Posts Tagged ‘Jared Lee Loughner’

Norway Shooter Anders Behring Breivik: Deadlier and Weirder

Saturday, July 23rd, 2011

The case of alleged Oslo bomber and Utoya island shooter Anders Behring Breivik gets stranger. The only constant seems to be that whatever I say about him in this post is likely to be proven wrong by the time I put up the next:

  • This does not seem to be an act of Islamic terrorism (despite the claim of responsibility by Ansar al-Islam).
  • The death toll is now being reported as 92, despite my earlier incredulity. That would make Breivik the deadliest spree shooter/active shooter in the history of the world.

    • How did he manage to kill so many? Evidently Breivik was dressed as a policeman and had an hour and a half to carry out his spree, since the real police couldn’t even reach the island for 40 minutes. (Remember, when seconds count, the police are minutes away.)

    Why didn’t anyone shoot back? Because in Norway, though they have much laxer gun control laws than the rest of Europe, self defense “is practically never accepted as a reason for gun ownership.” And weapons cannot be carried loaded.

    Why did he do it? A lot of reports say he’s a “right-wing extremist” and/or an “anti-immigration/anti-Muslim” extremist.

    There are translations of some of his writings/Internet posts up. A quick skim does show an anti-multiculturalism/anti-Muslim immigration bias. How killing Norwegian children furthers that cause is unclear. If anything, his killing spree would probably damage the cause of opposing the Islamization of Europe.

    Is he crazy? Well, you have to be crazy and/or evil to open fire on a group of children, but even in translation his writings don’t have the rambling, impenetrable quality that Jared Lee Loughner’s screeds have. To me it seems like that Breivik will be found sane and face the maximum penalty.

    Which, in Norway, is 21 years in jail. Or less than 3 months a murder.

    Here are the top twelve search terms for people reaching my blog today:

    anders behring breivik black metal
    anders behring breivik metal
    anders behring breivik jew
    anders breivik black metal
    anders behring breivik freemason
    anders behring breivik opus dei
    anders behring breivik jewish
    anders behring breivik “black metal”
    anders behring black metal
    anders behring breivik convert
    anders behring breivik muslim convert

    Uh folks, most of those terms were included in my post as a joke

    There’s the problem with conspiracy theories: Evidently a conspiracy can be behind any evil action, even those that don’t appreciably advance the interests of said conspiracy. I cannot for the life of me see how shooting Norwegian schoolchildren would further the cause of either the Pope or the Elders of Zion in taking over the world. [Just to be clear: Pope=Real guy, no particular plan for world domination beyond proselytizing, Elders of Zion=fake Jewish conspiracy group created by the Czar’s secret police and regurgitated by every brain-dead anti-semite since. I wouldn’t think you would need to explain these things, but those search stats above and some recent comments suggest otherwise…]

    The black metal reference was a half-joke, since the early Norway black metal scene did result in a rash of church burnings back in the 1990s, and a government building bombing wouldn’t be a giant leap. (The lads seemed to have calmed down a bit since, though Varg Vikernes, the black metal musician convicted not only of arson, but also of murdering a band-mate, was released from prison in 2009. Remember that 21 year limit? Vikernes served 16 years.)

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    Posted in Crime, Guns | 7 Comments »

    Advice for Journalists on How to Write About Guns

    Saturday, January 15th, 2011

    Over on NRO, Robert VerBruggen offers some sage advice for journalists on how write about guns without making yourself look like an idiot. Especially important is his second point: “If you’re going to write that a certain kind of gun is particularly dangerous, consult someone who knows something about guns first. Brady Campaign spokesmen don’t count.” The need for this point was painfully apparent with so many commentators describing Jared Lee Loughner’s Glock 19 as some sort of exotic killing machine, when in fact it is a very common type of semiautomatic pistol used by millions of law-abiding Americans.

    Or to put it in terms that a New York Journalist might understand: Imagine if I wrote that “Every condo in Manhattan gives their owner a two-car parking space,” or “All Hispanic New Yorkers are of Mexican ancestry.” You’d howl about how ignorant I am of New York. Well, that’s exactly the you seem to the rest of the country when you write about guns.

