Khan_Bani_Saad_massacre">Wikipedia</a>)<br />
<br />
I don't see it that way, but I come from a different culture: and have very different beliefs.<br />
<br />
Don't expect a rant about 'those Muslims.' If all followers of Islam were this enthusiastic about killing folks who disagreed with them, or had killed someone who shared their particular flavor of Islam — the self-extermination would have been over centuries ago.<br />
<br />
There is, I think, hope that folks in the Middle East will learn to restrain their less-reasonable citizens.<br />
<br />
Saudi Arabia's government, for example, apparently has decided that arresting folks who plan to kill Saudis is a good idea. That's a start.<br />
<br />
In the long run, I think changing the status quo will take a very serious review of what they believe: and hard decisions about what's necessary, and what's causing the bloodshed. Change won't be easy — as my native culture has learned on many occasions. But change happens, and change can be good.<br />
<br />
I've said this before:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2015/07/dead-marines-in-chattanooga-living-with.html">Dead Marines in Chattanooga, Living with Change</a>"<br />
(July 16, 2015)<br />
Particularly<ul>
<li><a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2015/07/dead-marines-in-chattanooga-living-with.html#drunk">Drunk Driving, Names, a Yearbook, and the Irish</a></li>
<li><a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2015/07/dead-marines-in-chattanooga-living-with.html#its">It's a Big World</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>"<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2015/04/death-at-garissa-university-sin-and.html">Death at Garissa University, Sin, and Consequences</a>"<br />
A Catholic Citizen in America (April 12, 2015)<br />
Particularly<ul>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2015/04/death-at-garissa-university-sin-and.html#hellfire">Hellfire and Hypocrisy</a></li>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2015/04/death-at-garissa-university-sin-and.html#justice">Justice, Mercy, and Freedom</a></li>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2015/04/death-at-garissa-university-sin-and.html#doing">Doing Something Constructive — or Not</a></li>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2015/04/death-at-garissa-university-sin-and.html#working">Working for Change: It's a Long Haul</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2015/01/charlie-hebdo-dealing-with-difference.html">Charlie Hebdo: Dealing With Difference</a>"<br />
(January 9, 2015)<br />
Particularly<ul>
<li><a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2015/01/charlie-hebdo-dealing-with-difference.html#islam">Islam in the Information Age</a></li>
<li><a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2015/01/charlie-hebdo-dealing-with-difference.html#dealing">Dealing With Difference: or Not</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2014/09/the-islamic-state-air-strikes-diplomacy.html">The Islamic State: Air Strikes, Diplomacy, and Remembering Sargon of Akkad</a>"<br />
(September 26, 2014)<br />
Particularly<ul>
<li><a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2014/09/the-islamic-state-air-strikes-diplomacy.html#making">Making Mistakes, Making Sense</a></li>
<li><a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2014/09/the-islamic-state-air-strikes-diplomacy.html#taking">Taking the Long View: and Hope</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>" <a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2014/08/all-are-equal-before-god-rights-of.html">'All are Equal Before God' — Rights of Humanity and a Right of the Aggressor</a>"<br />
A Catholic Citizen in America (August 24, 2014)<br />
Particularly<ul>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2014/08/all-are-equal-before-god-rights-of.html#unhappy">Unhappy About Change</a></li>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2014/08/all-are-equal-before-god-rights-of.html#terrorism">Terrorism and Options</a></li>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2014/08/all-are-equal-before-god-rights-of.html#stopping">Stopping an Unjust Aggressor</a></li>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2014/08/all-are-equal-before-god-rights-of.html#international">International Authority and Working With What We've Got</a></li>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2014/08/all-are-equal-before-god-rights-of.html#loving">Loving Neighbors: No Matter What</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">from anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com</div>Brian H. Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13209697542675181894noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4162431493776686444.post-63311590302604089012015-07-16T19:36:00.000-05:002015-07-16T19:47:42.382-05:00Dead Marines in Chattanooga, Living with ChangeMaybe you've seen the headlines:<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-33559853"><img src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/20150716-_84320367_hi028198992-658.jpg" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">(From AP, via BBC News, used w/o permission.)</span><br />
("<i>Police were deployed on the Amnicola Highway near the US Navy reserve centre in Chattanooga</i>"<br />
(BBC News))<br />
<blockquote>
"<a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-33559853">Chattanooga shootings: Four Marines killed at Tennessee US Navy centres</a>"<br />
BBC News (July 16, 2015)<br />
<br />
"<i><b>Four US Marines have been killed after shootings at two US Navy buildings in Chattanooga, Tennessee.</b></i><br />
<br />
"<i>The local district lawyer said the two incidents were being investigated as an 'act of domestic terrorism'.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Chattanooga city police said it was the same gunman at both locations and confirmed he had been killed.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The gunman was identified as 24-year-old Muhammad Youssef Abdulazeez by an unnamed official, according to the AP news agency.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>He is believed to have been born in Kuwait, but it is unclear whether he was a US or Kuwaiti citizen.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Reports said armed police have been deployed to the house where he lived, a few miles outside Chattanooga in Hixson, and neighbours were being evacuated.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>FBI agent Ed Reinhold, who is leading the investigation, said the first shooting occurred at about 10:45 local time (14:45 GMT) at a US Navy recruitment centre in the east of the city.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>After opening fire on the building, the gunman then fled the scene in a Ford Mustang and was pursued by Chattanooga police, Mr Reinhold told reporters.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>He was shot dead after a gunfight at a US Navy reserve centre about seven miles (10 km) away on Amnicola Highway....</i>"</blockquote>
This isn't, I'm quite certain, a major milestone in world history. Ten thousand years from now, I'd be surprised if more than a few antiquarians knew that Chattanooga even existed: or Tennessee, for that matter.<br />
<br />
On the other hand, five folks are now dead: that is significant, at least for their families and friends. That is a personal tragedy for those involved, and may deserve the international news coverage it is getting.<br />
<br />
Since the victims were serving in the United States armed forces, and the killer's name, Muhammad Youssef Abdulazeez, identifies him with an ethnic group that's had its share of terrorism-related deaths and killings — the district attorney may be right. This does look like "domestic terrorism."<br />
<br />
The killer's motives may be hard to figure out, since he's dead: and my guess is that we're <b><i>not</i></b> looking at part of a coordinated attack on the United States.<br />
<br />
For all I know, this might be a simple holdup gone horribly wrong. It's remotely possible that Mr. Abdulazeez mistook the Marine recruiting office for a convenience store, and panicked when he discovered that there was no cash register to pilfer.<br />
<br />
No, I don't think that's the case.<br />
<br />
My guess is that Mr. Abdulazeez decided that America was a threat to his faith, that God wanted him to kill Marines, or something equally daft.<br />
<br />
If that's true, it does not, in my considered opinion, prove that all Muslims hate Americans, or that America threatens Islam, or that Marines should be killed. It does, I think, show that individuals can do very bad things for daft reasons. (A Catholic Citizen in America, <a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2015/06/charleston-church-shooting-emotions-and.html">June 21, 2015</a>)<br />
<br />
<h4>
<a name="drunk"></a>Drunk Driving, Names, a Yearbook, and the Irish</h4>
<br />
<a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-33559853"><img src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/20150716-_84317822_usatennesseechattanooga4640715-658.jpg" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">(From BBC News, used w/o permission.)</span><br />
(Location of Chattanooga, Tennessee)<br />
<br />
We're learning more about the killer. Apparently Mr. Abdulazeez had been arrested for drunk driving, earlier this year. That was in Chattanooga, too: and may not have much of anything to do with today's killings.<br />
<br />
It looks like Muhammad Youssef Abdulazeez was born somewhere in the Middle East. He's 24 years old. A local newspaper said that someone with his name graduated from a local high school and left a message in a school yearbook: "My name causes national security alerts. What does yours do?" (<a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-33559853">BBC News</a>)<br />
<br />
<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2015/06/charleston-church-shooting-emotions-and.html#life"><img align="right" src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/20150619-1024px-Joseph_F_Keppler_-_Uncle_Sam-s_lodging-house-detail--329.jpg" /></a>I'm slightly sympathetic toward folks who feel that they're unfairly suspected of crimes. I've used my Irish ancestry as an example of America's occasionally-grudging tolerance of non-English, non-Protestant Americans.<br />
<br />
I figure that we'll eventually get used to the idea that folks from Latin America and the Middle East are no more — or less — of a threat than the Irish. By then, tightly-wound Americans will probably be upset about folks arriving from some other part of the world.<br />
<br />
At least, I hope so.<br />
<br />
Me? I'll be concerned if folks <b><i>stop</i></b> wanting to come to America. From my viewpoint, we can always use folks with fresh ideas, enthusiasm, and a new set of customs. Of course, I'm almost half-Irish: and that's where I started this tangent.<br />
<br />
<h4>
<a name="president"></a>The President, Celebrities, Experts, and All That</h4>
<br />
<a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-33559853"><img align="right" src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/20150716-_84320522_tennesseechattanoogahixson464160715-329.jpg" /></a>It's about two hours after I started writing this. The family's eaten our evening meal, and I see that America's president made the usual 'this is a bad thing' statement.<br />
<br />
There's news that the killer lived in Hixson, a few miles from Chattanooga, that police raided the house,and "an AP reporter said two women were led away in handcuffs." (<a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-33559853">BBC News</a>)<br />
<br />
That sounds reasonable, although I don't know what it means. Being "led away" by police simply means what the words say. I've been "led away" and searched by police — for good reason — but I've never been a threat to American lives.<br />
<br />
I'd say "never been a threat to national security:" but since I don't think whoever is president at the moment is always right — or wrong, question the Supreme Court's infallibility, and don't vote a straight party ticket: some folks might see me as a loose cannon. <br />
<br />
If this follows the usual pattern, over the next 24 to 48 hours we'll read about assorted other national and state leaders saying pretty much what the president did. Celebrities will make more-or-less-regrettable statements, and the usual gaggle of "experts" will weigh in on how this attack proves that they're smarter than anyone else.<br />
<br />
I'll grant that I've got my own opinions about what happened.<br />
<br />
I'm reasonably sure that local, state, and federal law enforcement folks are sorting through evidence and statements: and will eventually learn what happened. They may even discover why these killings started. I don't have blind faith in any of the agencies or people involved: but I don't automatically assume that they're plotting against me, either. That's why I'm inclined to believe this:<br />
<blockquote>
"<a href="https://www.fbi.gov/news/pressrel/press-releases/fbi-statement-on-shootings-at-military-facilities-in-chattanooga-tennessee">FBI Statement on Shootings at Military Facilities in Chattanooga, Tennessee</a>"<br />
FBI National Press Office, Washington, D.C. (July 16, 2015)<br />
<br />
"<i>The FBI's Knoxville Field Office, along with the Chattanooga Police Department and other law enforcement partners, are working jointly to investigate today’s shootings at a military recruitment center and a reserve center in Chattanooga, Tennessee in which four individuals were killed and three injured. The shooter, Mohammod Youssuf Abdulazeez, 24, is also deceased. While it would be premature to speculate on the motives of the shooter at this time, we will conduct a thorough investigation of this tragedy and provide updates as they are available.</i>"</blockquote>
<h4>
<a name="its"></a>It's a Big World</h4>
<br />
Predictably, there's the usual rumor that ISIS (<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamic_State_of_Iraq_and_the_Levant">Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham</a>) planned the killings, or knew about them before they happened. That may be true, or not. Right now, I don't know.<br />
<br />
It's likely that Muhammad Youssef Abdulazeez's motives were at least partly religious, ethnic, or patriotic. That doesn't prove that religion kills, or that everybody who's not a Norwegian-Irish-Scots-American like me is a threat to blue-eyed people, or that nations shouldn't exist.<br />
<br />
When someone goes off the rails, the motive generally seems to be something that's emotionally engaging: like religion, ethnicity, national origin, or sex.<br />
<br />
But I don't think that Mr. Abdulazeez's actions prove that all Muslims, or Middle Easterners, are terrorists: any more than <a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2011/07/norway-oslo-island-of-utoya-dead-bodies.html">Anders Behring Breivik</a>'s and <a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2011/07/norway-oslo-island-of-utoya-dead-bodies.html">Dylann Roof</a>'s actions prove that everyone with European ancestry is a killer.<br />
<br />
It's true that right now quite a few folks are extremely upset at how the world's changing. Mr. Roof, for example, seems convinced that folks with African ancestry are threatening "his" country. Mr. Abdulazeez may have had a similar opinion about Marines.<br />
<br />
In a way, these killers are right. Sort of.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2014/09/remembering-911-living-in-big-world.html#burning"><img align="right" src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/800px-Cross_Lighting_2005-329.jpg" /></a>The America I grew up in has changed, a lot. Not only have we had an Irish president: folks who don't even look British are moving to this country. I don't mind: but some folks do.<br />
<br />
Mr. Abdulazeez is too young to remember the 'good old days' before steam power, television, and the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geneva_Conventions">Geneva Conventions</a>, but he may have grown up around folks who yearn for their 'good old days.' Today's world may be a terrifying place for folks who aren't comfortable around anyone who is not from their extended family.<br />
<br />
Small wonder that some Muslims are acting like some 'regular Americans' have, lashing out at folks who aren't just like themselves. (A Catholic Citizen in America, <a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2014/09/remembering-911-living-in-big-world.html#burning">September 11, 2014</a>)<br />
<br />
That doesn't, I think, excuse folks who kill others for having the 'wrong' faith, or ancestry. And it certainly does not make it okay for me to hate folks who aren't just like me.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2015/07/angst-hope-and-building-better-world.html#maybe"><img align="right" src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/across_the_park___digital_matte_painting_by_jadrienc-d5nxd2h-detail-329.jpg" /></a>If I expect others to let me live, even though I'm not just like them: I'd better show them the same courtesy. I've talked about love, hate, and building a better world, mostly in another blog:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2015/06/charleston-church-shooting-emotions-and.html">Charleston Church Shooting: Emotions and Reason</a>"<br />
A Catholic Citizen in America (June 21, 2015)<br />
Particularly<ul>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2015/06/charleston-church-shooting-emotions-and.html#our">"Our Country?" Difference, Acceptance, and Murder</a></li>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2015/06/charleston-church-shooting-emotions-and.html#looking">Looking Out For Each Other</a></li>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2015/06/charleston-church-shooting-emotions-and.html#forgiveness">Forgiveness and Alternatives</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>"<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2015/04/remembering-armenian-genocide-looking.html">Remembering the Armenian Genocide, Looking Ahead</a>"<br />
A Catholic Citizen in America (April 26, 2015)<br />
Particularly<ul>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2015/04/remembering-armenian-genocide-looking.html#authority">Authority, Love, and Genocide</a></li>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2015/04/remembering-armenian-genocide-looking.html#humanity">Humanity's Sad Heritage: and a Good Idea</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>"<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2015/04/death-at-garissa-university-sin-and.html#working">Death at Garissa University, Sin, and Consequences</a>"<br />
A Catholic Citizen in America (April 12, 2015)<br />
Particularly<ul>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2015/04/death-at-garissa-university-sin-and.html#hellfire">Hellfire and Hypocrisy</a></li>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2015/04/death-at-garissa-university-sin-and.html#doing">Doing Something Constructive — or Not</a></li>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2015/04/death-at-garissa-university-sin-and.html#working">Working for Change: It's a Long Haul</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>" <a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2014/08/all-are-equal-before-god-rights-of.html">'All are Equal Before God' — Rights of Humanity <i>and</i> a Right of the Aggressor</a>"<br />
A Catholic Citizen in America (August 24, 2014)<br />
Particularly<ul>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2014/08/all-are-equal-before-god-rights-of.html#unhappy">Unhappy About Change</a></li>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2014/08/all-are-equal-before-god-rights-of.html#terrorism">Terrorism and Options</a></li>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2014/08/all-are-equal-before-god-rights-of.html#international">International Authority and Working With What We've Got</a></li>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2014/08/all-are-equal-before-god-rights-of.html#loving">Loving Neighbors: No Matter What</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/12/terry-loewen-al-qaeda-most-muslims-and.html">Terry Loewen, Al Qaeda, 'Most Muslims,' and Assumptions</a>"<br />
(December 14, 2013)<br />
Particularly<ul>
<li><a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/12/terry-loewen-al-qaeda-most-muslims-and.html#learning">Learning the Right Lesson: Or Not</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">from anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com</div>Brian H. Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13209697542675181894noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4162431493776686444.post-21962428783359470832015-01-09T13:49:00.000-06:002015-01-10T13:57:31.587-06:00Charlie Hebdo: Dealing With Difference<a href="http://www.reuters.com/"><img src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/20150109-20150109_1983684020150109181342-658.jpg" /></a><br />
<a href="http://www.reuters.com/"><img src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/20120109-8263ca7a-8569-4728-9e4c-51144986301e_800-658.jpg" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">(From Jeremy Schultz, via Reuters, used w/o permission.)</span><br />
("<i>Police entering the supermarket.</i>"<br />
(Reuters))<br />
<br />
Here we go again. This time it's in Paris, France.<br />
<br />
My guess is that body count will keep going up.<br />
<br />
I'll skip the conventional 'it is the fault of the Jews/Muslims/police/whatever' rhetoric.<br />
<br />
Oddly enough, cherry-picking facts from recent events could be twisted into a claim that Paris police declared war on a kosher supermarket.<br />
<br />
I do <b><i>not</i></b> think this was a Zionist conspiracy to assassinate insufficiently-kosher Jews, or a plot by McDonalds to take over the kosher food industry, by the way.<br />
<br />
<h4>
<a name="death"></a>Death at a Kosher Supermarket</h4>
<blockquote>
"<a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/01/09/us-france-shooting-idUSKBN0KG0Y120150109">French forces kill newspaper attack suspects, hostages die in second siege</a>"<br />
John Irish, Emmanuel Jarry and Ingrid Melander; Reuters (January 9, 2015)<br />
<br />
"<i>Two brothers suspected of a bloody attack on the offices of French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo were killed when police stormed their hideout on Friday, while a second siege ended with the deaths of four hostages.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The violent end to the simultaneous stand-offs followed a police operation of unprecedented scale as France tackled one of the worst threats to its internal security in decades. The heavy loss of life over three consecutive days also risked fuelling anti-immigrant voices in the country and elsewhere in the West.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Officials said Cherif Kouachi and his brother Said, both in their thirties, died when anti-terrorist forces moved in on a print shop in the small town of Dammartin-en-Goele, northeast of Paris, where the chief suspects in Wednesday's attack had been holed up. The hostage they had taken was safe, an official said....</i><br />
<br />
"<i>...Minutes later police broke the second siege at a Jewish supermarket in eastern Paris. A police union source said four hostages had died there along with a gunman, believed to have had links to the same Islamist group as the Kouachi brothers, who was holding them.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>HOSTAGES RUSHED OUT</i><br />
<br />
"<i>News footage of the Hyper Cacher kosher supermarket in the Vincennes district showed dozens of heavily armed police officers massed outside of two entrances. The assault began with gunfire and a loud explosion at the door, after which hostages were rushed out....</i>"</blockquote>
The folks who murdered Charlie Hebdo staff cartoonists Charb, Cabu, Honoré, Tignous and Wolinski; economist Bernard Maris; and two police officers on duty at the magazine; may have believed they were lions on Islam, defending their faith against blasphemers.<br />
<br />
Outside their fan base, my guess is that they've added more fuel to the argument that Islam and the 21st century do not mix well.<br />
<br />
<h4>
<a name="islam"></a>Islam in the Information Age</h4>
<blockquote>
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlie_Hebdo"><img align="right" src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/20150109-Charliehebdo-329.jpg" /></a>"<i>...During the attack the gunmen were heard to shout <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allahu_akbar">Allahu akbar</a></i>, <b>'the Prophet is avenged',</b> ... <sup><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlie_Hebdo#cite_note-Bremner-30">[30]</a></sup><sup><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlie_Hebdo#cite_note-38">[38]</a></sup><sup><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlie_Hebdo#cite_note-39">[39]</a></sup><sup><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlie_Hebdo#cite_note-40">[40]</a></sup> President <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fran%C3%A7ois_Hollande">François Hollande</a> described it as a 'terrorist attack of the most extreme barbarity'.<sup><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlie_Hebdo#cite_note-41">[41]</a></sup> The three attackers were identified as Said Kouachi and Cherif Kouachi, both French, and Hamyd Mourad, 18, whose nationality is unknown....</i>"<br />
(<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlie_Hebdo">Charlie Hebdo</a>, Wikipedia [emphasis mine])</blockquote>
This week's lions of Islam apparently had a reason for murdering eight folks at Charlie Hebdo. That's the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlie_Hebdo#Controversial_Muhammad_cartoons">November 3, 2011</a> issue's cover. I gather that the issue was "guest-edited" by Muhammad, and depicted Muhammad saying: "100 lashes of the whip if you don't die laughing."<br />
<br />
Then, in September of 2012, Charlie Hebdo ran an issue with nude caricatures of Mohammad. That was after other lions of Islam killed folks at U.S. embassies in the Middle East. Those attacks were presumably a response to an anti-Islamic film: "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Innocence_of_Muslims">Innocence of Muslims</a>."<br />
<br />
I run into folks who rant about some threat to their beliefs — based on what they read in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Onion">The Onion</a>, an American digital media company and news satire organization.<br />
<br />
I've read a few Onion pieces: and can understand how someone with a negligible sense of humor and stunted imagination might mistake their satire for 'real' news.<br />
<br />
But I don't think killing Onion staff would be a sensible way to express displeasure.<br />
<br />
The good news, I suppose, is that Charlie Hebdo went this long without a lethal attack.<br />
<br />
I do not think that the French government will respond to this week's events by suspending their Parliament, declaring France an Islamic state, and giving French citizens 24 hours to convert or die.<br />
<br />
It's quite possible that Muslims will continue to enjoy whatever rights they share with the rest of the citizenry: but after this, I don't think their popularity will increase among the non-Muslims.<br />
<br />
<h4>
<a name="dealing"></a>Dealing With Difference: or Not</h4>
<br />
Being a Catholic in America, I know a little about living in a country where one's faith is not universally respected.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2010/03/death-cookie-comic-seemed-like-good.html"><img align="right" src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/0_61_cookie_320-329.jpg" /></a><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chick_tract">Chick Publications</a> occasionally publishes another warning against Catholic beliefs.<br />
<br />
I'm not gleeful about that, or the continuing popularity of <a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2010/02/jesus-christ-beer-tobacco-idols-and.html#but">Maria Monk's</a> perennial bestseller.<br />
<br />
But I wouldn't kill anyone to express my disapproval: not even if I felt like it. I'm a Catholic, murder is against the rules, and that's another topic.<br />
<br />
Related posts, not entirely in this blog:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2014/09/remembering-911-living-in-big-world.html">Remembering 9/11, Living in a Big World</a>"<br />
(September 11, 2014)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/12/displaced-aggression-terrorism-culture.html">"Displaced Aggression:" Terrorism, Culture, and Assumptions</a>"<br />
(December 1, 2013)<br />
Particularly<ul>
<li><a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/12/displaced-aggression-terrorism-culture.html#sincere">Sincere, Maybe: Justified, No</a></li>
<li><a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/12/displaced-aggression-terrorism-culture.html#dealing">Dealing With Difference</a></li>
<li><a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/12/displaced-aggression-terrorism-culture.html#from">From the Days of Abram to Cable TV and Beer in One Generation</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/05/using-machete-in-global-civilization.html">Using a Machete in a Global Civilization</a>"<br />
(May 23, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2011/04/religious-freedom-niemoller-and-muslims.html">Religious Freedom, Niemöller, and Muslims in America</a>"<br />
