Car bomb found in New York's Times Square - How Should The USA react?

[JollyRoger]

Righties are already complaining he was read his Miranda rights. So easily terrorized.

 

[Formaldehyde]

Got a little redneck in you, Form?

Another absurd strawman that I must be a "redneck" if I know how to "blow crap up"? Gee, what a surprise.

 

[civ_king]

Well now that we know he is Pakistani hopefully we can get back on track with xenophobic hysterics, which were in a curious holding pattern pending the results of the investigation. Party on!

Give India support in invading Pakistan?

 

[Formaldehyde]

How was bomb suspect able to board airliner?

WASHINGTON - The Times Square bomb suspect was on the federal no-fly list and under surveillance but still managed to get aboard a jetliner bound for the United Arab Emirates, sources said Tuesday.

Faisal Shahzad had been under constant watch at his Bridgeport, Conn., home since 3 p.m. Monday and federal authorities had planned to arrest him there that evening, two people familiar with the investigation told The Associated Press. Authorities believe he decided to flee after being spooked by news reports that investigators were seeking a Pakistani suspect in Connecticut, one of the people said.

Shahzad somehow lost the investigators who were trailing him, the two people said. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the incident. It was unclear when Shahzad eluded investigators.

The FBI and the NYPD declined to comment.

The night's events, gradually coming to light, also underscored the flaws in the nation's aviation security system, which despite its technologies, lists and information sharing, often comes down to someone making a right call.

A law enforcement official told NBC News that the Transportation Security Administration had alerted airlines, but the information hadn't yet gotten into airline systems. A senior U.S. official told NBC that if the system had worked properly, "He should have never been able to get on that airplane."

As federal agents closed in, Shahzad was aboard Emirates Flight 202. He reserved a ticket on the way to John F. Kennedy International Airport, paid cash on arrival and walked through security without being stopped.

By the time Customs and Border Protection officials spotted Shahzad's name on the passenger list and recognized him as the bombing suspect they were looking for, he was in his seat and the plane was preparing to leave the gate.

 

[IglooDame]

Hey, that "idiot welding plot" you're talking about has been used to justify indefinite detention and torture. This plan got to the "light the fuses" stage -- I think we should probably just torture everyone on Earth until they admit that they planned it.

Cleo

Good call. To Gitmo with the lot of 'em!!

So far MobBoss, VRWCAgent have had the finger of suspicion pointed at them and IglooDude has jumped in to arouse our suspicions too.

Presumably they need to be detained and interrogated in order to get to the bottom of what they may be hiding.

If they have nothing to hide they need have nothing to fear.

VRWCAgent and MobBoss both have beards too I believe (which arouses more suspicion). If they have shaved them off, this is even more suspicious.

Let the waterboarding commence! If they aren't really witches I'm sure they won't float.

Ummm... we could use my basement, if you'd like.

There is no way in hell it could obliterate the VINs. So either you are speculating he was one of the world's stupidest terrorists of all time, or you really don't know much about this topic.

And you are still making absurd strawmen. I never claimed he was trying to be a "nice guy". I was merely speculating that it appeared to be a halfhearted attempt, aka terror theater, given that fireworks never could have turned it into a "bomb".

It is an interesting conundrum - is this MBA with a month of training in terrorism utterly incompetent at bomb-making, or did he (perhaps subconsciously) deliberately make a very flawed bomb? My gut instinct (such as it is) leans toward the former - we've had shoe-bombers, crotch-bombers, and bridge-welders (and I think a couple other uncovered plots that featured a group of morons where the plant seemed to be the only one with a clue) that no one disputes were really trying to kill people. Humanity being what it is, I think stupidity over compassion is - sadly - the winning bet, most every time.

 

[Formaldehyde]

It doesn't make much sense to me, especially given that he was supposed to have received explosives training in Pakistan.

And the way they initially described the incident makes it sound like some fireworks did go off. But the clocks and the wiring found in the car apparently weren't attached to anything. They were just in the vehicle.

The other thing that doesn't make much sense is that the authorities apparently waited 8 hours before doing anything. I know that nobody wants to needlessly die, but just leaving a supposedly dangerous bomb sitting there for such a long period of time doesn't sound like an optimal strategy. It reminds me of the hesitation which made Columbine so much worse than it may have otherwise been.

 

[illram]

We have the largest major environmental disaster since the Valdez, and 29 people dead along with billions in damage in some of the worst flooding we've ever seen in the southeast, and yet the 24/7 news cycle and all of my news feeds keep pestering me with images and stories about a bomb that didn't go off. USA #1.

 

[MobBoss]

We have the largest major environmental disaster since the Valdez, and 29 people dead along with billions in damage in some of the worst flooding we've ever seen in the southeast, and yet the 24/7 news cycle and all of my news feeds keep pestering me with images and stories about a bomb that didn't go off. USA #1.

So you disagree with that the news channels think is newsworthy. Fwiw, I have seen plenty of both the floods and the oil spill....but the terrorist thing has happened most recently, thus why its now the focus of attention. Oil and floods were last weeks news...this week its Pakistani terrorists in New York City.

Who knows what it will be next week?

But I am not sure why thats a hit on the USA. Pretty much every news media outlet the world over flows like that.

 

[IglooDame]

It doesn't make much sense to me, especially given that he was supposed to have received explosives training in Pakistan.

And the way they initially described the incident makes it sound like some fireworks did go off. But the clocks and the wiring found in the car apparently weren't attached to anything. They were just in the vehicle.