    However, I fear VerBruggen’s advice will fall on deaf ears. Many journalists in deep blue cities like New York or San Francisco seem to regard guns as inherently evil objects, and view learning about them with suspicion. They seem to wear their ignorance as a badge of honor, much like Manhattanites who brag that they’ve never visited a flyover state, or even left the island.

    Ignorance can be cured, but not willful ignorance. Many journalist would rather be wrong than Right.

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    Posted in Crime, Guns, Media Watch | No Comments »

    This Week in Jihad for January 13, 2011

    Thursday, January 13th, 2011

    Time for another installment of This Week in Jihad.

    Please note that these weekly installments are only a sampler of Jihad-related news from around the world, and that I skim a lot more stories than I post here. One reason is that, from Africa to Indonesia, regular Jihad-related violence is depressingly frequent. So I don’t report every suicide bombing or honor killing that goes on. There’s just too much to keep up with.

    However, given Jared Lee Loughner’s shooting spree in Tucson, I thought I would change that for this week’s roundup, to provide glimpses of places in which political and religious violence are the rule rather than the exception. So here’s a list of all the deadly incidents related to Islam I could find mention of from this past week:

    1. Suicide bomb kills 18 at a police station in Pakistan.
    2. Suicide bomber kills two on bus in Afghanistan.
    3. Two killed, six wounded in Taliban attack.
    4. Off-duty policeman shoots a 71-year old Christian man dead on a bus in Egypt.
    5. Jihadis open fire in a bar, killing seven in Nigeria.
    6. That follows hot on the heels of 11 people being killed in Jos, Nigeria.
    7. Jihadist suicide bomber kills 17 at bathhouse in Afghanistan.
    8. Couple axed to death in Punjab, India.
    9. Man killed and mutilated in honor killing in Multan, Iran. “Murtaza’s ears, lips, tongue, nose were sliced his eyes were gouged out with a knife before his head was severed.”
    10. Ireland suffers its first honor killing.
    11. Iraqi police chief killed by a roadside bomb.
    12. Six NATO soldiers killed Wednesday in Afghanistan.
    13. The figure above presumably includes U.S. Private Benjamin Moore, killed by an IED.
    14. The figure presumably does not include Marine Lance Cpl. Ryan Giese, killed on Friday.
    15. Nor that of Private First Class Robert Near, also killed in Afghanistan on Friday.
    16. Finally, I count two more names on this list of the fallen, for the time period specified, not including those killed 1/12: SPC Ethan C. Hardin and PFC Ira B. Laningham IV (the latter of Zapata, Texas).

    If I’m counting correctly, that brings the total, just for this week, up to 73. There could be twice that many I didn’t have time to search out yet, either from the Foreign Policy/Jihad sources listed to the right (JihadWatch was, as always, invaluable) or just doing a Google search. And there could be twice (or ten, or even a hundred) times as many Jihad-related killings that didn’t make news reports. I did not include Iran’s execution of five accused drug-smugglers in the total. Nor any of the other 46 executions the Islamic Republic of Iran has carried out in the last 20 days.

    Other Jihad-related tidbits:

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    Posted in Foreign Policy, Jihad, Texas | 2 Comments »

    LinkSwarm for Wednesday, January 12, 2011

    Wednesday, January 12th, 2011

    A few links of interest, some Tucson-shooting-related, some not:

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    Posted in Crime, Democrats, Media Watch, Texas | No Comments »

    Paul Kanjorski Hits Bottom, Goes Spelunking

    Tuesday, January 11th, 2011

    Remember Paul Kanjorski? You know, the Democratic congressman and Stupak block turncoat from Pennsylvania that Lou Barletta slaughtered in November? (Can we still use “slaughtered” in a political context post-Jared Lee Loughner? How about creamed? Spanked? Hmm, I should probably desist from that line of thought…) The guy who wrote a $10 million earmark for his own relatives? Thought you’d heard the last of him, didn’t you?

    That was until he published a New York Times editorial calling for civility and respect in political discourse. That would be great, if it weren’t coming from someone who recently called for the shooting of a Republican candidate:

    “Instead of running for governor of Florida, they ought to have him [Rick Scott, the Republican candidate for Florida governor] and shoot him. Put him against the wall and shoot him.