(April 7, 2011)<br />
Particularly<ul>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2011/04/religious-freedom-niemoller-and-muslims.html#why">Why the Rights of Muslims Matter to This Catholic</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>"<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2010/02/jesus-christ-beer-tobacco-idols-and.html">Jesus Christ, Beer, Tobacco, Idols and Indian Law</a>"<br />
A Catholic Citizen in America (February 22, 2010)</li>
</ul>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">from anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com</div>Brian H. Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13209697542675181894noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4162431493776686444.post-74047998462769437372014-09-29T19:58:00.001-05:002014-09-29T19:58:02.329-05:00Chicago Traffic Control Center Fire: Australia Has a Good IdeaFirst, the good news. Nobody died. The suicidal employee who destroyed a key <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago_Air_Route_Traffic_Control_Center">air traffic control</a> center near Chicago, Illinois, has charged with one count of "destruction of aircraft or aircraft facilities."<br />
<br />
Now, the not-so-good news. Almost 2,000 flights were cancelled. Chicago's O'Hare and Midway International Airports are among the busiest in the world. I've read that flight schedules are still getting unsnarled.<br />
<br />
Brian Howard probably had a reason for destroying part of Chicago Air Route Traffic Control Center (ZAU)'s data transmission system, and then trying to kill himself. My guess is that at this point, he's the only person who knows why he acted as he did.<br />
<br />
Maybe he was despondent over his coming transfer to Hawaii. From Chicago. With winter coming on. Or maybe not.<br />
<br />
<h4>
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="air"></a>Air Traffic Control in the 21st Century</h4>
<br />
<img src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/AirTrafficControl1962-2006.jpg" /><br />
(Air traffic control: 1962 and 2006.)<br />
<br />
More good news: the FAA's control center used fiber optics and data cable to carry radar signals, digitized radio transmissions, and other critical information. While figuring out how to rebuild the Chicago center, the FAA won't have to learn how to use Information Age tech.<br />
<br />
I'm also relieved to learn that the FAA was able to switch control of ZAU's territory to another control center in the area. It would have been nice if it had taken less time: but 'next day' transfer is better than 'next week.'<br />
<br />
Predictably, politicos have started declaring that they'll 'investigate' what happened. My hope is that folks with a clue can keep them from doing too much damage.<br />
<br />
I also hope that the FAA decides to take a long, hard, look at setting up functional redundancies. This wouldn't have to be a complete duplicate of ZAU, sitting idle unless there was an emergency. I understand that Australia has 'duplicate' air traffic control centers: at opposite ends of the country.<br />
<br />
The United States should be able to follow that example: maybe five 'big' centers: in Alaska, Hawaii, Los Angeles, Chicago, and the Washington DC-New York City megalopolis.<br />
<br />
I'm pretty sure that setting up cross-training, so that controllers in one center would have some familiarity with the other four; and protocols for transferring data; would take time and effort to set up. But I think the results would be worthwhile.<br />
<br />
Related posts:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2014/07/malaysia-airlines-flight-mh17-this-time.html">Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17: This Time it's Over Land</a>"<br />
(July 18, 2014)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/09/washington-navy-shipyard-death-security.html">Washington Navy Shipyard: Death, Security, and Voices</a>"<br />
(September 17, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2011/05/pentagons-newish-policy-about-hack.html">Pentagon's New(ish) Policy About Hack Attacks</a>"<br />
(May 31, 2011)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2009/07/euronews-dustbin-airline-cultures-and.html">Euronews, " 'Dustbin' Airline," Cultures, and the War on Terror</a>"<br />
(July 2, 2009)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2008/02/florida-power-outage-not-attack-but.html">Florida Power Outage: Not an Attack; But a Reasonable Preview</a>"<br />
(February 26, 2008)</li>
</ul>
<hr />
<sup><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="1">1</a></sup> Excerpt from the news:
<br />
<blockquote>
"<a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-09-29/air-traffic-vulnerabily-examined-in-fire-halting-flights.html"> Air-Traffic Vulnerabily Examined in Fire Halting Flights</a>"<br />
Alan Levin, Bloomberg (September 28, 2014)<br />
<br />
"<i>The havoc created by a suicidal technician at a Chicago-area flight-control center has some lawmakers asking how a single person armed with gasoline and knives could bring down part of the U.S. air-traffic system.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Damage caused last week by a man police said was trying to disable the facility and kill himself was so severe that the Federal Aviation Administration has decided to rebuild the center’s central nerve system from scratch, the agency said in an e-mail.</i><br />
<br />
"<i> 'The fact that one person can do this indicates there is a problem in our system and we need to take a careful look at this,' Representative Dan Lipinski, a Democrat from Chicago who sits on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, said in an interview with a Chicago TV station....</i><br />
<br />
"<i>...Paul Rinaldi, president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, said 'This is one of the most challenging situations that air traffic controllers and other FAA employees have faced since 9/11.'</i><br />
<br />
"<i> 'The damage to this critical facility is unlike anything we have seen before,' Rinaldi said in an e-mail.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The arsonist targeted an area containing the data transmission system that drives modern air traffic, according to an affidavit filed in court by a FBI agent.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Fiber optics and data cable carry everything from radar signals showing aircraft locations to the digitized radio transmissions that allow controllers to talk to pilots. Without it, FAA centers can't function.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>While that data system in some ways makes air-traffic centers more vulnerable to an attack, it also lets the FAA more easily transfer responsibility for controlling flights to other facilities, said Hansman, who has studied the FAA's system....</i><br />
<br />
"<i>...A day after the fire, controllers at a similar center controlling high-altitude traffic near Indianapolis began handling flights in some Chicago Center’s airways, Doug Church, a spokesman for the air-traffic controllers union, said in an e-mail. Controllers at centers near Cleveland, Minneapolis and Kansas City were doing the same thing, Church said.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The FAA was sending Chicago center controllers to other area facilities to work traffic because of their knowledge of local flight routes, the FAA said in a Sept. 27 e-mail.</i><br />
<br />
"<i> 'The FAA is using all the tools at its disposal to safely restore as much service as quickly as possible,' the agency said.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Newer telecommunication technology means that controllers no longer have to be located next to the radio antenna and radar to handle traffic, Hansman said.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>In Australia, the government has built two air-traffic centers on opposite ends of the country that can each handle the other's traffic in an emergency, he said. While the U.S. facilities can't switch as seamlessly, they are more flexible than just a few years ago, he said....</i>"</blockquote>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">from anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com</div>Brian H. Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13209697542675181894noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4162431493776686444.post-80061992140129657232014-09-26T16:04:00.001-05:002014-09-26T17:02:29.691-05:00The Islamic State: Air Strikes, Diplomacy, and Remembering Sargon of AkkadI've said it before: war is not nice. Things get broken. People die.<br />
<br />
But sometimes it's better than the alternative.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/09/25/us-syria-crisis-idUSKCN0HJ1H120140925"><img src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/20140926reutersmedia-658.jpg" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">(From U.S. Central Command / Reuters, used w/o permission.)</span><br />
("<i>A still image taken from video provided by the U.S. Central Command shows a damaged building at an Islamic State compound near the northern Syrian town of Ar Raqqah, following an air strike. </i>"<br />
(Reuters))<br />
<blockquote>
"<a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/09/25/us-syria-crisis-idUSKCN0HJ1H120140925">French, U.S. planes strike Islamic State, Britain to join coalition</a>"<br />
Arshad Mohammed, Tom Perry; Reuters (September 25, 2014)<br />
<br />
"<i>French fighter jets struck Islamic State targets in Iraq on Thursday, and the United States hit them in Syria, as a U.S.-led coalition to fight the militants gained momentum with an announcement that Britain would join.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The French strikes were a prompt answer to the beheading of a French tourist in Algeria by militants, who said the killing was punishment for Paris' decision last week to become the first European country to join the U.S.-led bombing campaign.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>In the United States, FBI Director James Comey said Washington had identified the masked Islamic State militant in videos with a knife at the beheading of two American hostages in recent weeks. Those acts helped galvanize Washington's bombing campaign.</i><br />
<br />
"<i> 'I'm not going to tell you who I believe it is,' Comey told reporters. He said he knew the person's nationality, but declined to give further details....</i>"</blockquote>
The Reuters article goes on to say that "a European government source familiar with the investigation said the accent indicated the man was from London and likely from a community of immigrants."<br />
<br />
There's more, about "credible intelligence that Islamic State networks in Iraq were plotting to attack U.S. and French subway trains" and a growing coalition of nations. Apparently quite a number of Arab nations have already joined, with European leaders a bit slow to get with the program.<br />
<br />
I don't know whether the Europeans are following the 'my end of the boat isn't sinking' philosophy, aren't sure how their constituency will react, or haven't sobered up yet.<br />
<br />
Either way, my guess is that quite a few European governments will decide that, on the whole, getting their butts saved by a U.S.-led coalition is better than losing their heads under an Islamic State in their home territory.<br />
<br />
I'd like to believe that there's a chance for a peaceful resolution to the current mess. The folks running The "Islamic State" are human, and in principle could decide that their best course of action is negotiating: followed by pursuing their goals in a less violent way.<br />
<br />
Given humanity's record, that outcome does not seem likely.<br />
<br />
<h4>
<a name="making"></a>Making Mistakes, Making Sense</h4>
<br />
I run into folks who feel that the world's problems are cause by Islam; others who feel the same way about Christianity, and some who say that <b><i>all</i></b> religion causes trouble.<br />
<br />
Considering how the first two lots act, I have some sympathy for the latter. But I think 'all of the above' make the mistake of <a href="http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/overgeneralization">overgeneralization</a>.<br />
<br />
Some Christians behave badly. So do some Muslims. But some of us have our heads <a href="http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/have+one%27s+head+screwed+on+right">screwed on straight</a>, and understand our faith. A case in point, from the Reuters article:<br />
<blockquote>
"<i>...More than 120 Islamic scholars from around the world, including many of the most senior figures in Sunni Islam, issued an open letter denouncing Islamic State. Challenging the group with theological arguments, they described its interpretation of the faith as 'a great wrong and an offense to Islam, to Muslims and to the entire world.'</i><br />
<br />
"<i>'You have misinterpreted Islam into a religion of harshness, brutality, torture and murder,' said the letter, signed by figures from across the Muslim world from Indonesia to Morocco. </i>"<br />
(<a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/09/25/us-syria-crisis-idUSKCN0HJ1H120140925">Arshad Mohammed, Tom Perry</a>; Reuters)</blockquote>
I'm not a Muslim, by the way. I'm a Catholic: which in some American circles is just as bad.<br />
<br />
I'm assuming that the "Islamic State" mentioned in the Reuters article is another name for ISIS, (Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant). I've discussed that lot in another blog:<br />
<blockquote>
<h4>
<a name="unhappy"></a>Unhappy About Change</h4>
<br />
Apparently ISIS, the folks who killed James Foley, aren't happy with today's world. They seem to yearn for the 'good old days,' when they believe Islam measured up to their standards and preferences. They're probably quite sincere: and certainly willing to kill anyone who doesn't agree with them.<br />
<br />
Victims of their zeal include Shia Muslims, Druze, Mandeans, Shabaks, Yazidis, and Christians. You'll find more about ISIS at "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamic_State_of_Iraq_and_the_Levant">Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant</a>." (Wikipedia)<br />
<br />
Folks being unhappy about change isn't a uniquely Muslim experience.<br />
<br />
I run into Catholics who seem convinced that we should return to the 'good old days' — as they remember them. Catholics who yearn for yesteryear occasionally get together and form their own little micro-church, but don't seem inclined to kill outsiders.<br />
<br />
I'd say 'Christians are better than that:' but realize that now and then some of us go rogue.<br />
<br />
The nearest thing America has had to ISIS are groups like the Ku Klux Klan: folks who seem convinced that they're 'protecting' America from 'foreigners' and our 'evil' ways.<br />
(A Catholic Citizen in America (<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2014/08/all-are-equal-before-god-rights-of.html#unhappy">August 24, 2014</a>))</blockquote>
<h4>
<a name="taking"></a>Taking the Long View: and Hope</h4>
<br />
<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2014/08/caesar-civilization-dealing-with-change.html#code"><img align="right" src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/New_York_City_at_night_HDR_edit1-detail165.jpg" /></a>I think today's conflict between the Islamic State/ISIS and everyone who like living in the 21st century will most likely end violently. I am also quite certain that it will <b><i>end</i></b>.<br />
<br />
Even if the Islamic State endures the end of this conflict, and stays in control of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subartu" title="Subartu">Subartu</a>, they won't stay in control. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sargon_of_Akkad">Sargon of Akkad</a> conquered Subartu about 43 centuries back. Then he died, his <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akkadian_Empire">empire</a> fell, and the territory has changed hands quite a few times since.<br />
<br />
Change happens. How change happens depends on what we do. <br />
<br />
I hope that humanity will eventually cobble together an international authority "with the necessary competence and power" to end war and settle disputes with justice and mercy.<sup><a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2014/09/the-islamic-state-air-strikes-diplomacy.html#1">1</a></sup><br />
<blockquote>
"<i>...Till the war-drum throbbed no longer, and the battle-flags were furl'd<br />
In the Parliament of man, the Federation of the world.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>There the common sense of most shall hold a fretful realm in awe,<br />
And the kindly earth shall slumber, lapt in universal law....</i>"<br />
("Locksley Hall," Alfred, Lord Tennyson)</blockquote>
Those were among my favorite lines of poetry in my youth. A half-century later, they still are; although I've learned to temper my hope with patience.<br />
<br />
Cobbling together a globe-spanning 'Council of Humanity' will, I think,
take generations. Centuries. But I think it will be worth the effort.
And that's another topic.<br />
<br />
Related posts:<br />
<ul>
<li>Iraq<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2011/12/not-so-good-news-from-iraq-arrest.html">Not-So-Good News from Iraq: Arrest Warrant; Debatable Confessions, and Politics</a>"<br />
(December 19, 2011)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2010/03/iraq-elections-usual-news-and-kids-with.html">Iraq, Elections, the Usual News, and Kids With Inky Fingers</a>"<br />
(March 7, 2010)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2009/06/truck-bombing-in-iraq-lions-of-islam.html">Truck Bombing in Iraq: Lions of Islam Hit Another Mosque</a>"<br />
(June 21, 2009)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2008/07/iraq-freedom-and-reality-check.html">Iraq, Freedom, and a Reality Check</a>"<br />
(July 7, 2008)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2008/06/iranian-nukes-israeli-attack-diplomacy.html">Iranian Nukes, Israeli Attack, Diplomacy, and Common Sense</a>"<br />
(June 21, 2008)</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Syria<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/08/syria-chemical-weapons-and-more-of-same.html">Syria, Chemical Weapons, and More of the Same</a>"<br />
(August 27, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/01/dead-bodies-at-university-business-as.html">Dead Bodies at the University: Business as Usual in Syria</a>"<br />
(January 15, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2012/06/dead-syrians-stability-and-getting-grip.html">Dead Syrians, Stability, and Getting a Grip</a>"<br />
(June 9, 2012)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2012/05/killings-in-houla-theres-hope-in-what.html">Killings in Houla: There's Hope in What Wasn't Said</a>"<br />
(May 26, 2012)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2012/05/six-battalions-united-nations-and-it-is.html">Six Battalions, the United Nations, ' - - - and it is the Fault of the Jews'</a> "<br />
(May 2, 2012)</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Perspective<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2014/08/caesar-civilization-dealing-with-change.html">Caesar, Civilization, Dealing With Change — and Building a Better World</a>"<br />
A Catholic Citizen in America (August 31, 2014)<br />
Particularly<ul>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2014/08/caesar-civilization-dealing-with-change.html#end">It's the End of Civilization as We Know It: And About Time!</a></li>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2014/08/caesar-civilization-dealing-with-change.html#code">The Code of Hammurabi, Plus 3,700 years: Looking at the Big Picture</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>" <a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2014/08/all-are-equal-before-god-rights-of.html">'All are Equal Before God' — Rights of Humanity <i>and</i> a Right of the Aggressor</a>"<br />
A Catholic Citizen in America (August 24, 2014)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2014/05/memorial-day-war-celebrating.html">Memorial Day: War; Celebrating; Remembering; and Building a Better World</a>"<br />
A Catholic Citizen in America (May 26, 2014)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2011/03/bahrain-foreign-troops-and-maybe-last.html">Bahrain, Foreign Troops, and - Maybe - the Last Stand of Kings</a>"<br />
(March 18, 2011)</li>
<li>" <a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2011/03/just-war-unpleasant-but-not.html">'Just War:' Unpleasant, but Not a Contradiction in Terms</a>"<br />
A Catholic Citizen in America (March 22, 2011)</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<hr />
<sup><a name="1">1</a></sup> ("<a href="http://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_cons_19651207_gaudium-et-spes_en.html">Gaudium et Spes</a>," 79; Pope Paul VI (December 7, 1965)<br>
<br>
I remember the trailing edge of McCarthyism, and the 'good old days' when America's establishment was run by WASPs: so I understand why some folks fear a "world government" almost as much as they fear commies, Republicans, foreigners, or right-wing extremists.<br>
<br>
But I also think that government of some sort is necessary, and that humanity may eventually find a way to settle disputes without mass homicide. As for fears that 'the government' will take away freedom: that is a reasonable concern. How some folks react to that concern is — another matter.<br>
<br>
I am a Catholic, so my faith requires that I respect and defend the freedom of <b><i>everyone</i></b>.<br>
<br>
More of my take on government and freedom:<ul><li>"<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2012/11/freedom-for-people-of-any-faith-or-no.html">Freedom for 'People of Any Faith or No Faith At All'</a>"<br>
A Catholic Citizen in America (November 9, 2012)</li><li>"<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2013/06/getting-grip-about-politics-and.html">Getting a Grip About Politics and Principles</a>"<br>
A Catholic Citizen in America (June 18, 2013)</li><li>"<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2012/09/freedom-fear-and-internet.html">Freedom, Fear, and the Internet</a>"<br>
A Catholic Citizen in America (September 28, 2012)</li></ul><div class="blogger-post-footer">from anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com</div>Brian H. Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13209697542675181894noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4162431493776686444.post-64431706485475611412014-09-11T22:03:00.002-05:002014-09-11T22:03:39.920-05:00Remembering 9/11, Living in a Big World<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/September_11_attacks"><img align="right" src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/348px-September_11_Photo_Montage-329.jpg" /></a>About 3,000 folks died in attacks on New York City's World Trade Center and the Pentagon on this date, 13 years ago.<br />
<br />
The death toll would almost certainly have been higher, if passengers and surviving crew of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Airlines_Flight_93">United Airlines Flight 93</a> had not attacked their hijackers. They died, probably because the Al Qaeda pilot deliberately flew into the ground.<br />
<br />
Depending on their views, folks have commemorated the 9/11 attacks in many ways.<br />
<br />
Some have declared that the attacks were justified, because America is a big meany. They usually express the idea in more sophisticated terms, of course.<br />
<br />
Others say that Muslims are to blame: all Muslims. Still others take the more sweeping view that <b><i>all</i></b> religion is to blame.<br />
<br />
I think there is a tiny element of truth in 'all of the above.'<br />
<br />
Al Qaeda's leader at the time, Osama bin Laden, almost certainly had sincerely-held religious beliefs: and chose American targets in response to this country's profound lack of fidelity to his brand of Islam.<br />
<br />
I like being an American, and am still upset that so many folks were killed by religious fanatics. But I am not going to rant about folks who don't follow my faith: or those who do, and behave badly.<br />
<br />
Instead, I'm going to take a look at how some — but happily not all — Americans have reacted to Catholics, Jews, blacks, and other 'threats' to my country....<br />
<br />
The rest of this post is in another blog:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2014/09/remembering-911-living-in-big-world.html">Remembering 9/11, Living in a Big World</a>"<br />
A Catholic Citizen in America (September 11, 2014)</li>
</ul>
Related posts:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2014/05/national-september-11-memorial-museum.html">National September 11 Memorial Museum Opens: Some Folks Aren't Happy</a>"<br />
(May 15, 2014)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/09/two-pools-four-towers.html">Two Pools, Four Towers</a>"<br />
(September 11, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2010/09/september-11-2001-nine-years-later.html">September 11, 2001: Nine Years Later</a>"<br />
(September 11, 2010)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2007/09/remembering-911.html">Remembering 9/11</a>"<br />
(September 11, 2007)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2007/09/six-years-ago-tomorrow-remembering-911.html">Six Years Ago, Tomorrow: Remembering 9/11</a>"<br />
(September 10, 2007)</li>
</ul>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">from anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com</div>Brian H. Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13209697542675181894noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4162431493776686444.post-36497853359025610932014-07-18T15:27:00.000-05:002014-07-18T15:43:50.948-05:00Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17: This Time it's Over Land<a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/07/18/us-ukraine-crisis-airplane-idUSKBN0FM22N20140718"><img src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/20140718reutersmedia01-658.jpg" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">(From Reuters, used w/o permission)</span><br />
("<i>Debris is pictured at the site of Thursday's Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 plane crash, near the village of Grabovo in the Donetsk region July 18, 2014.</i>"<br />
(Reuters))<br />
<br />
The good news is that nobody, as far as I have heard, is claiming what happened to Malaysia Airlines MH17 as a glorious victory or heroic act. Remarkably, the outfits most likely to have shot another airliner out of the sky are saying 'it wasn't us.'<br />
<br />
They may be right.<br />
<br />
Killing nearly three hundred folks whose greatest offense seems to have been in the wrong place at the wrong time isn't good public relations. Not these days.<br />
<br />
<h4>
<a name="people"></a>People, 'Important' and Otherwise</h4>
<br />
<a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/07/18/us-ukraine-crisis-airplane-idUSKBN0FM22N20140718"><img src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/20140718reutersmedia02-658.jpg" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">(From Valentyn Ogirenko, via Reuters, used w/o permission.)</span><br />
"<i>People light candles at the Dutch embassy for victims of Malaysia Airlines MH17, which crashed in eastern Ukraine, in Kiev July 17, 2014</i>"<br />
(Reuters))<br />
<br />
More than half of the folks killed yesterday lived in the Netherlands. That's no surprise, since they were traveling from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur.<br />
<br />
At least one body went through someone's roof, but happily nobody on the ground was killed: as far as I have heard. Folks working for Malaysia Airlines and the various governments involved are probably still trying to sort out who was actually on the flight. So far, it looks like folks from 11 countries won't be going home. Not alive, anyway:<br />
<ul>
<li>Dutch: 189</li>
<li>Malaysian: 44<ul>
<li>Including 15 crew, 2 infants)</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Australian: 27</li>
<li>Indonesian: 12<ul>
<li>Including 1 infant</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>United Kingdom: 9</li>
<li>Belgium: 4</li>
<li>Germany: 4</li>
<li>Philippines: 3</li>
<li>New Zealand: 1</li>
<li>Canadian: 1</li>
<li>American: 1<br />
(<a href="http://www.theepochtimes.com/n3/805297-malaysia-airlines-mh17-victims-first-victims-identified-by-passports-as-jennifer-vanderlei-sanjid-singh-tomas-van-kuelen-charlotte-van-der/">Zachary Stieber</a>, Epoch Times (July 17, 2014))</li>
</ul>
News coverage, understandably, concentrates on what folks with titles are saying: and on the "important" folks who stopped living yesterday. I found one news service that gave a list of the folks who have been tentatively identified as being on MH17. Instead of breaking out the names by country, as they did, I've put the names in alphabetical order, by 'first name.' The article didn't give names for some of the children:<br />
<ul>
<li>Ahmad Hakimi Bin Hanapi</li>
<li>Albert Rizk</li>
<li>Ali Md Salim</li>
<li>Andrei Anghel</li>
<li>Angeline Premila Rajandaran</li>
<li>Azrina Binti Yakob</li>
<li>Ben Pocock</li>
<li>Bujanto Gunawan</li>
<li>Cameron Dalziel</li>
<li>Chong Yee Pheng</li>
<li>Darryl Dwight Gunawan</li>
<li>Dora Shamila Binti Kassim</li>
<li>Elaine Teoh</li>
<li>Emiel Mahler</li>
<li>Eugene Choo Jin Leong</li>
<li>Frankie Davison</li>
<li>Glenn Thomas</li>
<li>Hamfazlin Sham Binti Mohamed Arifin</li>
<li>Irene Gunawan</li>