The other thing that doesn't make much sense is that the authorities apparently waited 8 hours before doing anything. I know that nobody wants to needlessly die, but just leaving a supposedly dangerous bomb sitting there for such a long period of time doesn't sound like an optimal strategy. It reminds me of the hesitation which made Columbine so much worse than it may have otherwise been.

Well, presumably we'll have our answer in the next few weeks as the media frenzy over this subsides in favor of actual facts. In the interim, here's a link that was somewhat more informative than most on the actual bomb element of the story:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/discussion/2010/05/03/DI2010050301684.html

 

[illram]

So you disagree with that the news channels think is newsworthy. Fwiw, I have seen plenty of both the floods and the oil spill....but the terrorist thing has happened most recently, thus why its now the focus of attention. Oil and floods were last weeks news...this week its Pakistani terrorists in New York City.

Who knows what it will be next week?

But I am not sure why thats a hit on the USA. Pretty much every news media outlet the world over flows like that.

Don't get me wrong, I am extremely happy that this guy was a complete moron and failed to make a working bomb. I also am a little concerned that so much attention is given to even the stupidest terrorists, such that even the most incompetent fool, such as someone who, say, lights their underpants on fire on a plane, can succeed in garnering so much attention.

It's similar to major sports leagues such as the NFL, MLB, etc. making deals with networks to not air footage of fans running on to the field. If you got on TV every time you did that it would encourage such behavior. Now I am not saying we should encourage the media to not report on this stuff, it is news and they wouldn't air it if we didn't all raptly soak it up, but it does worry me that this kind of attention only fuels the fire, so to speak.

 

[MobBoss]

It's similar to major sports leagues such as the NFL, MLB, etc. making deals with networks to not air footage of fans running on to the field. If you got on TV every time you did that it would encourage such behavior.

And yet such stories still get all over the news. http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/Police-Using-Taser-on-teenage-Phillies-fan-was-justified-050310

Now I am not saying we should encourage the media to not report on this stuff

Well, it oddly sounds like that is precisely what you are saying.

it is news and they wouldn't air it if we didn't all raptly soak it up, but it does worry me that this kind of attention only fuels the fire, so to speak.

Welcome to the digital age and era of information on demand.

 

[illram]

I am saying, perhaps not too well, that we (consumers of the media) should in general give this stuff short shrift. Some idiot failed to make a bomb, he will be prosecuted, move along, nothing to see here.

It's perhaps a more in your face brush with your own mortality for the people that happened to be there, but every time I get in my car to go to work I am flirting with death and I'm not all over the news.

edit: example of what I am talking about, this is a screengrab of my yahoo news this morning:

Really? 3 pictures of this guys ugly mug? There is nothing else important going on in the world right now? How about Greece bringing down the entire EU? Is that a story?

It's ridiculous the attention this stuff gets, and I think it's getting even more now because he is Pakistani and thus this fits perfectly into our predetermined media narrative.

 

[MobBoss]

I am saying, perhaps not too well, that we should in general give this stuff short shrift. Some idiot failed to make a bomb, he will be prosecuted, move along, nothing to see here.

It's perhaps a more in your face brush with your own mortality for the people that happened to be there, but every time I get in my car to go to work I am flirting with death and I'm not all over the news.

Except when there is a safety recall for Toyota (for example) its all over the news. And if you (God forbid) ended up in some kind of terrible accident with fatalities involved, then you too would be on the news. Happens all the time here on I-5.

Some people simply disagree with you that 'there is nothing to see here', and are vastly interested in all facets of this story. I am more like you in thought, and its a big reason why I dont watch 24/7 news anymore. But I tend to see this type of story as worth the current excitement. What I really hate is stuff like the Holloway girl in Aruba story. That damn thing went on and on and on and on, ad infinitum, and is STILL making headlines today. Its like watching the series LOST in which no real questions are ever answered, and the thing is simply propagated by constant new questions. Ugh.

 

[Formaldehyde]

We have the largest major environmental disaster since the Valdez, and 29 people dead along with billions in damage in some of the worst flooding we've ever seen in the southeast, and yet the 24/7 news cycle and all of my news feeds keep pestering me with images and stories about a bomb that didn't go off. USA #1.

As Jon Stewart mentioned two days ago, perhaps the bigger story is how did this guy manage to find a parking spot on 45th Avenue on the weekend?

And last night, when are whites going to stop being profiled so much? I can't actually believe that Glenn Beck is actually more reasonable than McCain is on basic Constitutional rights in this particular case.

 

[warpus]

Righties are already complaining he was read his Miranda rights. So easily terrorized.

I was watching a clip from Fox News (yeah I know, but it was linked from reddit, so I thought it might be interesting) where Glen Beck of all people DEFENDS this guy, and says he should have all rights, as an American citizen. .. while the other Fox News dudes are all "dude, WTH, are you nuts!?!??!"

Kinda tells you how crazy these people must be if Glen Beck steps up and puts them in their place

 

[warpus]

I have also read that this dude is being charged with possessing "Weapons of mass destruction"

Really? That just cracks me up. What's next, farting in a restaurant = biological warfare?

 

[JollyRoger]

WMD in the U.S.? When do we invade?

 

[holy king]

britain could use this as an excuse to claim their colony back.

 

[bhsup]

My beard is a purely functional thingy and has no bearing on my ideological or religious beliefs! I gots fur, so I grows it during the winter! And yeah, it's shaved off now...

 

[IglooDame]

britain could use this as an excuse to claim their colony back.

If by "colony" you mean Manhattan or even NYC, then yes, please do.