TravelingChris Posted March 22, 2017 Share Posted March 22, 2017 Logged on to facebook today and saw wonderful pictures of when we lived in Belgium and Facebook asked me if I wanted to post them today since they were posted one year ago. They were posted by my daughter, but I was tagged. Then passing through the living room doing chores, I see possible shooting in London (my tv turned on because I was recording a non news show and had forgotten to actually turn my tv off, just turned off my cable box and last thing I had watched was news so it went on that channel). Said a quick prayer and went on with chores. Because of all the recent White House intrusions, I first thought another nutter this time at Parliament. Walked back into living room and seeing pictures of what seem like bodies. Go on line to news sites and get a much clearer picture. Probable terrorism, car mowed down pedestrians on bridge, tried to ram security gate at Parliament, shot a policeman, assailant shot. And then the additional news that it is the one year anniversary of the Belgian bombings. So I am just crying and praying and have anger too but mostly incredible sadness. And tonight at my Islam class at church, we are having our guest speaker, a Muslim who works with the class leader, and is coming to answer our questions. OUr Islam class was a teaching company video and our prior Islam class that made us want to learn more was taught by a former CIA officer who also gave a very reasonable and intelligent class where he outlined history, foundational beliefs of Muslims, beliefs of differing groups of Muslims, etc. I know that extremist Muslims kill more Muslims that Westeners. So I am also praying for no violence against Mosques, etc like we saw in Quebec. It is all so heartbreaking. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted March 22, 2017 Share Posted March 22, 2017 I understand your distress, but it's too soon to know anything about the motivation of the London incident. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seasider Posted March 22, 2017 Share Posted March 22, 2017 So tragic. I understand those of you with European ties feel it much more closely. However, they are currently considering the MO to be highly similar to recent terrorist strikes - vehicle as a weapon, followed by perpetrator exiting the vehicle and continuing to attack with a knife. Too soon to actually ascribe a motive. Time will tell. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TravelingChris Posted March 22, 2017 Author Share Posted March 22, 2017 I am a very analytical person. I was also a former crime analyst and a all but dissertation PhD in Criminology. I can connect dots on crimes easily. Yes, we don't have his facebook, emails, contacts, yet. Yes, he is a very good chance that he also has a mental illness. I think many of the terrorists do. I know our more local Chattanooga terrorist had depression but he also had Extremist Muslim views and was fascinated with ISIS, AL Queda, etc. Then he went and shot recruiters in a few different locations. Even your government is calling it probable terrorism. 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TravelingChris Posted March 22, 2017 Author Share Posted March 22, 2017 Yes , the attack is very similar to the Ohio State University attack. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted March 22, 2017 Share Posted March 22, 2017 Yes , the attack is very similar to the Ohio State University attack. However, the last fatal attack on a British parliamentary target was by a white supremacist. And Martin McGuinness died yesterday. We just don't know and speculation can lead to panicked reprisals. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TravelingChris Posted March 22, 2017 Author Share Posted March 22, 2017 I didn't know about the white supremacist attack. No, we don't know for certain. We have a description of the man which makes it seem less likely that he is a white supremacist, who are also evil. Mowing down strangers in a street, trying to bust a security gate at Parliament, coming out and shooting and finally being shot. THe probability is very high that it is another ISIS/Al Queda/other terrorist group inspired. As far as I know, no one has yet claimed responsibility, It is too soon for the cell phone records, emails, facebook, computer history, etc to even have been searched and announced. I am sure that if they have identified the perpetrator, the officials in England are trying to crack his cell phone as we post and if they have an address, I am sure they have sent people or are sending people there now who are Armed and ready for any potential threat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lauraw4321 Posted March 22, 2017 Share Posted March 22, 2017 Today is very hard. I was at the airport and I've spent a year trying to deal with trauma, and the guilt of being alive when others aren't. Hearing of another attack today just makes me want to crawl under my desk and hide until the end of all time. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seasider Posted March 22, 2017 Share Posted March 22, 2017 (((laura))) 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 22, 2017 Share Posted March 22, 2017 I am a very analytical person. I was also a former crime analyst and a all but dissertation PhD in Criminology. I can connect dots on crimes easily. Yes, we don't have his facebook, emails, contacts, yet. Yes, he is a very good chance that he also has a mental illness. I think many of the terrorists do. I know our more local Chattanooga terrorist had depression but he also had Extremist Muslim views and was fascinated with ISIS, AL Queda, etc. Then he went and shot recruiters in a few different locations. Even your government is calling it probable terrorism. It's self-evidently terrorism, no? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted March 22, 2017 Share Posted March 22, 2017 It's self-evidently terrorism, no? Yes. But we don't yet know with what motivation. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 22, 2017 Share Posted March 22, 2017 Yes. But we don't yet know with what motivation. I know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardenmom5 Posted March 22, 2017 Share Posted March 22, 2017 20 injured, four dead (three? the attacker doesn't deserve to be counted) there may still be more deaths - a spokesman at the hospital was referring to "catastrophic" injuries. at least two were forced over the side of the bridge. they pulled a bleeding woman out of the water, and there was a picture of a deceased man who hit a landing after going over the side. at least the police at parliament were armed. he killed one police officer and stabbed two/three others before he was shot tryiing to get inside. and all this was with a crossover/small-suv - imagine if he'd had a truck like in germany and france. just makes me sick there are people who lust to spill the blood of innocent/minding-their-own-business others. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 22, 2017 Share Posted March 22, 2017 Eee! People were trapped on that big ferris wheel. The eye? Shudder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seasider Posted March 23, 2017 Share Posted March 23, 2017 http://www.cnn.com/2017/03/23/europe/london-attack/index.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardenmom5 Posted March 23, 2017 Share Posted March 23, 2017 Eee! People were trapped on that big ferris wheel. The eye? Shudder. at least with smart phones they'd have some access to find out what was going on. I recall reading after 9/11 reading about some alaskan tourists dependent upon bush planes for access - having no clue why their planes were delayed in picking them up. though I think a plane did come by and do a message/supply drop. (all planes were grounded.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TravelingChris Posted March 23, 2017 Author Share Posted March 23, 2017 I am so sorry LauraW. Hugs to you. Because this was a high tourist area, many nationalities were injured or killed. French, South Korean, American are the ones I have heard of so far. I know a former Polish foreign minister who now works for Harvard was on that bridge but didn't get hurt. These horrendous mass casualty attacks are very often taking place in areas where they expect to find mixed nationalities, I think it serves their sick ideology but it helps to unite countries in efforts to wipe out the bastards. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 23, 2017 Share Posted March 23, 2017 Update: https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-k-police-arrest-seven-in-response-to-attack-near-london-parliament-1490258307 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardenmom5 Posted March 24, 2017 Share Posted March 24, 2017 I am so sorry LauraW. Hugs to you. Because this was a high tourist area, many nationalities were injured or killed. French, South Korean, American are the ones I have heard of so far. I know a former Polish foreign minister who now works for Harvard was on that bridge but didn't get hurt. These horrendous mass casualty attacks are very often taking place in areas where they expect to find mixed nationalities, I think it serves their sick ideology but it helps to unite countries in efforts to wipe out the bastards. romanian and greek. It was a romanian woman who went into the thames. she came through surgery, but is having difficulty with her lungs. I would imagine due to aspirating water. a 75 year old man died today from his injuries. eight people have been arrested in connection with this. the most infuriating thing is MI5 had this guy on their radar as having connection to violent extremism. I haven't been able to get the details - but Belgian police foiled another car attack today in antwerp. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted March 24, 2017 Share Posted March 24, 2017 the most infuriating thing is MI5 had this guy on their radar as having connection to violent extremism. Background: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-39373766 "Masood was not the subject of any current investigations and there was no prior intelligence about his intent to mount a terrorist attack," Scotland Yard said. "However, he was known to police and has a range of previous convictions for assaults, including grievous bodily harm, possession of offensive weapons and public order offences." Masood's first conviction came when he was 19 years old, in November 1983, for criminal damage. His last conviction was in December 2003 for possession of a knife. He had never been convicted of a terrorism offence. In her statement to MPs, the prime minister said that the attacker was British-born and that "some years ago" he was "once investigated in relation to concerns about violent extremism". She went on: "He was a peripheral figure. The case is historic - he was not part of the current intelligence picture. There was no prior intelligence of his intent - or of the plot." Petty criminalityWe don't know at this stage what that particular investigation was and how he was connected to it. Here are just some of the possibilities of what that could mean: He was an associate or friend of a main suspect who was being monitored in some form - but turned out, at the time, to not apparently have any extremist leanings He could have been closer to an inner circle of aspiring extremists - but he personally was not considered to be a risk and so the operation was focused on others There could have been more concerning intelligence about his ideology and intent - but there was nothing that could make a criminal charge - and in time he was discounted as a serious threat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TravelingChris Posted March 24, 2017 Author Share Posted March 24, 2017 Sometimes the authorities rely to much on past experiences. That is why they missed at first female terrorists. That is why the older Muslim who came to our class thought people growing up in bad circumstances are particularly at risk- poverty and chaos. They had thought older men were at lower risk although this creature had other warning signs- criminality and being a convert. The really hard part is what can you do? In our country, after his stabbing history and numerous convictions, there is more likelihood that he would have simply languishing in jail. Because even if he was released from prison for the aggravated assault and other assault, it would have been more likely that the various three strike laws would have given him a much longer sentence. We have a case here where the criminal served one year for robbery another year for robbery then five years for Marijuana possession and now has done an armed kidnapping and robbery of a young woman he placed in the trunk (boot) of the car. People are wondering why 5 years for mj and one for robbery. He got a harsher sentence because of three strikes. He actually got a 20 year sentence for that Marijuana. If instead of kidnapping he had threatened extremism or somehow was determined to be contacting extremists (contacting criminals which would include terrorists) or even probably going to extremist sites on the Web, he would be found to be violating parole and Homeland Security, Department of Justice, etc would bring pressure to make sure the guy finished his remain get 15 years behind bars. OTOH, your country is far ahead of ours with cameras in public spaces so in other ways you are more secure. Car attacks are really hard to prevent though apparently barriers, police, and the inebriated of the assailant yesterday in Antwerp Belgium. Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted March 24, 2017 Share Posted March 24, 2017 In general there is a strong feeling here against mechanical three strikes sentencing and the vastly larger population in gaol that this would cause. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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