<li>Jill Guard</li>
<li>Joep Lange</li>
<li>John Alder</li>
<li>Jolette Nuesink</li>
<li>Karlijn Keijzer</li>
<li>Lee Hui Pin</li>
<li>Liam Davison</li>
<li>Liam Sweeney</li>
<li>Liliane Derden</li>
<li>Lucie van Mens</li>
<li>Maree Rizk</li>
<li>Martine de Schutter</li>
<li>Mastura Binti Mustafa</li>
<li>Mohd Ghafar Bin Abu Bakar</li>
<li>Muhamad Firdaus Bin Abdul Rahim</li>
<li>Nick Norris<ul>
<li>Grandchild Evie</li>
<li>Grandchild Mo</li>
<li>Grandchild Otis</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Peter Nuesink<ul>
<li>Nuesink child</li>
<li>Nuesink child</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Pim de Kuijer</li>
<li>Puan Sri Siti Amirah</li>
<li>Quinn Lucas Schansman</li>
<li>Richard Mayne</li>
<li>Roger Guard</li>
<li>Sanjid Singh Sandhu</li>
<li>Shaikh Mohd Noor Bin Mahmood</li>
<li>Shazana Salleh</li>
<li>Sherryl Shania Gunawa</li>
<li>Sister Philomene Tiernan</li>
<li>Wan Amran Bin Wan Hussin</li>
<li>Willem Witteveen<br />
(<a href="http://www.theepochtimes.com/n3/805297-malaysia-airlines-mh17-victims-first-victims-identified-by-passports-as-jennifer-vanderlei-sanjid-singh-tomas-van-kuelen-charlotte-van-der/">Zachary Stieber</a>, Epoch Times (July 17, 2014))</li>
</ul>
By any reasonable standard, this is a very sad situation for many families.<br />
<br />
Now, some 'big picture' stuff.<br />
<br />
<h4>
<a name="world"></a>World Leaders, Families, and Today's World</h4>
<br />
<blockquote>
"<a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/07/18/us-ukraine-crisis-airplane-idUSKBN0FM22N20140718">World leaders demand answers after airliner downed over Ukraine with 298 dead</a>"<br />
Anton Zverev, Reuters (July 18, 2014)<br />
<br />
"<i>U.S. President Barack Obama demanded Russia stop supporting separatists in eastern Ukraine after the downing of a Malaysian airline by a surface-to-air missile he said was fired from rebel territory raised the prospect of more sanctions on Moscow.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>At least one American was among the almost 300 killed, he said, a revelation that raises the stakes in a pivotal incident in deteriorating relations between Russia and the West....</i><br />
<br />
"<i>...But, noting the global impact of the crash, with victims from 11 countries across four continents, he said the stakes were high for Europe, a clear call for it to follow the more robust sanctions on Russia already imposed by Washington.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Russia, whom Obama said was letting the rebels bring in weapons, has expressed anger at implications it was to blame, saying people should not prejudge the outcome of the inquiry.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>There were no survivors from the Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, a Boeing 777. The United Nations said 80 of the 298 aboard were children. The deadliest attack on a commercial airliner, it scattered bodies over miles of rebel-held territory near the border with Russia....</i>"</blockquote>
As far as I can tell: some folks in Ukraine who were doing well in their 'good old days' want to get back in power; at least some Russian leaders want Ukraine back in Russian hands; and quite a few Ukrainians want to run their own country. <br />
<br />
I'm inclined to sympathize with my counterparts in Ukraine: 'unimportant' folks who want to raise their families; vote in elections that aren't rigged; and live without having their 'betters' deciding what they should buy, and who they should deal with.<br />
<br />
The situation in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukraine#Early_history">Ukraine</a> is not simple. Folks have been living there for nearly three dozen millennia. About a thousand years back, from the time of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vladimir_the_Great">Володимѣръ Свѧтославичь</a> to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yaroslav_the_Wise">Ярослав Мудрий</a>'s death, descendants of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Varangians#Kievan_Rus.27">Væringjar</a> ruled the most powerful state in Europe. Things went downhill after that, and that's another topic.<br />
<br />
The point is that, after tens of thousands of years: Ukraine has a rich cultural, economic, political, and religious heritage: and no shortage of soreheads, in which respect they resemble people everywhere.<br />
<br />
There's a lively blame game going on, but all I can be sure of today is that nearly three hundred people are dead.<br />
<br />
I think it's possible, perhaps even likely, that this massive tragedy was an accident of sorts. Some trigger-happy fool or paranoid field commander may have mistaken the airliner for something else: a guided missile, flock of birds, whatever.<br />
<br />
I don't know what happened. Ukrainians may lose their country — again. And a whole lot of families are mourning.<br />
<br />
I do know that this isn't the world I grew up in. In some ways, it's better. We still have petty tyrants, clueless leaders, a scattering of wise people, and the usual assortment of oddballs. But I think many folks have realized that <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meditation_XVII#Contents">John Donne</a> was right: we're all connected, part of humanity. <br />
<br />
<h4>
<a name="other"></a>The Other Malaysia Airlines Disaster</h4>
<br />
<a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/07/18/us-ukraine-crisis-airplane-idUSKBN0FM22N20140718"><img src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/_75850343_malaysian_airliner_search_976map_20140626-658.jpg" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">(From BBC News, used w/o permission.)</span><br />
<blockquote>
"<a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-26503141">Missing Malaysia plane: What we know</a>"<br />
BBC News (June 26, 2014)<br />
<br />
"<i><b>Mystery continues to surround the fate of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, which disappeared en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing on 8 March.</b></i>
<br />
"<i>Investigators have identified a new search area 1,800km (1,100 miles) off the west coast of Australia, covering an area of some 60,000 sq km.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The latest zone is some 1,000km south west of the area which was extensively searched with underwater surveying equipment in April.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Work will resume in August and take up to a year to complete.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Malaysian authorities, assisted by international aviation and satellite experts, are continuing their attempts to piece together the plane's final hours and explain what happened to its 239 passengers and crew. Some preliminary details were released on 1 May <a href="https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10152221402889355.1073741995.72613804354&type=1">in a short report</a>....</i>"</blockquote>
<a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-26503141"><img align="right" src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/_75585607_mh370_handshake_timings_624map_v2-329.jpg" /></a>Today's information technology isn't universally loved, putting it mildly. Some folks I know complain about social media: in, ironically, social media. I like living in the Information Age, because today's tech helps me find <a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2014/01/the-internet-as-gift-from-god.html#nuggets">nuggets of wisdom</a> in the mountains of gibberish.<br />
<br />
Folks can still get 'lost without a trace,' but many aircraft now 'talk' to satellites and ground stations: independently of the human pilots: giving technophobes something to fear, and searchers something to work with.<br />
<br />
These "handshakes" give searchers more information about Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 than they'd have had in my 'good old days.'<br />
<br />
That globe, from <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-26503141">BBC News</a>, shows several "handshakes." The last full handshake happened at 08:11. (0:11 GMT) An event recorded a few minutes later, at 8:19, may have been a partial handshake: a request from the aircraft to log on. That request may have happened while the airliner's communications system was rebooting.<br />
<br />
Eventually, airlines and global traffic control systems may keep lines of communications open throughout a flight: giving an airliner's avionics a chance to ask for help, if something happens to the humans on board. And that's another topic.<br />
<br />
Related posts:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2014/03/malaysia-airlines-flight-mh370.html">Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370: Questions; Speculation; and a Few Facts</a>"<br />
(March 16, 2014)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2014/02/ukraine-in-changing-world.html">Ukraine in a Changing World</a>"<br />
(February 27, 2014)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/06/twa-flight-800-assumptions-and-facts.html">TWA Flight 800, Assumptions, and Facts</a>"<br />
(June 20, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/12/kiev-police-when-crowd-control-goes.html">Kiev Police: When Crowd Control Goes Horribly Wrong</a>"<br />
(December 1, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2011/01/dozens-dead-at-domodedovo-observations.html">Dozens Dead at Domodedovo - Observations and Opinions</a>"<br />
(January 25, 2011)</li>
</ul>
In the news:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://www.theepochtimes.com/n3/805297-malaysia-airlines-mh17-victims-first-victims-identified-by-passports-as-jennifer-vanderlei-sanjid-singh-tomas-van-kuelen-charlotte-van-der/">Malaysia Airlines MH17 Victims List, Including Roger Guard, Sanjid Singh, Tomas Allard, Nick Norris [Updated]</a>"<br />
Zachary Stieber, Epoch Times (July 17, 2014)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/07/18/us-ukraine-crisis-airplane-idUSKBN0FM22N20140718">World leaders demand answers after airliner downed over Ukraine with 298 dead</a>"<br />
Anton Zverev, Reuters (July 18, 2014)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-26503141">Missing Malaysia plane: What we know</a>"<br />
BBC News (June 26, 2014)</li>
</ul>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">from anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com</div>Brian H. Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13209697542675181894noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4162431493776686444.post-80240262021756223212014-05-15T08:00:00.000-05:002014-05-15T08:00:01.816-05:00National September 11 Memorial Museum Opens: Some Folks Aren't Happy<a href="http://www.911memorial.org/"><img src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/_MG_1776-400.jpg" /></a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.911memorial.org/"><img src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/MemorialExhibition_0-400.jpg" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">(From the National September 11 Memorial Museum website, used w/o permission.)</span><br />
<br />
I doubt that I will ever see the <a href="http://www.911memorial.org/">National September 11 Memorial Museum</a> in New York City. I live about a thousand miles west of the city, and don't travel much.<br />
<br />
At least part of the museum and memorial open today. As usual, some folks think it's a good idea: some don't.<br />
<blockquote>
"<a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-27402534">National September 11 Memorial Museum opens in New York</a>"<br />
Anna Bressanin, BBC News (May 15, 2014)<br />
<br />
"<i>The National September 11 Memorial Museum tells the stories of the more than 2,700 people who died in the city when jet aeroplanes hijacked by Islamist terrorist destroyed the World Trade Center.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>It also tells of those who survived, and of how the world has changed since the attack....</i>"</blockquote>
The bulk of that article is a video.<br />
<h4>
Unidentified Human Remains</h4>
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=4162431493776686444"><img src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/ReutersViaBBC_74768585_74768584-400.jpg" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">(From Reuters, via BBC News, used w/o permission.)</span><br />
"<i>Fire trucks and police cars carried the remains to the repository in downtown Manhattan</i>"<br />
<blockquote>
"<a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-27357255">Unidentified 9/11 remains returned to 'Ground Zero'</a> "<br />
BBC News (May 10, 2014)<br />
<br />
"<i><b>Thousands of unidentified remains from the 9/11 attacks have been returned to 'Ground Zero' in a solemn ceremony.</b></i><br />
<br />
"<i>Fifteen vehicles took the remains from the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner to a repository under the World Trade Center site....</i><br />
<br />
"<i>...The 11 September 2001 attacks killed almost 3,000 people in New York, the Washington DC area and Pennsylvania.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The remains consist of 7,930 fragments of human tissue that could not be identified by forensic teams.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>They were placed in metallic boxes, covered in the American flag and taken in a convoy comprising fire trucks and police vehicles to the site of the attacks in downtown Manhattan....</i>"</blockquote>
Folks whose family members were killed in the 9/11 attack believe, for good reason, that some of the unidentified human remains belong to their loved ones. Some of these folks are upset about what's being done to these unidentifiable pieces of humanity. Apparently they believe that the remains should be buried in a more conventional cemetery.<br />
<br />
I can see their point. My faith includes some well-defined principles about what should be done with human remains. Dignity and respect are two key points.<br />
<br />
Happily, what happens to the unidentified 9/11 remains is not a personal issue for me. From my point of view, taking them to the 9/11 memorial and museum is somewhat comparable to placing the body of an unidentified soldier in the <a href="http://www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/visitorinformation/TombofUnknowns.aspx">Tomb of the Unknown Soldier</a> in Arlington.<br />
<br />
I could quibble about its propriety: but am convinced that the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, like the 9/11 Memorial, is a well-intentioned tribute to our dead.<br />
<br />
In the news:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-27402534">National September 11 Memorial Museum opens in New York</a>"<br />
Anna Bressanin, BBC News (May 15, 2014)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-27357255">Unidentified 9/11 remains returned to 'Ground Zero'</a> "<br />
BBC News (May 10, 2014)</li>
</ul>
Somewhat-related posts:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/09/two-pools-four-towers.html">Two Pools, Four Towers</a>"<br />
(September 11, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/05/using-machete-in-global-civilization.html">Using a Machete in a Global Civilization</a>"<br />
(May 23, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2012/09/remembering-september-11-2001-and.html">Remembering September 11, 2001; and Looking Ahead</a>"<br />
(September 11, 2012)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2010/09/september-11-2001-nine-years-later.html">September 11, 2001: Nine Years Later</a>"<br />
(September 11, 2010)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2007/09/remembering-911.html">Remembering 9/11</a>"<br />
(September 11, 2007)</li>
</ul>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">from anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com</div>Brian H. Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13209697542675181894noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4162431493776686444.post-36350724596996360952014-04-21T15:44:00.000-05:002014-04-21T15:47:46.544-05:00San Jose to Maui in a Wheel Well: Dumb Luck and Airport SecurityFirst, the good news: the teen is alive, and apparently in good health.<br />
<br />
Now, the not-so-good news: a 16-year-old walked or ran to an airliner at Mineta San Jose International Airport, climbed into a wheel well, and wasn't spotted until the flight arrived at Kahului Airport in Maui.<br />
<h4>
Incredible Good Luck</h4>
According to the news, at least one expert is skeptical about the account: although it's hard to see how or why someone would concoct the tale: along with the supporting evidence. My guess is that a teen actually got into the wheel well: and had what my culture calls incredible good luck. I put an excerpt from the San Jose Mercury News at the end of this post. <sup><a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2014/04/first-good-news-teen-is-alive-and.html#1">1</a></sup><br />
<br />
I'm inclined to agree with airport spokeswoman Rosemary Barnes: "No security program is 100 percent." (<a href="http://www.mercurynews.com/bay-area-news/ci_25607171/santa-clara-teen-ok-after-riding-jets-wheel">San Jose Mercury News</a>)<br />
<br />
That said, I sincerely hope that folks responsible for airport security will take a long, hard, look at what happened: and what would lower the odds of a repeat performance.<br />
<br />
Aside from a desire to keep addled adolescents alive, I'd prefer that <b><i>nobody</i></b> be able to reach an airliner and sneak something on board. Distressing as inadvertently killing someone with too little common sense is: allowing someone to plant an explosive device, killing dozens to hundreds of folks, is worse. My opinion.<br />
<br />
I'll grant that no system is perfect. Airports have long fence lines, this teen arrived at night: and apparently managed to cross the perimeter without getting spotted on a security camera: "...but that there is surveillance footage of 'an unidentified person walking on the airport ramp and approaching' the plane...." (<a href="http://www.mercurynews.com/bay-area-news/ci_25607171/santa-clara-teen-ok-after-riding-jets-wheel">San Jose Mercury News</a>)<br />
<br />
Bottom line? I'm very glad that I don't need to travel by air.<br />
<h4>
Poikilothermic Protection</h4>
A quick science lesson. Most of this will be review, unless you slept through high school biology. Some critters are <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poikilotherm">poikilotherms</a>: their body temperature goes up or down, generally in step with their environment. Humans aren't like that. We usually maintain a fairly steady internal temperature: or our bodies die trying. Once in a while, though, we survive drowning — or sneaking into a wheel well — when our bodies go into a sort of hibernation mode, using a lot less oxygen than usual.<br />
<br />
In the news:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://www.mercurynews.com/bay-area-news/ci_25607171/santa-clara-teen-ok-after-riding-jets-wheel">Stowaway: San Jose airport security scrutinized after boy's flight to Maui in plane's wheel well</a>"<br />
Mark Gomez and Robert Salonga, San Jose Mercury News (April 21, 2014)</li>
</ul>
Somewhat-related posts:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2014/03/malaysia-airlines-flight-mh370.html">Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370: Questions; Speculation; and a Few Facts</a>"<br />
(March 16, 2014)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/12/terry-loewen-al-qaeda-most-muslims-and.html">Terry Loewen, Al Qaeda, 'Most Muslims,' and Assumptions</a>"<br />
(December 14, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2011/06/what-sony-nintendo-and-congress-have-in.html">What Sony, Nintendo, and Congress, have In Common</a>"<br />
(June 14, 2011)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2011/01/dozens-dead-at-domodedovo-observations.html">Dozens Dead at Domodedovo - Observations and Opinions</a>"<br />
(January 25, 2011)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2009/12/northwest-flight-253-near-miss-on.html">Northwest Flight 253: Near Miss on Christmas Weekend</a>"<br />
(December 27, 2009)</li>
</ul>
<hr />
<sup><a name="1">1</a></sup> Excerpt from the news:
<br />
<blockquote>
"<a href="http://www.mercurynews.com/bay-area-news/ci_25607171/santa-clara-teen-ok-after-riding-jets-wheel">Stowaway: San Jose airport security scrutinized after boy's flight to Maui in plane's wheel well</a>"<br />
Mark Gomez and Robert Salonga, San Jose Mercury News (April 21, 2014)<br />
<br />
"<i>Authorities say a 16-year-old Santa Clara boy is 'lucky to be alive' after he ran away from home, clandestinely scaled a fence at Mineta San Jose International Airport, and hid inside the wheel well of a plane flying from California to Hawaii in a case that has shone a harsh spotlight on airport security beyond the terminals.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>And according to the FBI, the teen apparently chose his destination at random.</i><br />
<br />
"<i> 'He ran for the nearest plane. This was not a well planned thing,' said Special Agent Tom Simon, spokesman for the FBI's Honolulu office. 'Just a runaway kid with a bad idea.'...</i><br />
<br />
"<i>...That the boy apparently survived -- hours, unpressurized, at altitudes up to 38,000 feet -- literally puts him in rarefied air, as several similar stowaways in the past have died from frigid temperatures, lack of oxygen or being ejected from the plane as the landing gear is lowered.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The last known person to survive as a stowaway in a flight at least that long was Fidel Maruhi, who in 2000 also hitched a ride in a wheel well from Tahiti to Los Angeles, a seven-plus-hour and 4,000-mile trip where the temperature dropped to nearly minus-50 degrees Fahrenheit. He also reportedly blacked out just after takeoff and survived despite his body temperature dropping to fatal levels....</i><br />
<br />
"<i>...</i>[aviation consultant Jim]<i> Nance went on to say that it would be rare for someone to remain conscious at peak-flight altitudes for more than a few seconds and prolonged exposure would lead to brain death. He also said that without protective gear, the odds of surviving the low temperatures and winds blowing through the wheel well are slim.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Slim perhaps, but not impossible, according to Federal Aviation Administration study commissioned in 1996 to explore the rare cases when stowaways survived flights in wheel wells. For some of the survivors, the study stated, the cold temperatures caused them to become poikilothermic, akin to a hibernation state where the body's heart and respiratory rates decreased significantly to adjust to the environment....</i>"</blockquote>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">from anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com</div>Brian H. Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13209697542675181894noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4162431493776686444.post-73929058941597318312014-03-16T15:53:00.003-05:002014-03-20T21:12:53.931-05:00Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370: Questions; Speculation; and a Few Facts<a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-26591056"><img src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/_73600364_da61a2fc-106a-4575-9d33-ed8e81b1c5ea-400.jpg" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">(From AP, via BBC News, used w/o permission.)</span><br />
"<i>Messages of support for those aboard Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 lie in the viewing gallery at Kuala Lumpur airport</i>"<br />
<br />
Sadly, the facts I posted with a prayer request Monday is still true:<br />
<ul>
<li>Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 disappeared on shortly after takeoff.</li>
<li>The 239 folks on Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 are still missing.</li>
<li>The flight left Kuala Lumpur at 16:41 GMT, March 7; and was expected in Beijing at 22:30 GMT.</li>
<li>No trace of the airliner, or the people on board, has been confirmed.</li>
<li>Folks on MH370 included artists, children, and at least one engineer.</li>
<li>Their homes were in China, Malaysia, and other countries.</li>
<li>Their family, friends, and associates are understandably concerned.</li>
<li>I suggest prayer: for the missing people, searchers, and all connected with this situation.</li>
</ul>
If you're new to this blog, and still reading, I'd better explain why I mention prayer in this context. I'm a Catholic, living in the United States. I take my faith very seriously, which doesn't mean what you may have read about 'religious people.'<br />
<br />
I've been over this before:<br />
<ul>
<li>" <a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2011/12/religious-people-arent-reasonable.html">'Religious People aren't Reasonable?'</a> "<br />
A Catholic Citizen in America (December 18, 2011)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2008/11/conservative-liberal-democrat.html">Conservative? Liberal? Democrat? Republican? No, I'm Catholic</a>"<br />
A Catholic Citizen in America (November 3, 2008)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2008/07/qantas-flight-30-chicken-little-wingnut.html">Qantas Flight 30, Chicken Little Wingnut Pundits, Ziofascists, Bushistas, Conspiracies of Silence, and the News</a>"<br />
(July 28, 2008)</li>
</ul>
Now, about Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370.<br />
<h4>
<a name="deliberately"></a>"Deliberately Diverted"</h4>
<a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-26591056"><img src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/_73602232_china_malaysia_plane9_624-400.jpg" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">(From BBC News, used w/o permission.)</span><br />
<blockquote>
"<a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-26591056">Missing Malaysia Airlines plane 'deliberately diverted'</a> "<br />
BBC News, (March 15, 2014)<br />
<br />
"<i><b>The communications systems of missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 were deliberately disabled, Malaysia's Prime Minister Najib Razak has said.</b></i><br />
<br />
"<i>According to satellite and radar evidence, he said, the plane then changed course and could have continued flying for a further seven hours.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>He said the 'movements are consistent with the deliberate action of someone on the plane'....</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Mr Razak told a news conference that new satellite evidence shows 'with a high degree of certainty' that the one of the aircraft's communications systems - the Aircraft and Communications Addressing and Reporting System - was disabled just before it had reached the east coast of Malaysia.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>ACARS is a service that allows computers aboard the plane to 'talk' to computers on the ground, relaying in-flight information about the health of its systems....</i>"</blockquote>
The good news is that investigators seem to have learned from blunders made after the <a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2007/07/lesson-for-terrorism-investigators.html">London/Glasgow car bombings</a>, and accusations of <a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2011/02/anthrax-fbi-and-absolute-certainty.html#fingering">Steven Hatfill</a> and <a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2007/07/arrests-doctors-and-terrorists-keeping.html#jewell">Richard Jewell</a>.<br />
<br />
No official has said "terrorists did it," as far as I know. Granted, the Malaysian Prime Minister came close.<br />
<br />
He may be right. Whatever happened to Flight MH370 is looking more like a deliberate act, and less like an accident.<br />
<h4>
<a name="lithium"></a>Lithium Batteries, Signals, and Questions</h4>
<a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-26591056"><img src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/_73602229_possible_plane_area3_624-3-400.jpg" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">(From BBC News, used w/o permission.)</span><br />
<br />
Some folks suggested that a shipment of lithium batteries on the airliner might have caught fire. causing a crash. A few cargo aircraft did go down after lithium batteries ignited: but that probably didn't happen to MH370.<br />
<br />
Someone turned the aircraft's ACARS off: but either couldn't stop some of the Boeing 777-200ER's automated systems from pinging: or didn't realize that today's aircraft "talk" to the global information network on their own.<br />
<br />
Either way, 'I'm alive' signals kept coming from Flight MH370 several hours after it disappeared from radar.<br />
<br />
It's remotely possible that Flight MH370's transponder just happened to fail before the airliner just happened to start an unscheduled turn:<br />
<blockquote>
"<i>...near the cross-over point between Malaysian and Vietnamese air traffic controllers, the plane's transponder - which emits an identifying signal - was switched off, he said.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>According to a military radar, the aircraft then turned and flew back over Malaysia before heading in a north-west direction....</i>"<br />
(<a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-26591056">BBC News</a>)</blockquote>
But I think it's much less unlikely that someone wanted MH370 to disappear: and has, so far, succeeded.<br />
<h4>
<a name="speculation"></a>Speculation</h4>