    A class act, Mr. Kanjorski. It makes me very glad that Lou Barletta was one of the candidates I actually donated to in 2010.

    Surely there has to be at least one Democratic official calling for tact and civility who hasn’t called for the murder of political opponents. Hasn’t there?

    (Hat tip: Instapundit)

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    Posted in Democrats, Elections | No Comments »

    Jared Lee Loughner/Gabrielle Giffords Shooting Link Roundup

    Monday, January 10th, 2011

    I was going to post another piece on the shooting, but Instapundit has already covered pretty much everything I wanted to say. (Shakes tiny fist in impotent rage. “Damn you, Glenn Harlan Reynolds! Damn you to Hell!”) By now the story is less about a crazy man killing political figures and innocent bystanders than it is the left’s desperate and distasteful attempts to pin the act on the Tea Party.

    So. Some links:

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    Posted in Crime, Democrats | 1 Comment »

    Republican Judge Killed by Left Wing Extremist Insane Lunatic

    Sunday, January 9th, 2011

    The good news is Democratic congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords is alive and able to communicate. Sadly, Federal Judge John Roll, appointed by President George H. W. Bush to the bench in 1991 is dead. Roll received death threats over his ruling in an illegal alien case in 2009.

    Did accused shooter Jared Lee Loughner assassinate Judge Roll for political reasons?

    Hell no. Loughner killed Roll and five other people because he was a violent, unstable lunatic, and more and more evidence is coming out to that effect. As Arizona Senator John Kyl put it: “It’s probably giving him too much credit to ascribe a coherent political philosophy to him.”

    Despite that, the far left is still trying to pin this on Sarah Palin. I suspect that will work out for them almost as well as their “the Tea Party is racist” meme.

    Sometimes people do commit horrific acts of violence for easily-identifiable ideological reasons. Maj. Nidal Hasan’s Ft. Hood shooting spree is a classic example. Jared Lee Loughner’s shooting spree is not.

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    Posted in Crime, Democrats, Guns, Republicans | 1 Comment »

    Jared Lee Loughner is a Left-Wing Extremist Raving Nutbag

    Sunday, January 9th, 2011

    The evidence is now in, and what little seems to be known about accused Arizona shooter Jared Lee Loughner from people that knew him was that “he was leftwing” and “liberal in wanting to change the way the world was run, we both wanted to. He took it to an extreme I never would’ve.”

    Does that mean that Arizona Democratic Congressman Gabrielle Giffords was shot by a “left wing extremist?” No. When you read his manifesto, you see that his political leanings, such as they are, were not “left” or “right” so much as “completely farking loony toons batshit insane.” His manifestos jump from subject to subject more quickly than a jittering tweaker flips channels on a TV remote. To paraphrase an entry in the Bulwer-Lytton contest, ideas seem to tumble around randomly in his head, making and breaking connections like a load of laundry in a dryer without Cling Free. They have some of the same quality of argument as Time Cube Guy: It’s less that his manifesto is wrong than that you can’t actually understand what he’s trying to say.

    (Boing Boing has even more of his manifestos up, and the Time Cube Guy vibe only gets stronger. Except for the fact that Gene Ray never killed anyone…)

    Loughner’s liberalism didn’t make him crazy, his crazy made him crazy.
    I mean, how crazy do you have to be to expelled from a pre-algebra class? “Solve for X.” “Admit it! X is a total lie!!!! There is no X, only Zuul!”

    Which makes it all the more galling how quickly The Usual Left Wing Suspects tried to pin his deeds on the Tea Party in general and Sarah Palin specifically. Never mind that military terminology has been in politics for a long time, or that liberals have done the exact thing they’re now jumping on Palin for.

    Every time anyone even remotely connected to conservative causes commits a violent act, the nutroots and their media enablers are quick to label them a “right wing extremist,” but anyone with demonstrable left wing sympathies is a “lone nut.” (Indeed, they’re pretty blatant about it.) Indeed, one of the most famous assassins in American history was a known communist sympathizer who defected to the Soviet Union, but you never hear Lee Harvey Oswald described by the media as a “left-wing extremist.”

