A tragedy in Austin, Texas where a man flew a light aeroplane into an office building. Reports – which may or may not be confirmed – indicate that the man set fire to his home first, and left a suicide note. The building included Federal government offices.
At least the apparent suicide is dead. But the White House’s immediate reaction that
“the crash did not appear to be an act of terrorism”
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/8522746.stm
bears a little bit more thought. If Joseph Andrew Stack, a deranged man with a grudge against the IRS, had been a deranged Muslim, would this apparent suicide attack have been “Not terrorism”?
UPDATE
I do not vouch for the authenticity of this, but this is alleged to be from his “suicide note”.
Why is it that a handful of thugs and plunderers can commit unthinkable atrocities (and in the case of the GM executives, for scores of years) and when it’s time for their gravy train to crash under the weight of their gluttony and overwhelming stupidity, the force of the full federal government has no difficulty coming to their aid within days if not hours? Yet at the same time, the joke we call the American medical system, including the drug and insurance companies, are murdering tens of thousands of people a year and stealing from the corpses and victims they cripple, and this country’s leaders don’t see this as important as bailing out a few of their vile, rich cronies. Yet, the political “representatives” (thieves, liars, and self-serving scumbags is far more accurate) have endless time to sit around for year after year and debate the state of the “terrible health care problem”. It’s clear they see no crisis as long as the dead people don’t get in the way of their corporate profits rolling in.
http://www.legitgov.org/joseph_andrew_stack_manifesto_180210.html
That is the CLG site; I subscribe to the newsfeed, as can you at the bottom of that page. I recommend the feed as an excellent source of leads to alternative stories for the intellectually curious.
Think for a moment about some aspects of the the Republican tradition in Northern Ireland, the songs, the poems, the other writings, even, in some cases, the connection with very dubious organisations and characters. Same with some elements of Unionism. We lived through a sustained terrorist assault in the UK, but although there was harassment of ‘people with Irish accents’ and of course one is well-aware of the dark dealings extant wrt Northern Ireland, it seems to me that the hysteria generated during the current situation is in danger of eroding the most important good points about our society.
People will know I argue strong against the tendencies and mindsets which are associated with ‘Jihadism’, etc.; this is somehting which I think Muslims need to address within their/ our communities; but I think we need to get a sense of pragmatism, intelligence (in both senses) and proportion. The prosecution of deluded fools only serves to make them martyrs – exactly what they want! – and diverts attention from real problems.
I do not think that violence-preachers of whatever religion should have an easy ride here or in the US; the Rapture-lusting preachers who long for nuclear war and who gleefully support with their dough and their voices the killing of Arabs and others by, for example, Israel, are every bit as heinous as the Jihadists.
I agree with Richard Robinson. It’s all madness.
So Western preachers = Muslim jihadists.
Right.
I can’t say it better than Bill Maher.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NhvhNZC51gY
Wll, if you listen to what some preachers preach… they regrad the US military machine as the engine of God. Thae problem is, God seems to be on everyone’s side.
Which preachers are you talking about? I never hear from them.
Just as well!
Right, when pressed, you can’t come up with anything specific.
No matter – you’ll continue to equate the silly things that American preachers say (or don’t in fact say) with the worst fatwas that the mullahs dictate to their wide-eyed jihadist followers.
The religious Right in the US is a massive source of support for aggressive imperialism and specifically for a nutcase End of Days agenda; there are many preachers who preach this type of doctrine, they’re all over the cable channels, every day. And have been for some decades. Pat Robertson is probably the most prominent example, but there are many others.
This is not a ping-pong match, Larry, in spite of my sometimes absurdist humour, I don’t actually disagree with everything you say. I fully recognise the problems in some parts of some Muslim communities and constantly argue against people being in denial about this, as well as about the ‘Islamisation’ of countries like Pakistan (Oh God, Now I’ll be inviting a tirade from a different group of bloggers!).
The aim of most terrorist groups – IRA, Red Army Faction, the various Jihadist groups – is to provoke the state into overwhelming retaliation. This serves their purposes and sucks the state into a morass from which it becomes increasingly difficult to extract itself. This seems to have occured.
“Thae problem is, God seems to be on everyone’s side.”
Judas Iscariot ? Dylan asked. Yes, said Borges.
Maybe the “jealous god” religions are more prone to imposing themselves on others for their own good ? I don’t know enough about the others to be sure (I never heard of any Taoist crusades, but that may only be because I’m ignorant). But then, see also “Communism”, “Tony Blair’s Humanitarianism”, etc. “For their own good” can be a frightening thing. “Kill them all, God will know his own”. Something you read in the Koran, something you read in Leviticus, what the hell ? Deus Vult.
I was picking at the ‘jihad’ thing becasue I just don’t understand, why can’t we talk about terrorism without people turn up wanting to push all the other questions out of sight and obsess on jihadis, only jihadis ? Hysteria, yes.
And again, yes, I was wondering about bringing up the northern Ireland Troubles. I rmembered, this afternoon, an editorial from the time of the Birmingham pub bombing (it being the days before bookmarks, I can’t give a reference), insisting that the police needed to make arrests quickly or there would be Irish bodies hanging from the lamp-posts of Birmingham. And they did. And justice was never seen to be done.
Ah. That’s my objection, that we’re supposed to forget our own experiences & conclusions at the insistence of people who hadn’t noticed there was ever anything like it before. Self-centredness must be a difficult temptation when you feel under threat to start with.
There’s a curious parallel to be made. What was it like for Irish people in Birmingham then, or for London Muslim people after the Tube bombs, etc etc, similiarities ? differences ? We have, after all, been here before. And recovered, mostly. That could seem a ghastly cold phrase for those caught up in them, and the others, but I hope everyone sees what I mean ?
In fact, how come Blair doing the ‘deny them the oxygen of oxygen’ stuff abroad while simultaneously getting along with a ‘peace process’ ? (sigh) One seemingly kicked off by Clinton, the other by Bush.
I gibber. It’s too big for me.
Richard, don’t worry, we’re all gibberers – or jabberers – at heart! That’s why we’re here, I guess. On this forum. On this earth.
Thanks, Suhayl. Maybe, also, I digressed, in that the original question was on a USA event. So, just another of those Suave Nuanced Brits with all their Colonial Experience, now with new ! added ! Blowback !
But I still don’t understand why The “T” Word has become a sticking point. Is absolutely everything all right except one form of jihad, somehow ?
Wikipedia describes Timothy McVeigh as a ‘terrorist’, and also as not particularly a religious loony. Is this suddenly to be disputed on the basis of some mysterious taking-of-sides ?
Mind you, I’m an extremist weirdo myself. I’d like to see the word extended to cover hubristic prime ministers, and any other bastard who thinks it’s okay to have other people killed just so long as it furthers their agenda.
And now I’m going out to drink Beer.
Have one on me!
Craig, that “news service”, Citizens for Legitimate Government is one of the craziest troughs of conspiraloonery I’ve ever seen.
I hope NO-ONE gives them their money!
http://angrysoba.blogspot.com/2010/02/japan-tsunami-warnings.html