It's possible that one or both pilots decided to take the airliner off its route. Someone else could have taken over control of the airliner. Or maybe the disappearance of Flight MH370 is the result of an incredible string of coincidences.<br />
<br />
My guess is that someone wanted the airliner to disappear.<br />
<br />
Maybe Flight MH370's Boeing 777 was supposed to be the weapon in a 9/11-style attack on a target in India, or another country within the airliner's range. If that's the case, we may eventually learn that people on Flight MH370 followed the example of passengers on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Airlines_Flight_93">United Airlines Flight 93</a>.<br />
<br />
As attacks in <a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2008/11/mumbai-911-lashkar-e-taiba-al-qaeda-and.html">Mumbai</a> and elsewhere show, America isn't the only place hated by some folks.<br />
<br />
Or maybe this is a case of Grand Theft Airliner: with kidnapping thrown in for good measure. That might make for a good action movie, along the lines of "<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0059800/">Thunderball</a>" and "<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0065377/">Airport</a>," but I don't think it's likely.<br />
<br />
I would like to hope that the passengers and crew of Flight MH370 are still alive: in life rafts, near a crash-landing in the Himalayas, or even as hostages. But a fear that they are dead.<br />
<br />
Maybe someday, years from now, we'll know what happened. Today, we have very little information, a vast array of rumors, and a great many questions.<br />
<h4>
<a name="profiling"></a>Profiling and Memory</h4>
If investigators find evidence that one or both pilots of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 went rogue, I think profiling of pilots and air crews should be reconsidered.<br />
<br />
"Profiling" today is a little like sex was supposed to be in Victorian England. It's something we're not supposed to think about: but do, anyway. I'm not enthusiastic about profiling, racial or otherwise, because it can be an excuse for exercising blind prejudice.<br />
<br />
It's not always 'the other guy' who gets hurt. I strongly suspect that <a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2007/07/arrests-doctors-and-terrorists-keeping.html#jewell">Richard Jewell</a> would not have been punished for discovering a bomb, if he hadn't been an overweight white guy. There's the well-publicized sort of profiling that confuses Mexicans, Arabs, and terrorist. That, in my considered opinion, is daft: and wrong.<br />
<br />
As a member of a religious minority, I see a very real danger in official sanctions against individuals based on their beliefs. We have enough trouble with individuals who attack Americans who aren't sufficiently "American." (A Catholic Citizen in America (<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2010/11/smashed-statues-opportunity-for-prayer.html">November 25, 2010</a>; <a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2011/04/disagreement-is-not-treason-protest-is.html">April 19, 2011</a>))<br />
<br />
That said, it is possible that lives could be saved by not letting pilots with suicidal ambitions fly aircraft.<br>
<br>
Finally, although I think it's very unlikely, Flight MH370 may have gotten lost because of some accident.<br />
<br />
Remembering Air France 447:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2012/07/air-france-447-equipment-problems-stall.html">Air France 447: Equipment Problems; Stall Warnings; Pilot Error</a>"<br />
(July 5, 2012)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2011/04/air-france-447-part-of-black-orange.html">Air France 447: Part of a Black (Orange, Really) Box Found</a>"<br />
(April 28, 2011)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2011/04/air-france-flight-447-wreckage-found-my.html">Air France Flight 447 Wreckage Found: My Take</a>"<br />
(April 4, 2011)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2009/06/air-france-flight-447-ivestigators-find.html">Air France Flight 447 Investigators Find Terror List Names: Suggestive, But Far From Proof</a>"<br />
(June 10, 2009)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2009/07/euronews-dustbin-airline-cultures-and.html">euronews, " 'Dustbin' Airline," Cultures, and the War on Terror</a>"<br />
(July 2, 2009)<br />
Particularly<ul>
<li><a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2009/07/euronews-dustbin-airline-cultures-and.html#what">What We Know, What We may Never Know</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
In the news:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2014/03/16/world/asia/malaysia-airlines-plane/">Search for Malaysia Airline plane widens, becomes more difficult</a>"<br />
Ed Payne, Chelsea J. Carter, Jim Clancy, CNN (March 16, 2014)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-26591056">Missing Malaysia Airlines plane 'deliberately diverted'</a> "<br />
BBC News, (March 15, 2014)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/15/world/asia/missing-malaysia-airlines-flight-370.html">Satellite Firm Says Its Data Could Offer Location of Missing Flight</a>"<br />
Chris Buckley, Nicola Clark, The New York Times (March 14, 2014)</li>
</ul>
Background:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malaysia_Airlines_Flight_370">Malaysia Airlines Flight 370</a>"<br />
Wikipedia</li>
</ul>
<hr />
Excerpts from the news:<br />
<blockquote>
"<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2014/03/16/world/asia/malaysia-airlines-plane/">Search for Malaysia Airline plane widens, becomes more difficult</a>"<br />
Ed Payne, Chelsea J. Carter, Jim Clancy, CNN (March 16, 2014)<br />
<br />
"<i>Nine days in, things have gotten a whole lot more difficult in the search for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370.</i><br />
<br />
"<i> 'This is a significant recalibration of the search,' Malaysia's acting Transportation Minister Hishammuddin Hussein said Sunday. 'The number of countries involved in the search and rescue operation has increased from 14 to 25, which brings new challenges of coordination and diplomacy to the search effort.'</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The new developments come as U.S. intelligence officials are leaning toward the theory that 'those in the cockpit' -- the captain and co-pilot of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 -- were responsible for the mysterious disappearance of the commercial jetliner, a U.S. official with direct knowledge of the latest thinking told CNN.</i><br />
<br />
"<i><a href="http://www.cnn.com/2014/03/14/world/asia/malaysia-airlines-pilot-profiles/index.html">What we know about the cockpit crew</a></i><br />
<br />
"<i>The official emphasized no final conclusions have been drawn and all the internal intelligence discussions are based on preliminary assessments of what is known to date.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Other scenarios could still emerge. The notion of a hijacking has not been ruled out, the official said Saturday.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The Boeing 777-200 ER disappeared on March 8, en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing. The airline's CEO Ahmad Jauhari Yahya said Sunday the missing passenger jet took off with its normal amount of fuel needed for the route, and did not have extra fuel on board that could have extended its range....</i>"<br />
<hr />
"<a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-26591056">Missing Malaysia Airlines plane 'deliberately diverted'</a> "<br />
BBC News, (March 15, 2014)<br />
<br />
"<i><b>The communications systems of missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 were deliberately disabled, Malaysia's Prime Minister Najib Razak has said.</b></i><br />
<br />
"<i>According to satellite and radar evidence, he said, the plane then changed course and could have continued flying for a further seven hours.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>He said the 'movements are consistent with the deliberate action of someone on the plane'....</i><br />
<br />
"<i>...The flight left Kuala Lumpur for Beijing at 00:40 local time (16:40 GMT) on 8 March and disappeared off air traffic controllers' screens at about 01:20.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Mr Razak told a news conference that new satellite evidence shows 'with a high degree of certainty' that the one of the aircraft's communications systems - the Aircraft and Communications Addressing and Reporting System - was disabled just before it had reached the east coast of Malaysia.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>ACARS is a service that allows computers aboard the plane to 'talk' to computers on the ground, relaying in-flight information about the health of its systems.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Shortly afterwards, near the cross-over point between Malaysian and Vietnamese air traffic controllers, the plane's transponder - which emits an identifying signal - was switched off, he said.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>According to a military radar, the aircraft then turned and flew back over Malaysia before heading in a north-west direction.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>A satellite was able to pick up a signal from the plane until 08:11 local time - more than seven hours after it lost radar contact - although it was unable to give a precise location, Mr Razak said....</i>"
<br />
<hr />
"<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/15/world/asia/missing-malaysia-airlines-flight-370.html">Satellite Firm Says Its Data Could Offer Location of Missing Flight</a>"<br />
Chris Buckley, Nicola Clark, The New York Times (March 14, 2014)<br />
<br />
"<i>As the hunt for the missing Malaysia Airlines jet expanded into the vastness of the Indian Ocean, a satellite communications company confirmed on Friday that it had recorded electronic 'keep alive' ping signals from the plane after it disappeared, and said those signals could be analyzed to help estimate its location.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The information from the company, Inmarsat, could prove to be a valuable break in the frustrating search for the plane with 239 people aboard that mysteriously disappeared from radar screens a week ago, now hunted by a multinational array of ships and planes that have fanned out for thousands of square miles.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Until now, that search has turned up false leads: oil slicks, chunks of foam, life vests and other debris unconnected to the vanished plane.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>But a series of electronic pings sent by the aircraft could help the search, which is shifting focus from the confines of the Gulf of Thailand and nearby waters to include the Indian Ocean on the western side of Malaysia.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Investigators also are looking at the possibility that a shipment of lithium batteries in the cargo hold may have caught fire and felled the aircraft. A senior American official who had been briefed on the contents listed on the plane's cargo manifest said a 'significant load' of lithium batteries had been aboard — raising suspicions because of previous cargo-plane crashes attributed to lithium battery shipments, which can overheat and cause intense fires. But that possibility is inconsistent with information that the plane may have kept flying for hours after it vanished.</i>"</blockquote>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">from anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com</div>Brian H. Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13209697542675181894noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4162431493776686444.post-24750141934778637942014-02-27T14:01:00.004-06:002014-02-27T14:01:42.573-06:00Ukraine in a Changing WorldIn a way, it's business-as-usual.<br />
<br />
Protestors waving flags; two groups, two national flags; a major power conducts military exercises nearby, saying that it wants to avert a crisis.<br />
<br />
Depending on who's talking: folks in Ukraine decided that they want to joint the European Union; lackeys of capitalist oppressors seek to enslave Ukraine; or [religious group] wants to kill [religious group].<br />
<br />
I've got my own opinion, but it's not quite that dramatic.<br />
<h4>
Nostalgia, Nationalism, and All That</h4>
I'm sure that quite a few folks in Ukraine were quite satisfied with the status quo before the Soviet Union fizzled out in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dissolution_of_the_Soviet_Union">1991</a>: and would dearly like the 'good old days' to return. Others are probably as dubious about dealing with foreigners as national chauvinists anywhere else.<br />
<br />
Others, in the Crimea, are Russian: the way I'd be Norwegian if my mother hadn't married an Irishman with Campbell ancestors. Some of them probably want their part of Ukraine to be part of Russia. I sympathize with them, to a limited extent.<br />
<br />
The last I checked, about half of the folks living in <a href="https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/up.html">Ukraine</a> are Ukrainian Orthodox, which is probably the "wrong" term in someone's opinion; with the rest mostly Christians, Jews and the ubiquitous "other." I'm pretty sure that all of the above have a few hotheads in their number, but that's human nature. My opinion.<br />
<h4>
Ancestors, Treaties, and Learning</h4>
I'm an American with ancestors in Norway; Ireland; Scotland, and, possibly, England. The latter is speculation, a possible explanation for why an Irish family would deliberately retain "Richard" as a name for their sons: and that's almost another topic.<br />
<br />
I like being an American, but don't think my country can do no wrong: or no right. I'm pretty sure the same can be said for any nation: although some have gone through awkward phases.<br />
<br />
My country finally got around to honoring some treaties made with folks living west of the Appalachians. Maybe Russia will eventually learn that some folks on their borders don't want to be part of Russia: and that conquering those folks isn't a sensible option.<br />
<br />
On the other hand, although I can understand a "land of my fathers" sort of patriotism: my ancestors are scattered over so much of northwestern Europe that I don't share much of the feeling.<br />
<h4>
Looking Ahead: Or Not</h4>
I don't think the European Union will endure in its present form for more than a few decades. But as the start of a united Europe, it's doing a pretty good job. Just getting Germans, Frenchmen, Belgians, Austrians, and all the rest to stop killing each other for several decades was a major accomplishment.<br />
<br />
Meanwhile, in Ukraine, I think we're seeing what happens when folks who understand that the world has changed won't cooperate with those who desperately want the "good old days."<br />
<br />
In the news:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/27/us-ukraine-crisis-idUSBREA1Q1E820140227">Ukraine warns Russia after gunmen seize Crimea parliament</a>"<br />
Alessandra Prentice, Alissa de Carbonnel, Reuters (February 27, 2014)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-26366700">West warns Russia amid rising tensions in Crimea</a>"<br />
BBC News (February 27, 2014)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2014/02/26/world/europe/ukraine-politics/">Russia flexes military muscle as tensions rise in Ukraine's Crimea region</a>"<br />
Laura Smith-Spark, Phil Black, Frederik Pleitgen, CNN (February 26, 2014)</li>
</ul>
Somewhat-related posts:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/12/kiev-police-when-crowd-control-goes.html">Kiev Police: When Crowd Control Goes Horribly Wrong</a>"<br />
(December 1, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2011/01/dozens-dead-at-domodedovo-observations.html">Dozens Dead at Domodedovo - Observations and Opinions</a>"<br />
(January 25, 2011)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2010/02/police-abuse-america-isnt-russia.html">Police Abuse: America isn't Russia</a>"<br />
(February 19, 2010)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2008/10/russia-ukraine-did-something-bad-who.html">Russia: Ukraine Did Something Bad - Who Could Have Predicted This?</a>"<br />
(October 2, 2008)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2008/09/if-you-liked-georgia-youll-love-ukraine.html">If You Liked Georgia, You'll Love Ukraine</a>"<br />
(September 8, 2008)</li>
</ul>
<sup><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="1">1</a></sup> Excerpts from the news:<br />
<blockquote>
"<a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/27/us-ukraine-crisis-idUSBREA1Q1E820140227">Ukraine warns Russia after gunmen seize Crimea parliament</a>"<br />
Alessandra Prentice, Alissa de Carbonnel, Reuters (February 27, 2014)<br />
<br />
"<i>Armed men seized the parliament in Ukraine's Crimea region on Thursday and raised the Russian flag, alarming Kiev's new rulers, who urged Moscow not move troops out of its navy base on the peninsula.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Crimea, the only Ukrainian region with an ethnic Russian majority, is the last big bastion of opposition to the new leadership in Kiev since President Viktor Yanukovich was ousted at the weekend and provides a base for Russia's Black Sea fleet....</i>"
<br />
<hr />
"<a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-26366700">West warns Russia amid rising tensions in Crimea</a>"<br />
BBC News (February 27, 2014)<br />
<br />
"<i><b>Western nations have called on Russia to ease tensions in Ukraine's Crimea region after armed men seized the local parliament and raised the Russian flag.</b></i><br />
<br />
"<i>Russia also scrambled fighter jets along its borders as part of military exercises it announced a day earlier.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Moscow said it was willing to work with the West on averting a crisis, but warned foreign powers against taking decisions on behalf of Ukrainians.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Meanwhile, the ousted Ukrainian president is reported to be in Russia....</i>"
<br />
<hr />
"<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2014/02/26/world/europe/ukraine-politics/">Russia flexes military muscle as tensions rise in Ukraine's Crimea region</a>"<br />
Laura Smith-Spark, Phil Black, Frederik Pleitgen, CNN (February 26, 2014)<br />
<br />
"<i>Russia ordered surprise military exercises on Ukraine's doorstep Wednesday as tensions in that country's southern Crimea region simmered, with pro-Russian demonstrators facing off against rival protesters in the city of Simferopol.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>As the mood soured among the thousands rallying in front of the Crimean parliament building in Simferopol, some scuffles broke out.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>One group waved Ukrainian flags and shouted 'Crimea is not Russia,' while the other held Russian flags aloft and shouted 'Crimea is Russia,' images broadcast by Crimean TV channel ATR showed. As the crowd became more agitated, a line of police moved in to divide the groups.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Local leaders sought to calm the mood, urging the protesters to go home and resist provocations.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>One man died around the time of the protests in front of Parliament, the Crimean Ministry of Health said on its website. The man had no visible signs of injury, and early indications point to a heart attack, it said. Seven people sought medical help....</i>"
<br />
<hr />
</blockquote>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">from anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com</div>Brian H. Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13209697542675181894noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4162431493776686444.post-90666212016913022872013-12-14T11:31:00.000-06:002013-12-14T11:32:35.028-06:00Terry Loewen, Al Qaeda, "Most Muslims," and Assumptions<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=4162431493776686444"><img src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/121313_sr_tobin_640-400.jpg" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">(From FoxNews.com, used w/o permission.)</span><br />
Terry L. Loewen, 58: aviation technician and would-be Al Qaeda suicide bomber, apparently.<br />
<br />
Mr. Loewen wrote that he planned to be "martyred in the path of Allah," and that "most Muslims in this country will condemn what I have done." <sup><a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/12/terry-loewen-al-qaeda-most-muslims-and.html#1">1</a></sup><br />
<br />
I don't doubt that he was sincere. I also think that he was right about "most Muslims in this country."<br />
<br />
But I'm not surprised that he doesn't "look Muslim."<br />
<br />
I've been over this before: quite a few Muslims come from the Middle East, but Islam isn't an ethnic group.<br />
<br />
Eventually, all but the most ardently chauvinistic <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Anglo-Saxon_Protestant">WASP</a> supporters in America may get used to the idea that someone can 'look American' and be a terrorist. Maybe they'll even decide that folks don't have to look English to be American: but I doubt it.<br />
<h4>
<a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="learning"></a>Learning the Right Lesson: Or Not</h4>
I'm very glad that Mr Loewen didn't succeed in becoming a "in the path of Allah:" for his sake, and for the sake of everyone else he would have killed.<br />
<br />
How and why he made the choices he did may or may not come out as his case goes through the courts.<br />
<br />
Based on what's been in the news so far, and depending on what folks assume, we could learn that:<br />
<ol type="A">
<li>The FBI conspires to hurt innocent Americans</li>
<li>You can't trust white people</li>
<li>Religion kills</li>
<li>All of the above</li>
<li>None of the above</li>
</ol>
I think "E" is the right answer: but there's a tiny element of truth in "D."<br />
<br />
Innocent people have been unjustly accused. <a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2011/02/anthrax-fbi-and-absolute-certainty.html#fingering">Steven Hatfill</a> is a recent, and happily rare, example.<br />
<br />
Some white people are untrustworthy. I'd be astounded if any large group of human beings was entirely free of folks who are untrustworthy: or worse. But assuming that a few individuals are typical of a group is not, I think, usually prudent.<br />
<br />
Religion of the 'kill a commie for Christ' or 'death to the great Satan America' variety is, in my considered opinion, dangerous. But I think that sort of attitude is often rooted in a desperate desire to preserve a dead or dying culture.<br />
<br />
But I think that the FBI often serves a beneficial function, that many folks are trustworthy, that religion isn't necessarily a psychiatric condition: and those are other topics.<br />
<br />
My take on:<br />
<ul>
<li>Islam<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/08/egypt-opinions-and-cautious-optimism.html">Egypt, Opinions, and Cautious Optimism</a>"<br />
(August 25, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2012/09/ive-been-out-of-town-on-business-all.html">Anti-American Protests, Anti-Islamic Film, and Getting a Grip</a>"<br />
(September 15, 2012)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2012/06/father-beheads-daughter-singer-killed.html">Father Beheads Daughter, Singer Killed: Opine, But <i>Check Your Facts!</i></a>"<br />
A Catholic Citizen in America (June 19, 2012)<br />
Particularly<ul>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2012/06/father-beheads-daughter-singer-killed.html#turbans">Turbans, Names, and Getting a Grip</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2011/04/with-friends-like-these-islam-doesnt.html">With Friends Like These, Islam Doesn't Need Enemies</a>"<br />
(April 14, 2011)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2009/02/what-is-islam-even-muslims-dont-seem-to.html">What is Islam? Even Muslims Don't Seem to Agree</a>"<br />
(February 6, 2009)</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Religion<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2013/10/truth-cannot-contradict-truth.html">Truth Cannot Contradict Truth</a>"<br />
A Catholic Citizen in America (October 13, 2013)<br />
Particularly<ul>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2013/10/truth-cannot-contradict-truth.html#pouring">Pouring Oil on Troubled Fires</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>" <a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/12/displaced-aggression-terrorism-culture.html">'Displaced Aggression:' Terrorism, Culture, and Assumptions</a>"<br />
(December 1, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/05/using-machete-in-global-civilization.html">Using a Machete in a Global Civilization</a>"<br />
(May 23, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2011/11/my-take-on-news-there-oughtta-be-law.html">My Take on the News: 'There Oughtta be a Law?'</a> "<br />
A Catholic Citizen in America (November 11, 2011)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2011/11/freedom-even-for-those-people-over.html">Freedom, Even For 'Those People Over There'</a> "<br />
(November 11, 2011)</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
In the news:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://www.kwch.com/news/local-news/press-conference-to-address-national-security-arrest/-/21054266/23471068/-/5bqxyr/-/index.html">FBI: Man spent months planning bomb plot at ICT
Explosives were fake, U.S. Attorney says</a>"<br />
Adam Knapp,KWCH (December 13, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-25374371">US man held over Kansas 'suicide bomb plot'</a> "<br />
BBC News (December 13, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://www.foxnews.com/us/2013/12/13/arrest-made-in-attempt-to-bomb-wichita-airport-fbi-says/">Arrest made in attempt to bomb Wichita airport, FBI says</a>"<br />
Edmund DeMarche, FoxNews.com (December 13, 2013)</li>
</ul>
<hr />
<sup><a name="1">1</a></sup> Excerpts from the news:<br />
<blockquote>
"<a href="http://www.kwch.com/news/local-news/press-conference-to-address-national-security-arrest/-/21054266/23471068/-/5bqxyr/-/index.html">FBI: Man spent months planning bomb plot at ICT
Explosives were fake, U.S. Attorney says</a>"<br />
Adam Knapp,KWCH (December 13, 2013)<br />
<br />
"<i>A Wichita man has been arrested and charged in federal court for attempting to blow up Mid-Continent Airport in a suicide bombing Friday.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Terry Lee Loewen, 58, who worked at the Hawker Beechcraft Services facility at Mid-Continent Airport, is alleged to have spent months developing a plan to use his airport access card to drive a van loaded with explosives to the terminal. He planned to pull the trigger on the explosives himself and die in the explosion, U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom said.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The explosives were fake, Grissom said....</i><br />
<br />
"<i>...According to an affidavit filed in support of the criminal complaint, Loewen:</i><br />
<ul>
<li>Studied the layout of the airport and took photographs of access points.</li>
<li>Researched flight schedules.</li>
<li>Assisted in acquiring components for the car bomb.</li>
<li>Talked about his commitment to trigger the device and martyr himself.</li>
</ul>
"<i> 'The threat was real,' said Michael Kaste of the Federal Bureau of Investigations. 'But I assure you, the public was never at any risk at all.'</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Loewen, who is not believed to be involved with any religious affiliation in the Wichita community, was arrested at 5:40 a.m.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>He faces one count of attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction against people and property within the United States, one court of attempting to damage property by means of an explosive and one count of attempting to provide material support to Al Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>In a 21-page complaint filed in federal court, documents found that Loewen engaged in an online conversation with an undercover FBI agent to reflect his 'desire to engage in violent jihad on behalf of al Qaeda.'</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Lowen wrote, 'Brothers like Osama bin Laden and Anwar al Awlaki are a great inspiration to me, but I must be willing to give up everything (like they did) to truly feel like a obedient slave of Allah.' He went on to say 'I MUST be active in some kind of jihad to fell I'm doing something proactive for the Ummah.'</i><br />
<br />
"<i>In October, Loewen sent numerous photographs of his airport access badge, entrance gates to the tarmac and devices used to access the gates. He told the undercover agent he felt a morning attack at the airport would be best....</i><br />
<br />
"<i>...Loewen and the undercover agent met at a Wichita hotel Friday morning, drove to the location of where the bomb was being stored, the complaint read. The two arrived at Mid-Continent Airport at 5:40 a.m., where Loewen was arrested after two attempts at opening the gate to the tarmac.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>In a letter to family members dated December 11, 2013, Loewen said,</i><br />
<blockquote>