    And don’t forget that the far left’s open and oft-stated desire to assassinate George W. Bush. Thus the attempt by prominent liberals to make Loughner a Tea Partier is more than a little contemptible. But such contemptible behavior is no longer surprising; it’s merely what they do.

    (Hat tips to Instapundit (more than once), Powerline, and a few random Fark posters.)

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    Posted in Democrats, Guns, Media Watch | 3 Comments »

    “Each subject is unlocatible!” or the Unreadable Manifesto of Accused Gabrielle Giffords Shooter Jared Laughner

    Saturday, January 8th, 2011

    Here is part of the alleged manifesto of accused Gabrielle Giffords shooter Jared Laughner (which comes from people doing screen caps of his purported videos):

    Hello, and welcome my classified leak of information that’s of the United States Military to the student body and you. Firstly, I want you to understand this from the start. Did you know grammar is double blind, listener? Secondly, if you want to understand the start of revelatory thoughts then listen to this video. I’ll look at you mother fuckin Anarchists who have a problem with them illegal illiterate pigs. :-D If you’re a citizen in the United States as of now, then your constitution is the United States. You’re a citizen in the United States as of now. Thus, your constitution is the United States. Laugh. I’ll let you in on their little cruel joke that’s genocidal. They’re argument is appeal to force on their jurisdiction with lack of proof of evidence. Each subject is in question for the location! The police don’t quite get paid correctly with them dirty front runners under section 10? Their country’s alliances are able to make illegal trades under section 10. Eh! I’m a Nihilist, not someone who put who put trust in god! What is section 10 you ask? If you make a purchase then it’s illegal under section 10 and amendment 1 of the United States constitution. You make a purchase. Therefore, it’s illegal under section 10 and amendment 1 of the United States constitution. We need a drum roll for those front runners in the election; those illegal teachers, pigs, and politicians of yours are under illegal authority of their constitution. Those dirty pigs think they know the damn year. Thirdly, tell them mother fuckers to count from 0 to whenever they feel a threat to stop their count. We can all hope they add new numbers and letters to their count down. Did you run out of breath around the trillions, listener? Well, B.C.E is yet to start for Ad to begin! What does this mean for a citizen in any country? Those illegal military personal are able to sign into a country that they can’t find with an impossible date! How did you trust your child with them fraud teachers and front runners, listener? Did you now know that the teachers, pigs, and front runners are treasonous! You shouldn’t jump to conclusion with your education plan. The constitution as of now, which is in use by the current power pigs, aren’t able to protect the bill of rights! Do you now have enough information to know the two wars are illegal! What is your date of time, listener? Fourthly, those applications that are with background checks break the United States constitution! What’s your riot name? I’ll catch you! Top secret: Why don’t people control the money system? Their Current Currency(1/1) / Your new infinite currency (1/~infinte) This is a selcte information of revoluntary thoughts! Section 10 – Powers prohibited of States No State shall enter into any Treaty, Alliance, or Confederation; grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal; coin Money; emit Bills of Credit; make any Thing but gold and silver Coin a Tender in Payment of Debts; pass any Bill of Attainder, ex post facto Law, or Law impairing the Obligation of Contracts, or grant any Title of Nobility. No State shall, without the Consent of the Congress, lay any Imposts or Duties on Imports or Exports, except what may be absolutely necessary for executing it’s inspection Laws: and the net Produce of all Duties and Imposts, laid by any State on Imports or Exports, shall be for the Use of the Treasury of the United States; and all such Laws shall be subject to the Revision and Controul of the Congress. No State shall, without the Consent of Congress, lay any duty of Tonnage, keep Troops, or Ships of War in time of Peace, enter into any Agreement or Compact with another State, or with a foreign Power, or engage in War, unless actually invaded, or in such imminent Danger as will not admit of delay. Each subject is unlocatible!

    If that is indeed his real manifesto, then the only political faction he seems to belong to is The Republic of Loony Tunes. It seems like something more from an Ionesco play or a Monty Python skit than a political assassin.

    Nothing to add except linking to this Radley Balko bit, which pretty much sums it all up.

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    Posted in Crime, Democrats, Guns | 2 Comments »