"<i> 'By the time you read this I will - if everything went as planned - have been martyred in the path of Allah. There will have been an event at the airport which I am responsible for. The operation was timed to cause maximum carnage + death. My only explaination is that I believe in jihad for that sake of Allah + for the sake of my Muslim brothers +sisters. Fact is, most Muslims in this country will condemn what I have done. I expect to be called a terrorist (which I am), a psychopath, and a homicidal maniac.' </i>"</blockquote>
"<i>Loewen made his first appearance in federal court on terrorism charges at 3 p.m. U.S. attorneys will present the case to a grand jury for indictment next Wednesday....</i><br />
<br />
"<i>...Beechcraft released a statement saying Loewen is suspended from employment pending the outcome of the investigation....</i>"<br />
<hr />
"<a href="http://www.foxnews.com/us/2013/12/13/arrest-made-in-attempt-to-bomb-wichita-airport-fbi-says/">Arrest made in attempt to bomb Wichita airport, FBI says</a>"<br />
Edmund DeMarche, FoxNews.com (December 13, 2013)
<br />
<br />
"<i>A Kansas man who authorities say in the past made threats to engage in violent jihad against the U.S. was charged Friday for allegedly plotting to detonate a car bomb at the Wichita Mid-Continent Airport.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Terry L. Loewen, 58, an aviation technician who FBI agents say was inspired by Usama bin Laden, spent months planning the attack and was intent on using his employee access card to drive the vehicle loaded with explosives to a terminal, Barry Grissom, the U.S. Attorney for the district of Kansas, said, citing the criminal complaint. Loewen planned on dying in the explosion as a martyr, Grissom said.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The complaint says an undercover FBI employee told Loewen about a recent trip overseas and a meeting with members of Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. This agent told Loewen that 'brothers' were interested in his airport access, and asked if he'd be willing to plant 'some type of device,' the complaint said.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Loewen allegedly responded, 'Am I interested? Yes. I still need time to think about it, but I can't imagine anything short of arrest stopping me.' The U.S. citizen allegedly wrote to the FBI agent that he was inspired by Usama bin Laden and Anwar al-Awlaki.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>He was arrested at 5:30 a.m. without incident while trying to gain access to a tarmac, Grissom said. At the time, his access card did not work and he was with the vehicle he allegedly believed was filled with explosives.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Authorities said there was never a bomb that could explode and the public was not in danger.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Loewen has been under investigation by the Wichita Joint Terrorism Task Force since early summer 2013. It is alleged that in the past he has made statements that he was resolved to commit an act of violent jihad.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The affidavit filed in support of the criminal complaint alleges that Loewen studied the airport's layout, researched flight schedules, assisted in acquiring car bomb components and talked about sacrificing his own life in the attack....</i><br />
<br />
"<i>...His wife and attorney declined comment after the hearing....</i><br />
<br />
"<i>...Authorities said they believe Loewen acted alone. No other arrests are expected....</i>"</blockquote>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">from anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com</div>Brian H. Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13209697542675181894noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4162431493776686444.post-58791645703101882562013-12-01T20:30:00.002-06:002015-01-09T13:41:23.679-06:00"Displaced Aggression:" Terrorism, Culture, and AssumptionsThis isn't, as I've said before, a "political" blog.<br />
<br />
I don't claim that a particular party or person is always right, or wrong; or believe that major problems are always the result of commie plots, capitalistic greed, or what the 'other' party is doing.<br />
<br />
That doesn't make me "moderate." I have a well-defined point of view, and definite opinions. I try to limit my opinions to matters where I have at least some data to work with.<br />
<h4>
<a name="looking"></a>Looking for Reasons</h4>
I've run into folks who don't seem to have any doubts about why terrorism is a problem. Depending on who you ask, it's the fault of Muslims, American imperialism, news media, religion in general, or not having the 'right' party in Congress. That's overly-simplified, of course, and doesn't include all possibilities.<br />
<br />
I don't think it's quite that simple. Anything having to do with human beings isn't, generally.<br />
<br />
I do think that some Muslims are terrorists. So are some Christians, and folks with no particularly strong religious views. That doesn't mean that religion makes people want to kill other people: or that having religious beliefs keeps folks from acting badly.<br />
<br />
Sadly, angry people seem to want reasons for being angry: other than what's actually frustrating them. Religion, national identity, economic status, and ancestry can be convenient canvases for folks desperately in need of a 'big picture' for their feelings. My opinion.<br />
<br />
Folks who still yearn for a worker's paradise, or who sincerely believe that American corporations are responsible for the world's woes are a familiar part of America's cultural landscape. I don't think they are potential terrorists - - - but I'm getting ahead of myself.<br />
<br />
This excerpt from a CNN talk show got me started on today's post:
<br />
<blockquote>
FEINSTEIN<br />
<br />
"<i>I think there is a real displaced aggression in this very fundamentalist, jihadist, Islamic community. And that is that the west is responsible for everything that goes wrong, and that the only thing that's going to solve this is Islamic Sharia law and the concept of the caliphate.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>And I see more groups, more fundamentalists, more jihadists more determined to kill to get to where they want to get. So, it's not an isolated phenomenon. You see these groups spread a web of connections. And this includes North Africa, it includes the Middle East, it includes other areas as well.</i>"<br />
("<a href="http://cnnpressroom.blogs.cnn.com/2013/12/01/feinstein-terror-is-up-worldwide/">Feinstein: 'Terror is up worldwide'</a>," CNN's State of the Union with Candy Crowley transcript, CNN (December 1, 2013))</blockquote>
<h4>
<a name="fundamentalists"></a>"Fundamentalists:" Accurate, But - - -</h4>
I don't like Feinstein's use of "fundamentalists" in this context. I think she's right, in the strictly dictionary meaning of the word <a href="http://www.thefreedictionary.com/fundamentalist">fundamentalist</a>: but in American culture that term can also refer to any Christian group or individual.<br />
<br />
There <b><i>are</i></b> Christian fundamentalists, but not all Christians in America are fundamentalists. I'm Catholic, which by some Christian fundamentalist standards means that I'm not any sort of Christian, and that's not quite another topic. I've put links to posts in this and another blog near the end of this one, which may or may not be of interest.<br />
<br />
Wrenching myself back to Feinstein, fundamentalists, and folks who kill other folks for 'religious' reasons -<br />
<h4>
<a name="sincere"></a>Sincere, Maybe: Justified, No</h4>
I think many, but not all, of today's terrorists are folks who really believe that God wants them to kill 'unbelievers.' Many of these terrorists insist that they're the only true Muslims around: and are more likely to kill their neighbors for being insufficiently Islamic, than go to the trouble of killing Westerners.<br />
<br />
Folks in Europe and on this side of the Atlantic aren't safe, as deaths before, during, and after 9/11 showed. That's partly because we live in a world where travel is fairly easy: and because an increasing number of folks in America are not <a href="http://www.thefreedictionary.com/WASP">WASP</a>s and WASP wannabes.<br />
<br />
This most certainly does not mean that I think America should repeat the grotesque mistake of rounding folks up for having the 'wrong' ancestors. I think I understand why FDR signed <a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2009/01/america-racism-and-what-didnt-happen-at.html#internment">Public Law 100-383</a>. I also think it was a mistake that took much too long to sort out.<br />
<br />
Making 'looking like an Arab' an acceptable excuse for detaining someone makes as much sense as rounding up all the pale people in Oklahoma City, after the <a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2010/01/arkansas-recruiting-center-shooting.html#you">bombing</a>. The folks who blew up the Alfred Murrah building apparently had ethnic and nationalistic motives: which doesn't make having European ancestors and living in America grounds for suspicion of terrorist tendencies.<br />
<h4>
<a name="dealing"></a>Dealing With Difference</h4>
<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2012/05/love-hate-and-lady-gaga.html#having"><img align="right" src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20110726ff/250px-Klan-in-gainesville200.jpg" /></a>The Ku Klux Klan isn't the social and political force it once was in America, but a burning cross still occasionally shows up on the news. I think some iterations of the KKK are a useful example of how folks can use religion as a reason for hating outsiders.<br />
<br />
That's more an indictment of human nature, I think, than a reason to distrust <b><i>all</i></b> spiritual beliefs.<br />
<br />
Here's a sampling of how different folks express their religious beliefs:<br />
<br />
<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2012/04/come-ride-steel-dinosaur-or-not.html#religion"><img alt="From ''Klansmen: Guardians of Liberty'', 1926. Published by the Pillar of Fire Church in Zarephath, NJ. Copyright was not renewed." src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20110726ff/800px-Theendkkk400.jpg" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">(Pillar of Fire Church, via Wikipedia, used w/o permission)</span><br />
"<i>From ''<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Klansmen:_Guardians_of_Liberty" title="Klansmen: Guardians of Liberty">Klansmen: Guardians of Liberty</a>'', 1926. Published by the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pillar_of_Fire_Church">Pillar of Fire Church</a> in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zarephath,_NJ">Zarephath, NJ</a>....</i>"<br />
<br />
<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2012/04/come-ride-steel-dinosaur-or-not.html#religion"><img alt="New York, NY, September 28, 2001 -- A view of the recovery operation underway from a roof adjacent to the World Trade Center. Photo by Andrea Booher/ FEMA News Photo" src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20110726ff/FEMA_-_4235_-_Photograph_by_Andrea_Booher_taken_on_09-28-2001_in_New_York_detail400.jpg" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">(Andrea Booher/ FEMA News Photo, via Wikipedia, used w/o permission)</span><br />
"<i>...A view of the recovery operation underway from a roof adjacent to the World Trade Center. Photo by Andrea Booher/ FEMA News Photo.</i>" (September 28, 2001)<br />
<br />
<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2012/04/come-ride-steel-dinosaur-or-not.html#religion"><img src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20110726ff/bol11-pag9_400Corr.jpg" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">(From "<a href="http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cevang/p_missionary_works/infantia/documents/rc_ic_infantia_doc_20090324_boletin11p3_en.html">The Pope and Children</a>" (January 6, 2003), used w/o permission)</span><br />
Some Catholic, carrying out standing orders: <a href="http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0839/_PVY.HTM#GOSP.MAT.25.31">Matthew 25:31</a>-<a href="http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0839/_PVY.HTM#GOSP.MAT.25.46">46</a>.<br />
<h4>
<a name="from"></a>From the Days of Abram to Cable TV and Beer in One Generation</h4>
I've had personal experience with Christians who didn't distinguish between <a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2009/09/are-you-boy-or-are-you-girl.html">personal preference</a>, cultural mores, and eternal principles. Folks who sincerely believe that God ordained that folks always act like the American middle class of the 1950s are more funny than dangerous: because they're not likely to kill you.<br />
<br />
Other folks, equally convinced that God ordained that everyone should act they way they did in some village before they had Internet and cable: they don't always have inhibitions about enforcing their beliefs with an axe or a sword.<br />
<br />
I'm strongly inclined to believe that we're looking at cultural values here, since many Muslims in places like <a href="https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/my.html">Malaysia</a> seem to have little trouble fitting into a global society. I doubt that every Muslim in Malaysia thinks the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Petronas_Towers">Petronas Towers</a> were a good idea: but quite a few Americans of various beliefs are grumpy, too.<br />
<br />
I do not think that feeling bad made it okay for white supremacists to kill people in Oklahoma City, any more than I think it's okay for folks to kill Americans because they miss the 'good old days.' I <b><i>do</i></b> think that we need to remember that some folks sincerely believe that killing others for being different.<br />
<br />
Terrorists, whatever their motivation, are a real threat. Forgetting that, and 'defending' America against efforts to stop terrorists, is a bad idea.<br />
<br />
So is forgetting that disagreeing with the government is <b><i>not</i></b> treason, too: and I've written about that before.<br />
<br />
Related posts:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2013/03/electing-pope-protecting-everybodys.html">Electing a Pope, Protecting Everybody's Freedom</a>"<br />
A Catholic Citizen in America (March 8, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/02/hack-attack-good-news-bad-news-security.html">Hack Attack: Good News, Bad news, Security, and Freedom</a>"<br />
(February 6, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2012/05/love-hate-and-lady-gaga.html">Love, Hate, and Lady Gaga</a>"<br />
A Catholic Citizen in America (May 27, 2012)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2012/04/marching-through-time.html">Marching Through Time</a>"<br />
A Catholic Citizen in America (April 1, 2012)<br />
Particularly<ul>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2012/04/marching-through-time.html#counter">Counter-Cultural and Loving It</a></li>
<li><a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2012/04/marching-through-time.html#pigeonholes">Pigeonholes</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2011/02/iran-dissent-and-threats-to-national.html">Iran, Dissent, and Threats to National Security</a>"<br />
(February 10, 2011)</li>
</ul>
<hr />
<sup><a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="1">1</a></sup> Excerpts from CNN's State of the Union with Candy Crowley transcript<br />
<blockquote>
CROWLEY<br />
"<i>The big question that's always asked, are we safer now than we were a year ago, two years ago? In general?</i>"<br />
<br />
FEINSTEIN<br />
"<i>I don't think so. I think terror is up worldwide, the statistics indicate that, the fatalities are way up. The numbers are way up. There are new bombs, very big bombs, trucks being reinforced for those bombs. There are bombs that go through magnatometers. The bomb maker is still alive. There are more groups that ever and there's huge malevolence out there.</i>"<br />
<br />
CROWLEY<br />
"<i>So congressman, I have to say, that is not the answer I expected. I expected to hear, oh, we're safer. Do you agree?</i>"<br />
<br />
ROGERS<br />
"<i>Oh, I absolutely agree that we're not safer today for the same very reasons.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>So the pressure on our intelligence services to get it right to prevent an attack are enormous. And it's getting more difficult because we see the al Qaeda as we knew it before is metastasizing to something different, more affiliates than we've ever had before, meaning more groups that operated independently of al Qaeda have now joined al Qaeda around the world, all of them have at least some aspiration to commit an act of violence in the United States or against western targets all around the world.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>They've now switched to this notion that maybe smaller events are okay. So if you have more smaller events than bigger events, they think that might still lead to their objectives and their goals. That makes it exponentially harder for our intelligence services to stop an event like that.</i>"<br />
<br />
...<br />
<br />
CROWLEY<br />
"<i>So, one of the things that the senator said was that there is more hatred out there, more - and why is that?</i>"<br />
<br />
FEINSTEIN<br />
"<i>I think there is a real displaced aggression in this very fundamentalist, jihadist, Islamic community. And that is that the west is responsible for everything that goes wrong, and that the only thing that's going to solve this is Islamic Sharia law and the concept of the caliphate.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>And I see more groups, more fundamentalists, more jihadists more determined to kill to get to where they want to get. So, it's not an isolated phenomenon. You see these groups spread a web of connections. And this includes North Africa, it includes the Middle East, it includes other areas as well.</i>"<br />
<br />
CROWLEY<br />
"<i>Lots of times we look at kind of some of these splinter groups going, yeah, but their interest is local.</i>"<br />
<br />
ROGERS<br />
"<i>And here's the - but here's the concern of that. Now, remember, you have somewhere near 25 states that have some failed level of governance, meaning they can't secure large spaces of their own country. Those are always attractive for safe havens when it comes to any terrorist organization. And we're finding they're taking advantage of that.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>So you see what's happening in a place like Syria where you have a pooling of al Qaeda members and affiliates of al Qaeda in a way we've never seen before at the level of numbers that we have never seen before, and here's the scary part of this, some thousands of people showing up to participate in that in their mind jihadist effort are westerners, meaning they have western passports.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>A percentage of them have already gone home, including the United States, by the way, is included in that western number. We are very, very concerned that these folks who have western paper have gone there, participated in combat events, are trained, are further radicalized, now have the ability to go back in western countries.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>We know that those–</i>"<br />
<br />
...<br />
("<a href="http://cnnpressroom.blogs.cnn.com/2013/12/01/feinstein-terror-is-up-worldwide/">Feinstein: 'Terror is up worldwide'</a>," CNN's State of the Union with Candy Crowley transcript, CNN (December 1, 2013))</blockquote>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">from anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com</div>Brian H. Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13209697542675181894noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4162431493776686444.post-32678130213709306442013-12-01T08:00:00.000-06:002013-12-01T08:00:11.367-06:00Kiev Police: When Crowd Control Goes Horribly WrongFirst, the good news: The Kiev chief of police seems to realize that storming a camp of protestors doesn't make his troops look good.<br />
<br />
Not-so-good news: folks who want <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukraine">Ukraine</a>'s government to sign an agreement with the European Union and hold elections got attacked by police in Kiev. That's their version. The chief of police says that the protestors started it. Maybe he's right, maybe not.<br />
<br />
More good news: Ukraine's Viktor Yanukovych, the country's current leader, says that he's "deeply outraged" by what Kiev police did. It's probably the only sensible thing he could say at this point: but political leaders don't always act sensibly.<br />
<h4>
The War on Terror: Accepting the 21st Century, or Not</h4>
In a way, Saturday's attack has very little to do with the war on terror.<br />
<br />
As far as I can tell, Saturday's attack by Kievan police has nothing to do with Islamic extremists, or religion of any sort.<br />
<br />
Nobody seems to have used car bombs, yelled "down with the Great Satan America," or sent anthrax through the mail.<br />
<br />
However, I think the incident illustrates the sort of conflict we call the war on terror.<br />
<br />
On the one hand, we have folks who seem to like the 21st century and think their country should get involved in current international affairs.<br />
<br />
On the other are folks who might reasonably be expected to like things pretty much the way they were in the 'good old days.'<br />
<h4>
Control and Change</h4>
For some in Ukraine, that would be before the Soviet Union unraveled in 1991; for others, before 2004. That's when reformers forced a reasonable facsimile of an honest election down the throats of Ukraine's rulers.<br />
<br />
For folks who like the status quo, particularly those who have had unquestioned control over the lives of others, this is not a pleasant era. Change is always happening, but we're in a time of great and rapid change.<br />
<br />
I like it this way, but as I said: many don't; and some are willing to kill, rather than give up control.<br />
<h4>
Sunday in Kiev</h4>
Folks who want change in Ukraine are planning a very large public demonstration in Kiev today. They'll probably attract more people to their demonstration, and support around the world: thanks, I strongly suspect, in large part to the daft actions of Kiev police Saturday.<br />
<br />
In the news:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-25171534">Ukrainian President Yanukovych 'outraged' by violence</a>"<br />
BBC News (November 30, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/11/30/us-ukraine-protest-idUSBRE9AT01Q20131130">Ukraine police smash pro-Europe protest, opposition to call strike</a>"<br />
Richard Balmforth and Thomas Grove, Reuters (November 30, 2013)</li>
</ul>
More about Ukraine:<br />
<ul>
<li><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukraine">Wikipedia</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/up.html">CIA World Factbook</a></li>
</ul>
Somewhat-related posts:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2011/01/dozens-dead-at-domodedovo-observations.html">Dozens Dead at Domodedovo - Observations and Opinions</a>"<br />
(January 25, 2011)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2010/02/police-abuse-america-isnt-russia.html">Police Abuse: America isn't Russia</a>"<br />
(February 19, 2010)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2009/11/russian-train-derailment-sabotage-on.html">Russian Train Derailment: Sabotage on the Moscow-St. Petersburg Line</a>"<br />
(November 28, 2009)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2008/10/russia-ukraine-did-something-bad-who.html">Russia: Ukraine Did Something Bad - Who Could Have Predicted This?</a>"<br />
(October 2, 2008)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2008/09/if-you-liked-georgia-youll-love-ukraine.html">If You Liked Georgia, You'll Love Ukraine</a>"<br />
(September 8, 2008)</li>
</ul>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">from anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com</div>Brian H. Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13209697542675181894noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4162431493776686444.post-2256741762602692752013-10-04T16:46:00.001-05:002013-12-01T17:00:55.272-06:00Washington DC: Evacuations, Pursuit, Death, and Assumptions<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2013/10/miriam-carey-thought-obama-was-watching-her.html"><img src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/a_190x190.jpg" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">(From New York Magazine, used w/o permission.)</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Miriam Carey, deceased.</div>
<h4>
Life, Death, and Opinions</h4>
A woman driving a car in Washington DC yesterday caused alarm by apparently attempting to run a barricade near one of the major buildings.<br />
<br />
This action prompted a variety of security and law enforcement measures, including evacuation of some areas and pursuit of the vehicle which triggered the alert.<br />
<br />
The car's driver, a woman, refused to stop for police and fled. At least two police officers were injured in pursuit of this vehicle. Police later shot and killed the driver. She did not have a firearm in her possission. A baby was found in the car and removed to a safe location.<br />
<br />
That's what I'd heard and read in news reports as of early this morning. There was a great deal more, mostly about how folks felt about the situation: which I found interesting but not particularly informative.<br />
<br />
This morning, someone drew my attention to an op-ed about Miriam Carey's death.<br />
<br />
The op-ed told the story of a defenseless woman, confused by a big city and traffic. The writer went on to describe how she innocently encountered a barricade and was needlessly "surrounded by multiple police vehicles" and men with guns.<br />
<br />
In a manner reminiscent of the heroine in an old-time <a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2013/07/getting-grip-about-poverty-wealth-and.html#amos">melodrama</a>, the woman fled in a panic-stricken effort to save her baby. Then the bad men shot her.<br />
<h4>
Dealing with Reality</h4>
I am sorry that Miriam Carey is dead.<br />
<br />
I think it's possible that some folks driving in Washington DC may be unaccustomed to urban traffic. Some may even be unaware of events in 2001 which led to some of today's inconveniences, and encouraged authorities to take apparent attacks seriously. But my guess is that very few manage to trigger evacuations and injure law enforcement officials in a pursuit.<br />
<br />
The account may be true, although the reporter was apparently able to interview a dead person.<br />
<br />
Or the account may more accurately reflect the reporter's default assumptions.<br />
<br />
I'm more inclined to believe the latter: particularly since it seems to reflect a belief that all police are evil oppressors.<br />
<h4>
Obama and a Dental Hygienist</h4>
Apparently Miriam Carey was justified in her actions yesterday: from her point of view.<br />
<br />
From my point of view, this is sad:<br />
<blockquote>
"<a href="http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2013/10/miriam-carey-thought-obama-was-watching-her.html">Miriam Carey Thought Obama Was Watching Her</a>"<br />
Joe Coscarelli, New York Magazine (October 4, 2013)<br />
<br />
"<i>The woman killed by police in Washington, D.C. yesterday following a car chase from the White House to the U.S. Capitol underwent a mental-health evaluation last year, <a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57606111/miriam-carey-identified-capitol-hill-car-chase-driver-was-taken-for-mental-health-evaluation/">CBS reports</a>. As previously <a href="http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2013/10/woman-killed-in-dc-car-chase-wasnt-violent.html">noted</a>, 34-year-old Miriam Carey was believed to be suffering from post-partum depression. Her boyfriend contacted police about her condition in December, when she told officers in Connecticut 'that she was a prophet, that President Obama would place the city of Stamford under a "lockdown," and that he had her and her residence under electronic surveillance.'</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Despite the incident, she was not known to the Secret Service before yesterday, according to CBS.</i><br />
<br />
"<i><a href="http://www.cnn.com/2013/10/04/politics/u-s-capitol-shooting/index.html">CNN reports</a> that investigators found the schizophrenia and bipolar medication Risperidone at Carey's Stamford apartment, as well as the antidepressant Escitalopram and 'a letter addressed to the boyfriend ... [that] appeared to contain white powder.<u>'</u>...</i>"</blockquote>
I don't know what Connecticut law enforcement policy is for dealing with folks who say that they're a prophet. Maybe they should tell the Secret Service about everyone who makes similar claims, or warns of coming government oppression. Then again, maybe not.<br />
<br />
As for the "white powder," I'm pretty sure that someone will grab that factoid and spin a tale of conspiracy and bioterrorism. At this point, I think it's white powder: and that's all I know.<br />
<h4>
Mental Illness, an Inquiry, and Assumptions</h4>
I'd be surprised if folks in law enforcement <b><i>didn't</i></b> start an inquiry after an incident like yesterday's. There were too many loose ends: why did the woman try to get around White House security; is the dead woman actually Miriam Carey; could this incident have been avoided?<br />
<br />
Unlike the 'victim of bad men' op-ed, this BBC News piece sticks fairly close to facts and reasonable speculation.<br />
<blockquote>
"<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-24393775">US police launch inquiry after deadly car chase</a>"<br />
BBC News (October 4, 2013)<br />
<br />
"<i>An investigation is under way after a police chase through the heart of Washington DC ended with an unarmed woman shot dead and two officers hurt.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The woman identified as Miriam Carey of Stamford, Connecticut, had a one-year-old girl in the car. She was unharmed.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Authorities have searched a home in Stamford believed to be Ms Carey's.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>On Thursday, her car attempted to bypass a security gate at the White House, and police opened fire as she sped off towards Capitol Hill.</i><br />
<br />
"<i><b>'Mental illness'</b></i><br />
<br />
"<i>Ms Carey, a 34-year-old dental hygienist, was said to have suffered mental illness in recent months.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Law enforcement officials suggested the incident may have stemmed from a delusional obsession with US President Barack Obama and a belief he was stalking her, local media reported.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Chief Jonathan Fontneau of the Stamford police said that officers had been called to her home there 'at least once' but that she had no criminal background....</i>"</blockquote>
The BBC also mentions that Miriam Carey was driving a black Infiniti sedan. Interestingly, I haven't run into an impassioned plea that black cars, sedans, or Nissan's <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infiniti">Infiniti</a>, be more heavily regulated: or banned outright.<br />
<br />
On a more serious note, I think that people do things using technology; not that technology makes people do things. And that's another topic.<br />
<br />
Related posts:<br />
<ul>
<li>People<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/09/washington-navy-shipyard-death-security.html">Washington Navy Shipyard: Death, Security, and Voices</a>"<br />
(September 17, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/06/twa-flight-800-assumptions-and-facts.html">TWA Flight 800, Assumptions, and Facts</a>"<br />
(June 20, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/05/using-machete-in-global-civilization.html">Using a Machete in a Global Civilization</a>"<br />
(May 23, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/05/boston-marathon-bombing-sauntering.html">Boston Marathon Bombing: Sauntering Through the News</a>"<br />
(May 1, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2012/03/playing-victim-living-in-big-world.html">Playing 'Victim;' Living in a Big World</a>"<br />
(March 13, 2012)</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Technology<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://apatheticlemming.blogspot.com/2011/01/technophobic-movies-top-bottom-ten-list.html">Technophobic Movies: A Top (Bottom?) Ten List</a>"<br />
Apathetic Lemming of the North (January 27, 2011)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2010/04/dangerous-technology-and-common-sense.html">Dangerous Technology and Common Sense</a>"<br />
(April 6, 2010)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://apatheticlemming.blogspot.com/2009/02/set-phasers-on-stun-kolocs-kugelblitz.html">Set PHASERs on Stun: Koloc's Kugelblitz Research is For Real</a>"<br />
Apathetic Lemming of the North (February 20, 2009)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2008/03/non-lethal-weapons.html">Non-Lethal Weapons</a>"<br />
(March 6, 2008)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2008/06/dc-gun-ban-nixed-second-amendment.html">DC Gun Ban Nixed - Second Amendment Defined (Finally!)</a>"<br />
(June 26, 2008)</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">from anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com</div>Brian H. Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13209697542675181894noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4162431493776686444.post-53208906658179780782013-09-17T15:10:00.000-05:002013-12-01T17:01:24.942-06:00Washington Navy Shipyard: Death, Security, and VoicesWhat happened at the Washington Navy Shipyard yesterday morning is starting to look less like a terrorist attack, and more like what the CDC calls workplace violence:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/violence/">Occupational Violence</a>"<br />
Workplace Safety & Health Topics;<br />
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH);<br />
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)</li>
</ul>
After killing a dozen people, Aaron Alexis was killed in a confrontation with authorities. Families are mourning their dead, law enforcement and national security outfits are working at sorting out what happened and why, and journalists are cranking out copy for news services.<sup><a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/09/washington-navy-shipyard-death-security.html#1">1</a></sup><br />
<h4>
News and Views</h4>
I don't have a boss and a deadline, for which I'm duly grateful. I suspect that many reporters aren't as daft as their work suggests.<br />
<br />
When your job depends on submitting a fixed number of words in less than enough time, researching a story could be difficult. Add to that the knowledge that editors expect to see 'proof' that whatever happened supports their preferred reality: I'm glad I'm not a journalist.<br />
<br />
Happily, we no longer depend on old-school information gatekeepers. And that's another topic. (<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2009/08/what-is-information-gatekeeper.html">August 14, 2009</a>)<br />
<br />
I won't pretend to be "unbiased" in the sense of having underlying set of assumptions about reality. I do, however, try to distinguish between facts and assumptions. More topics.<br />
<h4>
He Heard Voices</h4>
It's possible that someone used Aaron Alexis, exploiting his reported mental problems. The Associated Press says he'd been treated for paranoia, had trouble sleeping and heard voices in his head. Someone like that could be encouraged to act against his own best interests.<br />
<br />
Someone may be trying to convince others that Aaron Alexis was sent by the CIA, Big Oil, Al Qaeda, or <a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2009/01/lebanon-israel-pakistan-india-and.html#wiggy">lizard men</a>. I don't think so, but I'm one of those folks who enjoy conspiracy theories in fiction: not as a basis for public policy<br />
<br />
Applying <a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2008/04/they-are-after-mccain-concspiracy.html#occam">Occam's Razor</a>, I think it's much more likely that Aaron Alexis acted alone.<br />
<br />
On the other hand, I hope that investigators are looking very carefully at Mr. Alexis' life, particularly the last few years. I don't think lizard men are behind those deaths: but as I said, someone could have used Aaron Alexis as a weapon.<br />
<h4>
Security</h4>
Aaron Alexis almost certainly got into one building using an employee pass, but had to shoot his way into another. The pass he apparently used was either his own, or one he shouldn't have had.<br />
<br />
I've seen both possibilities reported as facts. Like I said, I don't have a boss and editors telling me what to write: so I don't know if he had a pass, and if so whose it was.<br />
<br />
Either way, he shouldn't have been able to get onto a naval base with those weapons. Apparently employees don't have to go through a metal detector on their way in. That may have saved some money, and kept "privacy advocates" happy: but in this case it was a lethal oversight.<br />
<br />
After what happened yesterday, it's obvious that Mr. Alexis shouldn't have been allowed into the Washington Naval Shipyard yesterday. He probably shouldn't have been allowed to get a job with a subcontractor that brought him to the base in the first place.<br />
<br />
That's obvious today. How obvious it would have been when he was hired: I don't know.<br />
<br />
Mr. Alexis' general discharge from the Navy was upgraded to an honorable discharge because there wasn't enough evidence backing up misconduct charges. Maybe the charges were bogus, and he really is a victim of discrimination: maybe not. I don't know.<br />
<br />
However, if half of what's been reported about his background is accurate, Aaron Alexis shouldn't have been given clearance to work on computer upgrades at a major military base. With my background, <b><i>I</i></b> probably wouldn't get that sort of clearance: even if I had the necessary skills.<br />
<h4>
Computers, Guns, and Keeping Up</h4>
Since Aaron Alexis was working with The Experts on a computer upgrade, it's possible that he had the skills and access necessary to provide himself with a valid-looking employee pass that he shouldn't have had. If that's the case, The Experts, Hewlett Packard and the Pentagon should take a hard look at their security.<br />
<br />
We use technology today that was literally science fiction in my youth. Thanks to my eclectic job history, I've kept up with most of the major developments. Folks my age, whose successful career paths led them to positions of importance? I'm not sure that some of them really understand the Information Age. Still more topics.<br />
<br />
Unlike some of my contemporaries, I like tech: and think that people use tools to do things, not the other way around.<br />
<h4>
Technology and Free Will</h4>
I don't think guns made a sleep-deprive paranoiac kill a dozen people. Human beings were quite capable of acting badly for uncounted ages before firearms, and I think we'll continue to be trouble when an assault rifle is displayed alongside a crossbow and a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palstave">palstave</a> in some museum.<br />
<br />
I have no problem with people using dangerous technology like LP gas, guns, or computers. I also think that every society needs to find common-sense ways to control how they're used. (<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2008/06/dc-gun-ban-online-censorship-individual.html#individualfreedom">June 27, 2008</a>)<br />
<br />
Somewhat-related posts:<br />
<ul>
<li>Humans<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/09/washington-navy-shipyard-monday.html">Washington Navy Shipyard: Monday Morning's Off to a Bad Start</a>"<br />
(September 16, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/05/using-machete-in-global-civilization.html">Using a Machete in a Global Civilization</a>"<br />
(May 23, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2012/01/bombs-berserk-vendors-and-getting-grip.html">Bombs, Berserk Vendors, and Getting a Grip</a>"<br />
(January 20, 2012)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2011/10/infected-killer-robots-unstoppable.html">Infected Killer Robots! Unstoppable Virus!! <i>MILITARY DENIAL!!!!!!!!!?</i> No, not exactly</a>"<br />
(October 8, 2011)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2011/07/norway-oslo-island-of-utoya-dead-bodies.html">Norway: Oslo, the Island of Utoya, Dead Bodies, Bad Motives</a>"<br />
(July 24, 2011)</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Technology<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2010/04/dangerous-technology-and-common-sense.html">Dangerous Technology and Common Sense</a>"<br />
(April 6, 2010)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://apatheticlemming.blogspot.com/2009/02/set-phasers-on-stun-kolocs-kugelblitz.html">Set PHASERs on Stun: Koloc's Kugelblitz Research is For Real</a>"<br />
Apathetic Lemming of the North (February 20, 2009)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2008/03/non-lethal-weapons.html">Non-Lethal Weapons</a>"<br />
(March 6, 2008)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2008/06/dc-gun-ban-online-censorship-individual.html">DC Gun Ban, Online Censorship, Individual Rights, and Power to the People</a>"<br />
(June 27, 2008)<br />
Particularly<ul>
<li><a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2008/06/dc-gun-ban-online-censorship-individual.html#individualfreedom">Individual Freedom: a Treasure</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2007/12/eeek-guns-hoplophobia-and-foreign.html">EEEK! Guns! Hoplophobia and Foreign Policy</a>"<br />
(December 23, 2007)</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Me<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/08/egypt-opinions-and-cautious-optimism.html">Egypt, Opinions, and Cautious Optimism</a>"<br />
(August 25, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2013/05/sin-outrage-and-making-sense.html">Sin, Outrage, and Making Sense</a>"<br />
A Catholic Citizen in America (May 5, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/05/boston-marathon-bombing-sauntering.html">Boston Marathon Bombing: Sauntering Through the News</a>"<br />
(May 1, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2012/03/playing-victim-living-in-big-world.html">Playing 'Victim;' Living in a Big World</a>"<br />
(March 13, 2012)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2010/11/brilliant-talented-and-on-medication.html">Brilliant, Talented, and On Medication</a>"<br />
A Catholic Citizen in America (November 30, 2010)</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<hr />
<sup><a name="1">1</a></sup> From the news:<br />
<blockquote>
<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/17/us/navy-yard-shooting-military-contractors/index.html?hpt=hp_t1"><img src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/130916165617-navy-yard-suspect-aaron-alexis-fullframe-horizontal-gallery-400.jpg" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">(FBI, via CNN, used w/o permission.)</span><br />
"<i>The FBI identified Aaron Alexis, a 34-year-old military contractor from Texas, as the dead suspect involved in the shooting rampage at the Washington Navy Yard on Monday, September 16. Authorities said at least 12 people -- and the suspect -- were killed in the shooting.</i>"<br />
<br />
"<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/17/us/navy-yard-shooting-military-contractors/index.html?hpt=hp_t1">Vetting military contractors: How did Navy Yard gunman get in?</a>"<br />
Josh Levs, with Drew Griffin, Mariano Castillo; CNN (September 17, 2013)<br />
<br />
"<i>The shooter at the Washington Navy Yard had a 'pattern of misconduct' as a Navy reservist, had sporadic run-ins with the law, and had contacted two Veterans Administration hospitals for apparent psychological issues, sources have told CNN.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Somehow, none of that prevented Aaron Alexis from getting clearance to the Washington Navy Yard as a subcontractor.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>In the wake of the horrific incident that left 12 victims and the gunman dead, lawmakers and military experts are calling out the vetting process for contractors and subcontractors. Did the military even know the things about Alexis that news agencies managed to find out within hours?</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Sen. Susan Collins, a Republican who serves on the Intelligence Committee, said she now questions 'the kind of vetting contractors do.'</i><br />
<br />
"<i> 'Washington needs a lot more answers,' Rep. Eleanor Holmes Norton, D-Washington, said in an interview Tuesday with CNN.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The incidents in Alexis' past 'should have been a red flag that maybe we need to delve a little deeper into this individual,' said retired Navy Cmdr. Kirk Lippold.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The Navy had sought to give him a 'general discharge' due to at least eight incidents of misconduct while on duty, but ultimately had to give him an honorable discharge due to lack of evidence to support the sterner measure, a U.S. defense official said Tuesday.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>But he went on to work for a group called The Experts, which was subcontracting with Hewlett Packard on a large military contract.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>With security clearance, he worked from September 2012 through January in Japan. His clearance was renewed in July, and he worked at facilities in Rhode Island, North Carolina and Virginia for weeks at a time upgrading computer systems, according to Thomas E. Hoshko, CEO of The Experts....</i>"<br />
<hr />
"<a href="http://www.foxnews.com/us/2013/09/17/active-shooter-at-washington-navy-yard/">DC gunman was suffering host of mental issues prior to shooting, report says</a>"<br />
FoxNews.com (September 17, 2013)<br />
<br />
"<i>Navy veteran Aaron Alexis, who killed 12 people at a Navy building in Washington Monday morning, had been suffering a host of serious mental issues, including paranoia and a sleep disorder, law enforcement officials told the Associated Press.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Alexis had been hearing voices in his head and had been treated since August by the Veterans Administration for his mental problems, the officials said. They spoke on condition of anonymity because the criminal investigation in the case was continuing.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Alexis, 34, was discharged from the Navy two years ago after serving hitches in Texas and Illinois....</i><br />
<br />
"<i>...He most likely gained entry into the facility with a CAC card, or a common access card. The system does not require workers to pass through a metal detector and usually only requires employees to show the card. Senior military officials tell Fox News that he most likely shot his way into building 197, because that building requires a separate pass he did not have.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Washington Mayor Vincent Gray said there was still no motive for the shootings and no indication of terrorism 'although we haven't ruled that out.'</i><br />
<br />
"<i>While some neighbors and acquaintances described him as 'nice,' his father once told detectives in Seattle that his son had anger management problems related to post-traumatic stress brought on by the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. He also complained about the Navy and being a victim of discrimination....</i>"<br />
<hr />
"<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-24129442">Navy Yard: Aaron Alexis 'treated for mental health'</a> "<br />
BBC News (September 17, 2013)<br />
<br />
"<i><b>The ex-US Navy reservist who killed 12 people and wounded eight at a Washington DC Navy installation had received treatment for mental health issues, US media have reported.</b></i><br />
<br />
"<i>Aaron Alexis, 34, was treated for paranoia, trouble sleeping and hearing voices, the Associated Press reported.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>A contractor for the Navy, he had a valid pass for the secure site at the Washington Navy Yard, authorities said.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Alexis was shot and killed by police during the attack....</i>"<br />
<hr />
"<a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/09/17/us-usa-navy-shooting-idUSBRE98F0DN20130917">Authorities question vetting of Washington gunman who killed 12</a>"<br />
Mark Hosenball and Ian Simpson, Reuters (September 17, 2013)<br />
<br />
"<i><b>Washington authorities questioned on Tuesday how a U.S. military veteran with a history of violence and mental problems could have gotten clearance to enter a Navy base where he killed 12 people before police shot him dead.</b></i><br />
<br />
"<i>The suspect, Aaron Alexis, 34, a Navy contractor from Fort Worth, Texas, entered Washington Navy Yard on Monday morning and opened fire, spreading panic at the base just a mile and a half from the U.S. Capitol and three miles from the White House.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Investigators are still trying to determine the shooter's motive. Alexis had been given clearance to enter the base on the Anacostia River, despite two gun-related brushes with the law and a discharge from the Navy Reserve in 2011 after a series of misconduct issues.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>A federal law enforcement source told Reuters Alexis had a history of mental problems but gave no details. CNN reported that Alexis had contacted two Veterans Administration hospitals recently and was believed to be seeking psychological help.</i><br />
<br />
"<i> 'It really is hard to believe that someone with a record as checkered as this man could conceivably get, you know, clearance to get ... credentials to be able to get on the base,' Washington Mayor Vincent Gray told CNN.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>He said automatic U.S. budget cuts known as sequestration could have led to skimping on vetting that would have barred Alexis from the heavily guarded base....</i>"
<br />
<hr />
</blockquote>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">from anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com</div>Brian H. Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13209697542675181894noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4162431493776686444.post-45546318779422353292013-09-16T13:10:00.001-05:002013-09-16T13:27:39.151-05:00Washington Navy Shipyard: Monday Morning's Off to a Bad Start<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-24111481"><img src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/_69877557_4j8zut0g-400.jpg" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">(Reuters, via BBC News, used w/o permission.)</span><br />
So far, BBC News seems to have the best summary of what's happened:<br />
<ul>
<li>A gunman has killed at least four people at the Washington Navy Yard, a naval installation in the US capital, officials say</li>
<li>Police were called to the scene after reports of shooting at 0820 local time (1320 GMT)</li>
<li>Police say that one gunman is deceased and two additional suspects wearing military-style uniforms may still be at large</li>
<li>US President Barack Obama has been briefed on the matter by top officials</li>
<li>All times in GMT<br />
(<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-24114927">BBC News</a>)</li>
</ul>
<h4>
"Going Postal??"</h4>
At about 8:20 this morning, Washington D.C. time, someone started shooting at people in the Washington Navy Yard. When news reports started, I thought that maybe one of the 3,000 or so folks who work there decided that today would be a good time to 'get even' with fellow-workers.<br />
<br />
It's been a long time since "<a href="http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/go+postal">going postal</a>" became a regrettable stress-management option.<br />
<h4>
What I've Heard</h4>
Now it looks like more than one person has been attacking folks at offices of the Chief of Naval Operations and other naval commands.<br />
<br />
Based on what I've heard and read in the news, it looks like more than one person decided to attack the Washington Navy Yard, and that we don't know why they made that decision.<br />
<br />
The only victims I've heard identified so far is police officer and one of the shooters. How many people are wounded or killed: those numbers are changing, which isn't a surprise this early in the situation.<br />
<h4>
Motive?</h4>
What motive the attackers have is important: but I don't know what it is. There isn't enough information available. I'm pretty sure that right now nobody except the attackers know why morning routines got disrupted. If they had associates, those folks know, too.<br />
<br />
A half-century back, I wouldn't have been finding out so much this fast. When news did start filtering through, some folks would insist that commies were to blame; others would blame racists or blacks.<br />
<br />
Today, I suppose some have already decided that Muslims are to blame. White supremacists probably wouldn't have been accused, since one shooter's ancestors came from Africa and another's from Europe.<br />
<br />
At least one of the attackers is wearing something that looks like olive drab military garb: so someone has probably decided that the American military is to blame.<br />
<br />
That's not as silly as it might seem, at least to folks who assume that the Pentagon, CIA, and 'they' are conspiring to do something dreadful. With that mindset, the attack could be seen as infighting or a plot to sway public opinion.<br />
<h4>
Keeping Track</h4>
I'm upset about this attack.<br />
<br />
I can understand someone being disgruntled with working conditions, or not approving of American policy, or believing that the Federal government shouldn't act the way it does. But that's no excuse for hurting or killing people.<br />
<br />
Since there is almost certainly more than one person involved in the attack, It's also very likely that the motive isn't related to someone's dissatisfaction with a job.<br />
<br />
Given the meager facts we have so far, I could <a href="http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/cobble+together">cobble together</a> a nostalgic tale involving crazed white guys going after blacks who work for the Navy; explaining the black shooter as one of a team of secret commandos dedicated to spreading law, order, and the American way - - - or the other way around.<br />
<br />
That, I think, would be an almost complete waste of time: mine and yours.<br />
<br />
Instead, I'll get back to what I was working on before, and check in on the news at intervals.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-24114927"><img src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/BBCNewsVideoClip-400.jpg" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">(BBC News, used w/o permission.)</span><br />
<h4>
Background: Washington Navy Shipyard</h4>
The <a href="http://www.history.navy.mil/faqs/faq52-1.htm">Washington Navy Shipyard</a>
started as a shipyard, was re-purposed as an ordinance, and now is a
ceremonial and administrative center for the United States Navy.<br />
<br />
In the news:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/09/16/us-usa-navy-shooting-idUSBRE98F0DN20130916">Several people killed or injured in U.S. Navy Yard shooting</a>"<br />
Ian Simpson, Susan Heavey, Reuters (September 16, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-24114927">Updates: Washington Navy yard shooting Key Points</a>"<br />
BBC News (September 16, 2013)<br />
Includes video</li>
<li>"<a href="http://www.foxnews.com/us/2013/09/16/active-shooter-at-washington-navy-yard/">At least 10 people injured in shooting at Navy building in Washington</a>"<br />
FoxNews.com (September 16, 2013)</li>
</ul>
Related posts:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/04/boston-marathon-bombing-sincerity-isnt.html">Boston Marathon Bombing: Sincerity isn't Truth</a>"<br />
(April 20, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2011/04/act-of-terrorism-in-colorado-sort-of.html">An Act of Terrorism in Colorado, Sort of</a>"<br />
(April 27, 2011)<br />
Particularly<ul>
<li><a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2011/04/act-of-terrorism-in-colorado-sort-of.html#nobody">Nobody Got Hurt - This Time</a></li>
<li><a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2011/04/act-of-terrorism-in-colorado-sort-of.html#shopping">#2 Shopping malls encourage terrorism?</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2009/07/terrorists-america-and-generalizations.html">Terrorists, America, and Generalizations</a>"<br />
(July 28, 2009)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2009/06/right-wing-extremists-really-are.html">Right-Wing Extremists Really Are Terrorists, Sometimes</a>"<br />
(June 6, 2009)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2008/07/noble-thief-of-brooklyn.html">The Noble Thief of Brooklyn</a>"<br />
(July 5, 2008)</li>
</ul>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">from anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com</div>Brian H. Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13209697542675181894noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4162431493776686444.post-32327973528553567922013-09-11T11:40:00.003-05:002013-09-11T11:40:46.912-05:00Two Pools, Four TowersIt's a bright September morning here in central Minnesota. A school bus went by a few minutes ago.<br />
<br />
Like most Americans, folks here are at work, sitting in classrooms, driving or walking, sitting or standing. Life goes on pretty much as it did before 9/11.<br />
<h4>
Living in the Real World</h4>
This isn't <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0046807/">Brigadoon</a>, of course, an idyllic place cut off from a changing world.<br />
<br />
Ash Street, where I live, is wider now. A young family moved in across the street. They're Euro-Americans; but other new, and old, neighbors have ancestral roots in Africa, Asia, and Latin America.<br />
<br />
Some folks around here seem to assume that Muslims are a particularly dangerous sort of foreigner. Others are equally diligent in expressing shock and horror at the enormities of American aggression.<br />
<br />
Me? I'm delighted that folks are still trying to break <b><i>into</i></b> America. When my native land stops attracting people with get-up-and-go from around the world, we'll be in serious trouble.<br />
<h4>
Past and Present</h4>
<a href="http://www.foxnews.com/us/2013/09/11/where-were-on-sept-11-2001-when-america-changed-forever/"><img src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/911-400.jpg" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">(From Associated Press, via FoxNews.com, used w/o permission.)</span><br />
<br />
Names of people killed in New York City, the Pentagon, and a field in Pennsylvania, are being read. I think it's fitting to remember the dead; and honor those who serve in America's emergency response services, and the military.<br />
<br />
Remembering the past is prudent. So is keeping up with the present.<br />
<br />
The Middle East is still far from quiet. Some autocrats are still around. Some countries, like Libya and Egypt, have traded old-school rulers for the troubles that come from developing new governments. I hope they are successful.<br />
<br />
Some folks are still trying to force the rest of us into their antique world view:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/09/11/us-philippines-rebels-idUSBRE98A0CW20130911">Muslim rebels display human shield tied by rope in southern Philippine standoff</a>"<br />
Reuters (September 11, 2013)</li>
</ul>
It's not that simple, of course. Territorial, economic, and other issues
keep almost everything involving humans from being "simple."<br />
<h4>
Looking Ahead</h4>
I was born in the Truman administration, and remember the 'good old days' of the <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0049474/">gray flannel suit</a>. I was one of those 'crazy college kids' who didn't want a 'successful career.'<br />
<br />
I wanted to change the world. My generation made mistakes, some of them appalling. But we also changed America from a nation of <a href="http://www.thefreedictionary.com/WASP">WASP</a>s and WASP wannabes to the more obviously cosmopolitan country we have today.<br />
<br />
Some folks still yearn for the days when <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harper_Valley_PTA">Harper Valley PTA</a>s and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boston_Brahmin">Boston Brahmin</a>s set the tone, and that's almost another topic.<br />
<br />
The 9/11 attack changed Manhattan's skyline, but did not change the way NewYork City or America works: not the basics.<br />
<br />
While wreckage from the attack was being cleared away and repairs made to the city's infrastructure, architects and city planners were wrangling over what sort of buildings should replace the old World Trade Center.<br />
<br />
Pools lie where the twin towers used to be, part of a memorial. Most of the new World Trade Center's offices will be in four towers. Tenants like the Vantone China Center and Condé Nast expect to move in this coming December, or maybe early 2014.<br />
<br />
There's a bit of Americana built into One World Trade Center. It's the tallest building in the western hemisphere: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Revolution">1776</a> feet high.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/11/us/9-11-anniversary-ceremonies/"><img src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/130909184139-12-9-11-museum-0909-horizontal-gallery-400.jpg" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">(From , via CNN, used w/o permission.)</span><br />
"<i>One World Trade Center rises above the lower Manhattan skyline in New York. Twelve years after terrorists destroyed the old World Trade Center, the new World Trade Center is becoming a reality in 2013....</i>"<br />
(<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/11/us/9-11-anniversary-ceremonies/">CNN</a>)<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.panynj.gov/wtcprogress/wtc-site-plan.html"><img src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/site_plan-400.jpg" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">(From World Trade Center, used w/o permission) </span><br />
<br />
In the news:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/11/us/9-11-anniversary-ceremonies/">9/11 observances: Moments of silence mark 12th anniversary of terror attacks</a>"<br />
David Simpson, CNN (September 11, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://www.foxnews.com/us/2013/09/11/where-were-on-sept-11-2001-when-america-changed-forever/">Where were you on Sept. 11, 2001, when America changed forever?</a>"<br />
FoxNews.com (September 11, 2013)</li>
</ul>
More:<br />
<ul>
<li><a href="http://onewtc.com/">One World Trade Center</a><br />
Durst Corporation and </li>
<li><a href="http://www.panynj.gov/wtcprogress/index.html">World Trade Center</a><br />
Port Authority of New York & New Jersey</li>
<li>New York City World Trade Center, Wikipedia articles<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1_World_Trade_Center">One World Trade Center</a>"</li>
<li>"<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2_World_Trade_Center">2 World Trade Center</a>"</li>
<li>"<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/3_World_Trade_Center">3 World Trade Center</a>"</li>
<li>"<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/4_World_Trade_Center">4 World Trade Center</a>"</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
Related posts:<br />
<ul>
<li>So far this year<br /><ul>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/08/syria-chemical-weapons-and-more-of-same.html">Syria, Chemical Weapons, and More of the Same</a>"<br />
(August 27, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/08/egypt-opinions-and-cautious-optimism.html">Egypt, Opinions, and Cautious Optimism</a>"<br />
(August 25, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/05/using-machete-in-global-civilization.html">Using a Machete in a Global Civilization</a>"<br />
(Thursday, May 23)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/04/boston-marathon-bombing-sincerity-isnt.html">Boston Marathon Bombing: Sincerity isn't Truth</a>"<br />
(April 20, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/04/north-korea-nuclear-attack-extremely.html">North Korea Nuclear Attack: 'Extremely Unlikely,' But - - -</a>"<br />
(April 5, 2013)</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>9/11<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2012/09/remembering-september-11-2001-and.html">Remembering September 11, 2001; and Looking Ahead</a>"<br />
(September 11, 2012)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2010/09/911-and-one-size-fits-all-explanation.html">9/11 and the One-Size-Fits-All Explanation: 'It is the Fault of the Jews' - and the Yankees</a>"<br />
(September 24, 2010)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2010/09/september-11-2001-nine-years-later.html">September 11, 2001: Nine Years Later</a>"<br />
(September 11, 2010)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2009/09/new-york-city-september-11-2001-1028-am.html">New York City, September 11, 2001, 10:28 am</a>"<br />
(September 11, 2009)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2008/11/mumbai-911-lashkar-e-taiba-al-qaeda-and.html">Mumbai, 9/11, Lashkar e Taiba, Al Qaeda, and Lessons (Not?) Learned</a>"<br />
(November 30, 2008)</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">from anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com</div>Brian H. Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13209697542675181894noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4162431493776686444.post-44744547448485092462013-08-27T21:28:00.000-05:002013-08-28T10:42:45.795-05:00Syria, Chemical Weapons, and More of the SameSyria is in the news, as usual.<br />
<br />
This time, Syria's government seems to have been caught using chemical weapons to kill folks who aren't on the 'approved' list:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2013/08/26/world/meast/syria-civil-war/index.html">U.N. probes alleged gas attack; U.S. warns Damascus</a>"<br />
Frederik Pleitgen, Hamdi Alkhshali, Matt Smith, CNN(August 27, 2013)</li>
</ul>
The bodies used to be Syrians: civilians who either didn't express enough enthusiasm for Syria's boss, or were just in the wrong place at the wrong time.<br />
<h4>
Chemical Weapons: So What?</h4>
An acquaintance of mine asked 'what's the big deal with chemical weapons? Aren't people just as dead if they're shot?' He has a point: dead is dead.<br />
<br />
I think part of the issue with chemical weapons is emotional: perhaps thanks to WWI and WWI-era propaganda, and experience, quite a few folks simply don't like chemical weapons.<br />
<br />
Another problem with chemical weapons is that they're notoriously hard to control: unless the attacker simply wants to kill a large number of folks in a particular town or city, and doesn't care who dies.<br />
<br />
Finally, although it is possible to die slowly from a bullet wound, my understanding is that most chemical weapons tend to subject victims to a prolonged and painful experience before they finally die. It's one thing to kill someone quickly; quite another to torture the victim first. I'll grant that there's an emotional component to this aspect of chemical weapons, too: but I think that torturing innocent people is wrong, even if I felt like doing it.<br />
<h4>
America, Syria, and Getting a Grip</h4>
The American president seems to be deciding that something military should be done about Syria. He's probably right, but I expect many folks who didn't vote for him to start imitating folks who didn't vote for the previous president.<br />
<br />
I didn't vote for the current president myself, and strongly disagree with him on many policies: but that doesn't mean that I'll disagree when he does make a little sense.<br />
<br />
Radio news said that the president doesn't plan to send in ground forces. Okay: I believe that. I'm concerned that he'll set up a situation where the next president <b><i>will</i></b> have to send ground forces into a seriously messed-up situation: but that may not happen.<br />
<br />
I'd like to believe that Syria's leadership would decide to start acting nice, if someone would ask nicely. I'm pretty sure that this won't happen.<br />
<br />
Syria's boss and his enforcers have manged to act so badly that even their regional allies decided to step back a few paces, metaphorically speaking. In the Middle East, that's saying something. Sadly.<br />
<br />
Related posts:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/01/dead-bodies-at-university-business-as.html">Dead Bodies at the University: Business as Usual in Syria</a>"<br />
(January 15, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2012/06/dead-syrians-stability-and-getting-grip.html">Dead Syrians, Stability, and Getting a Grip</a>"<br />
(June 9, 2012)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2012/05/killings-in-houla-theres-hope-in-what.html">Killings in Houla: There's Hope in What Wasn't Said</a>"<br />
(May 26, 2012)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2012/05/six-battalions-united-nations-and-it-is.html">Six Battalions, the United Nations, ' - - - and it is the Fault of the Jews'</a> "<br />
(May 2, 2012)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2011/11/arab-league-syria-suspended-my-take.html">Arab League: Syria Suspended - My Take</a>"<br />
(November 13, 2011)</li>
</ul>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">from anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com</div>Brian H. Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13209697542675181894noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4162431493776686444.post-71699852882891834612013-08-25T23:18:00.000-05:002013-08-27T22:38:54.918-05:00Egypt, Opinions, and Cautious OptimismMainstream news from Egypt is like most old-school journalism: death; bloodshed; more death; "<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2011/05/incinerated-church-dead-christians-but.html#yeats">the center cannot hold</a>;" and all that.<br />
<br />
Now and then a journalist decides that talking to folks who aren't trying to topple a regime, or struggling to hold power, might be a good idea. In this case, I think the results are encouraging:<br />
<blockquote>
"<a href="http://www.foxnews.com/world/2013/08/25/muslim-brotherhood-bid-to-scapegoat-christians-failing-say-egyptians/">Muslim Brotherhood's bid to scapegoat Christians failing, say Egyptians</a>"<br />
Lisa Daftari, FoxNews.com (August 25, 2013)<br />
<br />
"<i>As their nation descends into violent chaos, Egyptians are increasingly blaming the Muslim Brotherhood, despite attempts by the Islamist group to scapegoat Christians and the military, according to several sources who spoke to FoxNews.com from Cairo.</i><br />
<br />
"<i> 'The Muslim Brotherhood has lost all sympathy with their points due to their violence,' said a Long Island, N.Y., Egyptian-American, who is in a Cairo suburb for a family wedding.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The man, a Coptic Christian who asked that his name not be used until he and his family are safely back in the U.S., told FoxNews.com he arrived in the Cairo suburb of Heliopolis last weekend, just days after Muslim Brotherhood supporters began clashing violently with security forces. Since then, nightly curfews, angry mobs and closed roads that cut off supplies to restaurants and groceries have made his homeland unrecognizable....</i>"</blockquote>
<h4>
One Man's Opinion</h4>
I could say that this Egyptian-American doesn't count, because he doesn't live in Egypt. Besides, he's a Christian: so I could pick from a broad range of stereotypes.<br />
<br />
More to the point, that's just one man's opinion.<br />
<br />
I don't blame him for keeping his head down until he was out of Egypt. There's quite a bit of trouble in that country, ever since Egypt's military decided that Egypt didn't need a rogue president. Folks who like the way President Morsi was 'protecting' Egypt from those who disagreed with Morsi's brand of Islamist rule were understandably upset, and by now the body count is over 1,000.<br />
<h4>
One Woman's Opinion</h4>
I do <b><i>not</i></b> think that the trouble with Egypt is that they've got Muslims there. I've run into too many folks who follow Islam and think terrorism is a bad idea:<br />
<blockquote>
"<i>...A Muslim woman named Nina told FoxNews.com most citizens - Christian and Muslim - are solidly behind the military, which has been criticized by the west for its decisive crackdown on Muslim Brotherhood supporters.</i><br />
<br />
"<i> 'I am Muslim and I am against terrorism and I support the revolution [which ousted Morsi] and I support all the decisions of the Egyptian army forces,' she said. 'We love Egypt so much and we hope the foreign countries stop misunderstanding about us and the situation now in Egypt.'...</i>"<br />
(<a href="http://www.foxnews.com/world/2013/08/25/muslim-brotherhood-bid-to-scapegoat-christians-failing-say-egyptians/">Lisa Daftari</a>, FoxNews.com)</blockquote>
Well, that's just one woman's opinion.<br />
<br />
Let's see what one of those 'religious' people say:<br />
<h4>
Another Man's Opinion</h4>
<blockquote>
"<i>...Even at mosques, the tide seems to be turning against the Muslim Brotherhood, according to one man who spoke from Cairo.</i><br />
<br />
"<i> 'They gather around mosques, from five to 100 of them, to show they are important and the goal is to go and cut off the roads and rally to get more supporters,' he said.</i><br />
<br />
"<i> 'Sometimes during Friday prayers, the sheikh wants to push people to support the Muslim Brotherhood, but modern Muslims are dominant and not deceived anymore with fake words that defending the Muslim Brotherhood is defending Islam,' he said....</i>"</blockquote>
Some Muslims probably still keep themselves isolated from the rest of the world. I think a few folks from any large selection of humanity are trying very hard to stay ignorant. Many of us, though, seem to be willing to learn what's going on outside our neighborhood.<br />
<h4>
Yet Another Man's Opinion</h4>
Finally, Osama el-Quossi, a "former jihadist and Salafist cleric," said that the Muslim Brotherhood is trying to blame Egypt's Christians for the current trouble. True, Egypt's Christian minority didn't support Morsi: but quite a few Muslims weren't behind him, either. 'Blame the Christians' doesn't seem to be working:<br />
<blockquote>
"<i>...'The Brotherhood lost everything, politically and economically,' Osama el-Quossi told MCN. 'They lost the citizens' sympathy, so they used religion to gain support of ordinary people. '</i>"<br />
(<a href="http://www.foxnews.com/world/2013/08/25/muslim-brotherhood-bid-to-scapegoat-christians-failing-say-egyptians/">Lisa Daftari</a>, FoxNews.com)</blockquote>
<h4>
Living in a Big World</h4>
Lisa Daftari probably could have found four other folks in Egypt who would obligingly chant "death to the great Satan America," or whatever slogan is in fashion this year. Although I'm fairly sure that she decided to focus on one among many attitudes held by Egyptians, I strongly suspect that she's reporting what many folks feel.<br />
<br />
I think many, probably most, folks don't like being shot at or blown up: preferring to raise their families, go to work, and get on with their lives.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/eg.html">Egypt</a> has around 200,000 Internet hosts, 2,000,000 Internet users, and upwards of 83,000,000 cell phones. Since there are about 85,290,000 Egyptians: folks living there are rather well-connected to the rest of the world.<br />
<br />
My guess is that many Egyptians, and Americans, and folks around the world, know too much to believe the old fears about 'foreign threats.'<br />
<br />
I'm quite certain that the next few decades, and probably centuries, will be difficult. But I'm also cautiously hopeful that the emerging global civilization will be an improvement over the mess we've had so far.<br />
<br />
Related posts:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/07/egypt-and-uncoup.html">Egypt and an Uncoup</a>"<br />
(July 4, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2012/12/business-not-as-usual-in-egypt.html">Business (not) as Usual in Egypt</a>"<br />
(December 9, 2012)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2012/11/egypt-america-change-freedom-and-other.html">Egypt, America: Change, Freedom, and Other Threats to the Status Quo</a>"<br />
(November 23, 2012)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2011/02/seeing-same-opinion-ive-been-expressing.html">Information Technology, People, and a Changing World</a>"<br />
(February 23, 2011)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2009/05/iraqs-soft-surge-pakistan-and-taliban.html">Iraq's Soft Surge; Pakistan and the Taliban: Weekend News and History</a>"<br />
()</li>
</ul>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">from anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com</div>Brian H. Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13209697542675181894noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4162431493776686444.post-74431426430849576872013-08-09T15:22:00.000-05:002014-02-24T16:22:07.687-06:00Change, Pakistan, and Captain America: My TakeSteve Rogers is a comic book character brought to life by Marvel Entertainment and Paramount Pictures. In the last scenes of "<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0458339/">Captain America: The First Avenger</a>" he runs from a reasonable facsimile of a 1940s hospital room into New York City's 21st century Times Square.<br />
<br />
I think Chris Evans does a good job of mimicking the response of a stressed-out WWII soldier fast-forwarding through about 70 years in maybe seven minutes: tops.<br />
<br />
Bear with me. This post belongs in this blog.<br />
<br />
I remember most of the decades between WWII and today. This is not the world I grew up in. Technology, customs, and social structures have been changing: a lot. I still haven't quite gotten used to the idea of addressing other adults by their first names.<br />
<br />
But 'no complaints.' Change happens.<br />
<h4>
Abram to Anheuser-Busch in One Generation</h4>
Growing up in America, I've been spared some <a href="http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=culture%20shock">culture shock</a>. My ancestral cultures started changing a thousand years ago, picked up the pace five centuries back, and started the industrial revolution. <br />
<br />
I remember the first artificial satellite, and the days when computers used vacuum tubes. Change 'normal' for me.<br />
<br />
I have a little sympathy for folks who grew up with hand-woven tents and camels: and whose kids probably know about designer jeans and know the difference between iPhone and Android.<br />
<br />
They're experiencing more change than I have: and grew up expecting life to go on as it had since before Abram moved out of Ur. Small wonder that some aren't comfortable with today's world.<br />
<br />
That's not an excuse for killing neighbors, though.<br />
<h4>
Killing Pakistanis</h4>
<a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/08/09/us-pakistan-eid-attacks-idUSBRE97808M20130809"><img src="http://brendans-island.com/blogsource/20130220ff/s1reutersmedianet-400.jpg" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">(Naseer Ahmed, via Reuters, used w/o permission)</span><br />
<br />
This man was arriving at a hospital in Quetta, Pakistan. He is one of 27 injured outside a mosque today. Nine folks are dead, but they may not have been the attack's target.<br />
<br />
Provincial government minister Ali Mohammad Jattack was driving by the mosque when a few folks started shooting - apparently in the general direction of his car. Other folks who had been worshiping at the mosque may have just been at the wrong place at the wrong time.<br />
<br />
Reuters says that Pakistanis have been killing each other more often than usual recently, following a new Prime Minister's election. The implication is that there's a cause-effect relationship, which may be true.<br />
<br />
The attacks aren't random. Shi'ite Muslims, a minority in Pakistan, get injured or killed by Sunni Muslims who apparently don't approve of Shi'ites. It's pretty obvious that not all Sunni Muslims in Pakistan feel this way, or there wouldn't even be a Shi'ite minority.<br />
<h4>
Killing Americans</h4>
Meanwhile, the American State Department closed offices in Pakistan, and says that Americans who don't need to be in Pakistan shouldn't go there.<br />
<br />
I believe news reports that say that the State Department's actions about Pakistan aren't related to the other embassy closings, a few days ago. More accurately, I accept the idea that the same groups or individuals aren't trying to kill Americans in all these places.<br />
<br />
In another way, what's going on in Pakistan and elsewhere around the world is part of something the American government stopped calling the war on terror when the current administration moved in.<br />
<br />
Whatever we call it, I'm quite certain that those of us who don't mind living in the 21st century still have to be careful.<br />
<h4>
Making Changes</h4>
Folks who quite sincerely hate what's been happening during the last few centuries will probably continue to kill their neighbors, or die trying. I do not think that the most rigidly dedicated supporters of an ancient way of life will change their minds. But their followers, and their children, are another matter.<br />
<br />
Quite a few folks in <a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2009/02/iraq-after-liberation-rockers.html">Iraq</a> seemed convinced that foreigners were evil,. or at least decided that being alive was better than disagreeing with an Al Qaeda boss. Then a UN-backed coalition upset the status quo.<br />
<br />
Once the 'evil' foreigners killed enforcers who'd been chopping off heads, and started repairing neglected roads and sewage plants: many Iraqis decided that being free was a good idea.<br />
<br />
That must have been terribly frustrating for Iraqis who enjoyed the privilege of killing 'bad' neighbors: but no society is perfect for everybody.<br />
<h4>
Looking Ahead</h4>
Naming a similar phenomenon in northern Africa "<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2011/12/egypt-ngo-raids-police-and-office.html">Arab spring</a>" isn't making the transition from a pre-Magna Carta world into the Information Age easy. But I'm still cautiously hopeful about places like <a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/07/egypt-and-uncoup.html">Egypt</a>.<br />
<br />
As for what's happening this week in Pakistan: that's bad news for folks who get killed and injured, and hard on their families. It would be nice if everyone in the world would decide to be nice, and try discussing problems instead of killing folks who disagree. That's not gonna happen. Not soon, anyway.<br />
<br />
On the other hand, I'm convinced that most folks prefer raising families, going to work, and playing soccer - or whatever the local pastime is - to dodging bullets and cleaning up after suicide bombers.<br />
<br />
'Winning the hearts and minds' may be a cliche by now, and simply won't work for diehard <a href="http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/xenophobe">xenophobes</a> of any ilk. But like I said, I'm cautiously hopeful. I think most of us can learn that 'foreigners' aren't demonic emissaries, and that 'change' doesn't mean 'destruction.'<br />
<br />
Related posts:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/08/embassy-closings-al-qaeda-and-looking.html">Embassy Closings, Al Qaeda, and Looking Ahead</a>"<br />
(August 5, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2011/11/benazir-bhutto-assassination-trial-with.html">Benazir Bhutto Assassination Trial: With Real, Live, Defendants</a>"<br />
(November 6, 2011)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2011/10/pakistan-threats-diplomacy-and-all-that.html">Pakistan, Threats, Diplomacy, and All That</a>"<br />
(October 8, 2011)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2011/06/pakistans-arrested-cia-informants-folks.html">CIA Informants Snatched in Pakistan - My Take</a>"<br />
(June 15, 2011)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2011/05/ive-said-this-before-but-it-bears.html">Osama bin Laden: Questions, Answers, and Opinions</a>"<br />
(May 4, 2011)</li>
</ul>
<hr />
<blockquote>
"<a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/08/09/us-pakistan-eid-attacks-idUSBRE97808M20130809">Gunmen in Pakistan kill nine in attack at mosque on Muslim holiday</a>"<br />
Katharine Houreld; (editing, Clarence Fernandez and Robert Birsel; Reuters (August 9, 2013)<br />
<br />
"<i><b>Volence marred the Muslim holy day of Eid al-Fitr in Pakistan on Friday with gunmen killing nine people in the city of Quetta while a guard in the capital Islamabad shot dead a would-be suicide bomber forcing his way into a mosque.</b></i><br />
<br />
"<i>The United States has ordered non-essential staff to leave its consulate in the eastern city of Lahore because of the threat of attack. It has also warned its citizens not to travel to Pakistan.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>In Quetta, gunmen fired on the vehicle of a politician driving past worshippers leaving a mosque, killing nine people and wounding 27, police said.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Quetta is capital of the southwestern province of Baluchistan, where several militant groups are active, including the Pakistani Taliban, who claimed responsibility for a suicide bomb attack that killed 30 people at a policeman's funeral on Thursday.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Police official Bashir Brohi said Friday's shooting seemed to have been aimed at former provincial government minister Ali Mohammad Jattack, who was passing by in a vehicle, but the motive and perpetrators were not clear.</i><br />
<br />
"<i> 'I was the target,' Jattack told media at the scene.</i><br />
<br />
"<i> 'They killed innocent worshippers belonging to different communities. This is against humanity, it is brutality on the level of animals,' said Jattack, who was not hurt.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Brohi said most of the victims were coming out of the mosque.</i><br />
<br />
"<i> 'It was an armed attack on the former minister ... it was not an attack on the mosque,' the police official said.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>In a separate attack in Islamabad, a would-be suicide bomber shot dead a guard and wounded three people as he tried to force his way into a Shi'ite mosque, said witness Raza Mohammad....</i><br />
<br />
"<i>...Attacks against Pakistan's minority Shi'ite Muslims, by Sunni Muslim militants, are increasing sharply.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The attacks on Friday were the latest in a surge of militant violence since Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif took office two months ago, with a string of high-profile incidents in the past two weeks....</i>"<br />
<hr />
"<a href="http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/08/09/us-evacuates-non-essential-staff-from-consulate-in-lahore-pakistan-over-terror/">US withdraws staff from consulate in Lahore, Pakistan, over terror threat</a>"<br />
FoxNews.com (August 9, 2013)<br />
<br />
"<i>The State Department has ordered the departure of non-emergency U.S. government personnel from the U.S. Consulate General in Lahore, Pakistan, and has warned Americans to defer all non-essential travel to Pakistan after a specific threat to that mission, Fox News confirms....</i><br />
<br />
"<i>...'The presence of several foreign and indigenous terrorist groups poses a potential danger to U.S. citizens throughout Pakistan,' the statement from the State Department read. 'The Government of Pakistan maintains heightened security measures, particularly in the major cities. Threat reporting indicates terrorist groups continue to seek opportunities to attack locations where U.S. citizens and Westerners are known to congregate or visit.'</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The personnel drawdown at the Lahore consulate was a precautionary measure and wasn't related to the recent closures of numerous U.S. diplomatic missions in the Muslim world, two U.S. officials told the Associated Press....</i>"</blockquote>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">from anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com</div>Brian H. Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13209697542675181894noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4162431493776686444.post-43341691873062286702013-08-05T14:57:00.003-05:002013-08-06T00:25:29.664-05:00Embassy Closings, Al Qaeda, and Looking AheadEmbassy closings were in the weekend's news, but I decided to wait at least a day before starting this post. The State Department acting out of "an abundance of caution" is sensible. Jumping to conclusions based on what little I'd seen in the news, not so much.<br />
<br />
So far the United States has closed 22 embassies, and issued a travel warning running through August.<br />
<br />
England, Germany and France closed their embassies in Yemen on Sunday and Monday.<br />
<br />
Canada apparently closed their embassies in Dhaka, Bangladesh.<br />
<br />
England is pulling some of their embassy staff from the British embassy in Yemen.<br />
<br />
This is a big deal: much more than something to keep folks reading late-summer news.<sup><a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/08/embassy-closings-al-qaeda-and-looking.html#1">1</a></sup><br />
<h4>
Making Points, Making Sense</h4>
Taking one set of assumptions, and the fact that the countries with closed embassies are all 'Western,' I could rant about Western capitalistic imperialistic oppression.<br />
<br />
Other knee-jerk reactions, coupled with the closed embassies being in Islamic countries, would let me denounce Muslims as being the cause of all problems from Detroit's bankruptcy to Palo Alto's looming <a href="http://www.paloaltoonline.com/weekly/story.php?story_id=19301">parking shortage</a>.<br />
<br />
Or I could accuse the 'other' political party of everything from malfeasance in office to high treason.<br />
<br />
If I took Frank J. Fleming's advice, I might even get taken seriously:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://apatheticlemming.blogspot.com/2011/06/how-to-not-sound-crazy-or-paranoids-are.html">How to Not Sound Crazy - or - <i>THE PARANOIDS ARE AFTER ME!!!</i></a>"<br />
Apathetic Lemming of the Month (June 12, 2011)</li>
</ul>
Since I'm more interested in making sense than making points with diehard followers of some intellectual preference, I'll do 'none of the above.'<br />
<h4>
Beware Malignant Virtue</h4>
I think there's probably a sort of Islamic connection behind the embassy closings and travel warning. The embassies are all in predominantly Muslim countries.<br />
<br />
But I don't accuse all Muslims of being part of an Islamic conspiracy to take over the world: partly because many or most of Islamic terrorists' victims are Muslims.<br />
<br />
As I've said before: I think Al Qaeda and like-minded outfits have the same sort of relation to Islam that the Ku Klux Klan has to Christianity. Folks with a sort of <a href="http://catholiccitizenamerica.blogspot.com/2010/12/hating-people-not-option.html#malignant">malignant virtue</a> seem unable to sort out personal preference, cultural values, and eternal principles.<br />
<br />
In the short run, executing your neighbors for wearing the 'wrong' clothes or playing soccer may feel good: and may even result in surviving neighbors being 'proper.'<br />
<br />
After a while, though, I think folks become dissatisfied with that sort of rigid conformity: even if they had preferred the 'right' clothes and didn't play soccer. Even if the 'proper people' can't be voted out of office, totalitarian regimes don't seem to fare well in the long term. Afghanistan's Taliban was an example.<br />
<h4>
Looking Ahead</h4>
We'll have troubles, as we have for all of recorded history: but I'm cautiously hopeful about the next few centuries and beyond.<br />
<br />
That's cautiously hopeful, not naively optimistic. Folks in Egypt are experiencing the sort of occasionally-lethal trouble that goes with changing a society.<br />
<br />
Folks who cling desperately to ways of life that were ancient when Abram moved out of Ur won't be happy. Others who prefer being one of a privileged few who control their subjects' lives are almost certainly seeing the end of their era: and, possibly, their lives.<br />
<br />
Societies are changing: fast. Too many of us have had a taste of freedom, and know that there's a world beyond our homeland's borders. Worse, for folks who like the status quo, Information Age technology makes communication easy, inexpensive, and nearly instantaneous.<br />
<br />
Traditional <a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2009/08/what-is-information-gatekeeper.html">information gatekeepers</a> have lost control over what 'the Masses' are allowed to see. That's one reason that I'm very concerned about misguided responses to real online threats: and that's another topic.<br />
<br />
Related posts:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/03/south-korea-computers-crash-causing.html">South Korea Computers Crash, Causing Coffee Cash Crisis</a>"<br />
(March 20, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2012/09/pakistani-assassination-contract.html">Pakistani Assassination Contract, Politics, and Hate</a>"<br />
(September 23, 2012)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2012/09/ive-been-out-of-town-on-business-all.html">Anti-American Protests, Anti-Islamic Film, and Getting a Grip</a>"<br />
(September 15, 2012)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2012/09/dead-americans-returned-from-libya-bomb.html">Dead Americans Returned from Libya, Bomb Threats at Home: 'Same Old, Same Old'</a> "<br />
(September 14, 2012)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2011/06/what-sony-nintendo-and-congress-have-in.html">What Sony, Nintendo, and Congress, have In Common</a>"<br />
(June 14, 2011)</li>
</ul>
In the news:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2013/08/05/politics/us-embassies-close/index.html">U.S. extends embassy closures after intercepted al Qaeda message</a>"<br />
Barbara Starr,, Chris Lawrence, Holly Yan, CNN (August 5, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-23570832">US to extend some embassy closures over security concerns</a>"<br />
BBC News (August 5, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/08/05/chambliss-sources-terror-chatter-beyond-anything-heard-since-before-11/">19 US posts to remain closed this week, as lawmakers say terror threat 'specific' and 'serious'</a>"<br />
FoxNews.com (August 5, 2013)</li>
</ul>
<hr />
<sup><a name="1">1</a></sup> Excerpts from the news:<br />
<blockquote>
"<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2013/08/05/politics/us-embassies-close/index.html">U.S. extends embassy closures after intercepted al Qaeda message</a>"<br />
Barbara Starr. Chris Lawrence and Holly Yan, CNN (August 5, 2013)<br />
<br />
"<i>What started as an unprecedented move to close almost two dozen diplomatic posts for a day has broadened to week-long closures for most of them as the United States mulls the threat of a possible attack.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>A trio of factors prompted officials to extend most of its embassy and consulate closures until Saturday: an intercepted message among senior al Qaeda operatives, the end of Ramadan, and concerns over several major prison breaks in the region.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Originally, officials decided to close 22 embassies and consulates this past Sunday -- a day when they would normally be open for business.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>But Sunday afternoon, the State Department extended embassy and consulate closures in 15 of the locations through Saturday, and added four other posts -- all in Africa -- to the list. This brings the total to 19....</i>"<br />
<hr />
"<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-23570832">US to extend some embassy closures over security concerns</a>"<br />
BBC News (August 5, 2013)<br />
"<i><b>The US says it will keep a number of embassies in north Africa and the Middle East closed until Saturday, due to a possible militant threat.</b></i><br />
<br />
"<i>Twenty-one US embassies and consulates closed on Sunday.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The state department in Washington said the extended closures were 'out of an abundance of caution', and not a reaction to a new threat.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The UK said its embassy in Yemen would stay closed until the Muslim festival of Eid on Thursday.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The decision to close the embassies comes as the US government battles to defend recently disclosed surveillance programmes that have stirred deep privacy concerns.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Security at US diplomatic facilities also remains a concern following last year's attack on the US consulate in Benghazi, Libya, where the US ambassador and three other Americans were killed.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>While details of the threats are unspecified, the BBC's David Willis, in Washington, says members of Congress who have been briefed about the intelligence seem to agree it amounts to one of the most serious in recent years - all pointing to the possibility of a major attack, possibly to coincide with the end of the holy month of Ramadan, which ends this week.</i><br />
<br />
"<i><b>Al-Qaeda</b></i><br />
<br />
"<i>A state department <b><a href="http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/pa/pa_6042.html">global travel alert</a>,</b> issued on Friday, is in force until the end of August.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The department said the potential for an al-Qaeda-inspired attack was particularly strong in the Middle East and North Africa.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Al-Qaeda's affiliate in Yemen, al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), has tried to carry out several high-profile attacks in recent years, including one on Christmas Day in 2009 when a man attempted to blow up a trans-Atlantic jet over Detroit, using explosives sewn into his underwear.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Months earlier, the group tried to kill the Saudi intelligence chief with a bomb on the attacker's body.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The UK Foreign Office had earlier announced it would shut its mission in the Yemeni capital, Sanaa, until Tuesday.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Meanwhile, US diplomatic missions in Algiers, Kabul and Baghdad are among those which will reopen on Monday, Washington said.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>But its diplomatic posts in Abu Dhabi, Amman, Cairo, Riyadh, Dhahran, Jeddah, Doha, Dubai, Kuwait, Manama, Muscat, Sanaa and Tripoli will remain closed until Saturday.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The US state department also added African missions in Antananarivo, Bujumbura, Djibouti, Khartoum, Kigali and Port Louis to the list, meaning a total of 19 US embassies will remain closed this week.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Embassies closed on Sunday, a working day in the Muslim world, included Amman, Cairo, Riyadh and Dhaka....</i>"<br />
<hr />
"<a href="http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/08/05/chambliss-sources-terror-chatter-beyond-anything-heard-since-before-11/">19 US posts to remain closed this week, as lawmakers say terror threat 'specific' and 'serious'</a>"<br />
FoxNews.com (August 5, 2013)<br />
<br />
"<i>The State Department has announced that it will keep 19 embassies and consulates in the Middle East and Africa closed throughout the week 'out of an abundance of caution' in the wake of terror threats that shut them down.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Posts in Abu Dhabi, Amman, Cairo, Riyadh, Dhahran, Jeddah, Doha, Dubai, Kuwait, Manama, Muscat, Sanaa, Tripoli, Antanarivo, Bujumbura, Djibouti, Khartoum, Kigali and Port Louis have been instructed to close for normal operations from Monday through Saturday, department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The State Department also said some of those embassies were already going to be closed in accordance with local customs marking the end of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Those authorized to reopen Monday are in Dhaka, Algiers, Nouakchott, Kabul, Herat, Mazar el Sharif, Baghdad, Basrah and Erbil.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Capitol Hill lawmakers, including top-ranking members of intelligence committees, on Sunday described the terror threat that closed 22 U.S. embassies and consulates across the Muslim region as the most serious one since before the 9/11 attacks and related to specific act or plot.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Florida Republican Rep. Tom Rooney, a member of the House Intelligence Committee, told Fox News that U.S. intelligence agents detected a 'very specific' threat and suggested they have known about it for at least several weeks.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>He was among several congressional lawmakers Sunday who said the threat was gleaned from so-called 'chatter' from phone lines, computer outlets, websites and other communication outlets.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Rooney also said the information is not what intelligence committee members 'see on our regular briefings.'</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The Obama administration's decision Friday to close the U.S. outposts Sunday came the same day as the State Department issued a worldwide travel alert.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Rooney suggested Sunday the travel warning will not be lifted soon.</i><br />
<br />
"<i> 'If I had plans to travel to certain places in the Middle East, I would probably go ahead and cancel them,' he said.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Rooney's comments followed Georgia Sen. Saxby Chambliss, the top Republican on the Senate Intelligence Committee, telling NBC's 'Meet the Press' that the threats are 'very reminiscent of what we saw pre-9/11.'</i><br />
<br />
"<i>He also described the threats as 'the most serious … I've seen in a number of years.'</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Sources confirmed with Fox News the chatter was picked up over the past two weeks and exceeds anything in the past decade. They also said the extraordinary volume of chatter was preceded by months of 'absolute quietness.'</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The sources said the chatter included Al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri demanding that key leaders of the terror network in the Arabian Peninsula step up their activities in the wake of recent killings of top terrorists.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>A Mideast diplomat said al-Zawahiri's 'pressuring' of Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula to launch new terrorist attacks on American and other Western targets is 'unprecedented.'</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The sources also said the U.S. outpost closings and the travel alert were prompted in part by a series of recent Al Qaeda-led prison breaks that have freed hundreds of operatives over the last month, including one this weekend in Aleppo, Syria. Other recent breaks have been orchestrated in Iraq, Libya and Pakistan and Abu Ghraib, in Afghanistan.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Maryland Rep. C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, also said the intercepted threats came from 'high-level people' in Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>He told ABC's 'This Week' the information was about a 'major attack.'...</i><br />
<br />
"<i>...The administration's announcements Friday said the Al Qaeda network might target either U.S. government or private American interests.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The intelligence intercepts also prompted Britain, Germany and France to close their embassies in Yemen on Sunday and Monday. British authorities said some embassy staff in Yemen had been withdrawn 'due to security concerns.'</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Canada also announced it was closing its embassy in Dhaka, Bangladesh.</i>"<br />
<hr />
</blockquote>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">from anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com</div>Brian H. Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13209697542675181894noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4162431493776686444.post-74021934210705192352013-07-07T15:10:00.000-05:002013-07-07T15:10:05.896-05:00POW/MIA Search SNAFU, and European JunketsI have some respect for America's armed forces. They deal with a very unpleasant reality: that occasionally force is needed to protect the lives and well-being of Americans and others.<br />
<br />
America's military also, for the most part, deals with and corrects blunders and deliberate malfeasance committed by its members. (<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2009/01/abu-ghraib-abuse-and-sexual-humiliation.html#abu">January 4, 2009</a>; <a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2008/06/army-report-big-mistakes-in-iraq.html#suspect">June 30, 2008</a>)<br />
<br />
That said, this reeks:<br />
<blockquote>
"<i>...The internal report by Paul M. Cole was never meant to be made public. It is unsparing in its criticisms:</i><br />
<br />
"<i>--In recent years the process by which JPAC gathers bones and other material useful for identifications has "collapsed" and is now "acutely dysfunctional."</i><br />
<br />
"<i>--JPAC is finding too few investigative leads, resulting in too few collections of human remains to come even close to achieving Congress's demand for a minimum 200 identifications per year by 2015. Of the 80 identifications that JPAC's Central Identification Laboratory made in 2012, only 35 were derived from remains recovered by JPAC. Thirty-eight of the 80 were either handed over unilaterally by other governments or were disinterred from a U.S. military cemetery. Seven were from a combination of those sources.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>--Some search teams are sent into the field, particularly in Europe, on what amount to boondoggles. No one is held to account for 'a pattern of foreign travel, accommodations and activities paid for by public funds that are ultimately unnecessary, excessive, inefficient or unproductive.' Some refer to this as 'military tourism.'</i><br />
<br />
"<i>--JPAC lacks a comprehensive list of the people for whom it is searching. Its main database is incomplete and 'riddled with unreliable data.'</i><br />
<br />
"<i>--'Sketch maps' used by the JPAC teams looking for remains on the battlefield are 'chronically unreliable,' leaving the teams 'cartigraphically blind.' Cole likened this to 19th century military field operations.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Absent prompt and significant change, 'the descent from dysfunction to total failure ... is inevitable,' Cole concluded.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>He directed most of his criticism at the field operations that collect bones and other material, as opposed to the laboratory scientists at JPAC who use that material to identify the remains. Cole is a management consultant and recognized research expert in the field of accounting for war remains; he still works at JPAC....</i>"<br />
(<a href="http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/07/07/study-calls-pentagon-effort-to-recover-mia-americans-acutely-dysfunctional/">Associated Press</a>, via FoxNews.com (July 7, 2013))</blockquote>
Related posts:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2012/03/america-is-not-at-war-with-marines.html">America is Not at War With the Marines</a>"<br />
(March 14, 2012)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2010/11/armistice-dayveterans-day-2010-couple.html">Armistice Day/Veterans Day, 2010: a Couple of Words for the American Military, and Something Lincoln Said</a>"<br />
(November 11, 2010)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2009/01/abu-ghraib-abuse-and-sexual-humiliation.html">Abu Ghraib: Abuse and Sexual Humiliation by American Soldiers in the News Again</a>"<br />
(January 25, 2009)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2009/01/all-those-poor-uneducated-minorities.html">All Those 'Poor, Uneducated, Minorities Being Drafted in America!'</a> "<br />
(January 4, 2009)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2008/06/army-report-big-mistakes-in-iraq.html">Army Report: Big Mistakes in Iraq!</a>"<br />
(June 30, 2008)<br />
Particularly<ul>
<li><a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2008/06/army-report-big-mistakes-in-iraq.html#suspect">Big Iraq Mistakes Report Creates Big Dilemma</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">from anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com</div>Brian H. Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13209697542675181894noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4162431493776686444.post-27286768928108488632013-07-04T19:29:00.002-05:002013-08-25T22:28:40.650-05:00Egypt and an UncoupIf the joint chiefs of staff placed America's president under house arrest, locked up the House majority leader, and declared that new elections would be held this august, that would bother me.<br />
<br />
America doesn't work that way.<br />
<h4>
Egypt, President Morsi, and an Uncoup</h4>
I heard about Egypt's military prying President Morsi out of office last night. National leaders made the usual 'military coups are bad' statements, while Egypts military leadership said that they'd see to it that free elections happened in the near future.<sup><a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2013/07/egypt-and-uncoup.html#1">1</a></sup><br />
<br />
President Morsi's truncated term in office isn't surprising. Last year he said:<br />
<ul>
<li>He's making Egypt<ul>
<li>Safe for freedom and democracy</li>
<li>Stable</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Nobody can change the new rules<ul>
<li>Except him</li>
</ul>
(<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2012/11/egypt-america-change-freedom-and-other.html">November 23, 2012</a>)</li>
</ul>
Maybe I'm too cynical, but when a nation's leader takes personal control of executive <b><i>and</i></b> legislative functions: I'm dubious about the leader's motives. 'To preserve freedom, I'm taking over' has an unpleasant ring to it.<br />
<br />
Quite a few folks in Egypt were disappointed by Morsi. He'd promised that he and his Muslim Brotherhood would let everybody have a say in how they ran Egypt.<br />
<br />
One of the problems with elections and an informed electorate, from an old-school viewpoint, is that 'the Masses' expect leaders to keep their word.<br />
<br />
Right now, I think there's a chance what happened in Egypt isn't a <a href="http://www.blogger.com/Military%20coup">coup</a>. Egypt's military may have stepped in to keep Morsi and company from dragging Egypt back to the 'good old days' of elite rule.<br />
<h4>
Elections and Assumptions</h4>
Like I've said before, I like the way America's government is supposed to work. Open elections, accountability, and due process are good ideas: even when I feel frustrated with the lot we've got running this country.<br />
<br />
I don't, however, think that every country should have a bicameral legislature and use a photocopy of the Constitution. That system works for us, but every country has a unique history and culture.<br />
<br />
I hope that Egyptians develop a form of government that works for them: <b><i>all</i></b> of them.<br />
<br />
Related posts:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2012/12/egypt-america-and-preserving-freedom.html">Egypt, America, and 'Preserving Freedom'</a> "<br />
(December 10, 2012)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2012/12/egypt-morsi-and-dealing-with-change.html">Egypt, Morsi, and Dealing With Change</a>"<br />
(December 4, 2012)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2012/11/egypt-america-change-freedom-and-other.html">Egypt, America: Change, Freedom, and Other Threats to the Status Quo</a>"<br />
(November 23, 2012)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2008/12/guinea-military-rule-and-terrorism.html">Guinea, Military Rule, and Terrorism: Beware Hasty Judgment</a>"<br />
(December 29, 2008) </li>
</ul>
News and views:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-23189180">Egypt army arrests key Muslim Brotherhood figures</a>"<br />
BBC News (July 4, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/07/04/us-egypt-protests-idUSBRE95Q0NO20130704">Brotherhood leader arrested, Egypt's Islamists call protests</a>"<br />
Asma Alsharif, Shadia Nasralla, Reuters (July 4, 2013)</li>
<li>"<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2013/07/04/politics/obama-egypt-words/">Obama chose his words on Egypt carefully -- for a reason</a>"<br />
Jake Tapper, CNN (July 4, 2013)</li>
</ul>
<hr />
<sup><a name="1">1</a></sup> Excepts from news and views:<br />
<blockquote>
"<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-23189180">Egypt army arrests key Muslim Brotherhood figures</a>"<br />
BBC News (July 4, 2013)<br />
<br />
"<i><b>Egypt's military has moved against the leadership of the Muslim Brotherhood, a day after deposing President Mohammed Morsi.</b></i><br />
<br />
"<i>Mr Morsi is in detention, as well as senior figures in the Islamist group of which he is a member. Hundreds more are being sought.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The top judge of Egypt's constitutional court, Adly Mahmud Mansour, has been sworn in as interim leader.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>He has pledged to hold elections based on 'the genuine people's will'.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>At a news conference, Muslim Brotherhood spokesman Gehad el-Haddad declared 'our full refusal and revoking of the military coup' and demanded Mr Morsi's immediate release, along with the other detainees.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>He declared the Brotherhood's 'full denial of co-operation' with the new regime and said it would take part in all 'peaceful, people-led protest'.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>Meanwhile, Egyptian Foreign Minister Kamel Amr - who resigned from Mr Morsi's government on Monday - said he had assured US Secretary of State John Kerry in a telephone call on Thursday that the overthrow of President Morsi had not been a military coup, but the 'overwhelming will of the people'.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The upheaval in Egypt comes after days of mass rallies against Mr Morsi and the Brotherhood, who are accused of pursuing an Islamist agenda and failing to tackle Egypt's economic problems....</i>"<br />
<hr />
"<a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/07/04/us-egypt-protests-idUSBRE95Q0NO20130704">Brotherhood leader arrested, Egypt's Islamists call protests</a>"<br />
Asma Alsharif, Shadia Nasralla, Reuters (July 4, 2013)<br />
<br />
"<i><b>Egyptian security forces arrested the leader of the Muslim Brotherhood on Thursday, security sources said, in a crackdown against the Islamist movement after the army ousted the country's first democratically elected president.</b></i><br />
<br />
"<i>The dramatic exit of President Mohamed Mursi was greeted with delight by millions of jubilant people on the streets of Cairo and other cities overnight, but there was simmering resentment among Egyptians who opposed military intervention.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>An Islamist coalition led by the Brotherhood called on people across the nation to protest in a "Friday of Rejection" following weekly prayers, an early test of Mursi's ongoing support and how the military will deal with it....</i>"<br />
<hr />
"<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2013/07/04/politics/obama-egypt-words/">Obama chose his words on Egypt carefully -- for a reason</a>"<br />
Jake Tapper, CNN (July 4, 2013)<br />
<br />
"<i>President Barack Obama's statement about the Egyptian military's seizure of power is as telling for what he doesn't say as for what he does: he doesn't mention the word 'coup.'</i><br />
<br />
"<i>He doesn't call upon the military to restore power to 'the democratically elected civilian government,' but rather to 'a democratically elected civilian government.'</i><br />
<br />
"<i>In other words, it need not be deposed President Mohamed Morsy's.</i><br />
<br />
"<i>The thinking of the president and administration officials, according to a knowledgeable source, is that while the administration is not explicitly supporting the removal of Morsy from power -- it expressly did not support the move -- it is seeking to push the Egyptian military in a direction....</i>"<br />
<hr />
</blockquote>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">from anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com</div>Brian H. Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13209697542675181894noreply@blogger.com2