15 April 2013 - 2 Explosions at Finish line of Boston Marathon

[jollyjacktar]

Here they are saying it was pressure cooker IED, up to seven were placed around the city.  Crude devices using blackpowder or similar blasting agents, not mil grade explosive.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2309545/Boston-bombings-2013-Devices-killed-including-Martin-Richard-Krystle-Campbell-used-terrorists-Afghanistan.html

 

[Stoker]

I have been to Boston, many, many times in my career as its a frequent favourite port visit for us. Its a great city and filled with great people. My prayers go out to the families of the victims murdered in this cowardly act.

 

[cupper]

Latest from Washington Post:

‘Yesterday, terrorism was brought to the city of Boston’

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/boston-marathon-bomb-blasts-kill-at-least-three-leave-scores-injured/2013/04/16/92f25550-a677-11e2-b029-8fb7e977ef71_story.html?hpid=z1

BOSTON — President Obama on Tuesday called the bombing of the Boston Marathon “a heinous and cowardly act” and said the FBI is investigating the blasts that killed at least three people and injured more than 170 as “an act of terrorism.”

“Any time bombs are used to target innocent civilians, it is an act of terror,” a grim-faced Obama said in a brief statement from the White House. He said authorities don’t yet know the motive behind the attack or whether it was the work of a terrorist group or “a malevolent individual.”

The president spoke as the FBI was mounting a worldwide investigation and police here were scouring hours of videotape and thousands of photographs in an effort to learn who detonated two bombs near the finish line of the venerable sporting event on Monday, blasting runners off their feet and critically injuring 17 people.

Investigators believe the bombs were placed inside pressure cookers, according to a law enforcement official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. The official, who said that pieces of pressure cookers have been recovered from the scene, cautioned that investigators do not know how the explosives were detonated.

Pressure cookers would increase the force with which ball bearings and other metal pieces would explode outward. Doctors who briefed the media Tuesday described seeing such pieces — nails, shrapnel and pellets — in patient’s tissues, indicating that the bombs were packed to inflict the maximum damage.

Ron Walls, chairman of emergency medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, said three victims had small, BB-type objects that had been blown into their flesh by the bombs. One of the three also had about a dozen half-inch nails embedded in his skin. A fourth individual had a single nail lodged in his body.

The objects were “clearly designed to be projectiles and were built into the explosive devices,” he said at a news conference. Michael Zinner, the hospital’s chief of surgery, compared the bombs to improvised explosive devices similar to those used in the Iraq War.

“Almost all the injuries are in the lower extremities. Think of this like an IED,” he said.

Among the dead was an 8-year-old boy, who was identified as Martin Richard, of Boston’s Dorchester neighborhood. He and his family were watching the race near the finish line, an annual ritual for thousands of Boston families. Martin’s mother and one sister were badly injured in the blast.

The boy’s father, Bill Richard, issued a statement asking for privacy and saying: “My dear son Martin has died from injuries sustained in the attack on Boston. My wife and daughter are both recovering from serious injuries.”

Krystle Campbell, of Medford, Mass., was also identified as being among the dead. The third victim has not yet been identified.

Authorities said police are currently processing surveillance footage and and photo evidence as part of the investigation. Even as victims were being transported from the bomb site on Monday afternoon, Police Commissioner Ed Davis said, officers rushed into nearby business establishments to secure video that could provide them with clues.

More at link.

 

[kevincanada]

Here they are saying it was pressure cooker IED, up to seven were placed around the city.  Crude devices using blackpowder or similar blasting agents, not mil grade explosive.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2309545/Boston-bombings-2013-Devices-killed-including-Martin-Richard-Krystle-Campbell-used-terrorists-Afghanistan.html

"Initially counter-terrorism sources in the city believed that seven devices were planted across the city - but only two detonated." from the article above.

I would be very cautious to believe or pass on anything at this point unless it comes from President Obama himself or a official from the FBI.  My local media reported 3 devices, then 24 hours later reported 2 devices.  My local cops give the media the nickname "The vultures".

That aside my thoughts are with the victims and families and may the FBI catch the perpetrators sooner rather than later.

 

[cupper]

Latest statement from the FBI

http://www.fbi.gov/boston/press-releases/2013/remarks-of-special-agent-in-charge-richard-deslauriers-at-press-conference-on-bombing-investigation

Good afternoon. I am Richard DesLauriers, the special agent in charge of the Boston Division.

Let me recap our efforts in this investigation.

Yesterday at this time, our collaborative efforts were focused on saving lives and treating the injured. At the same time, resources were directed to ensure the safety of our community.

As soon as those important tasks were completed, first responders focused on establishing a criminal investigation. The FBI Boston’s Joint Terrorism Task Force, composed of more than 30 federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies, including Boston Police, Massachusetts State Police, and ATF, HSI, United States Secret Service, and others responded to the scene. Many of them were already there as part of the general security for the marathon already in place.

The first step law enforcement took was to secure the physical area around the blast for the purpose of preserving evidence in the area related to the devices itself. This morning the FBI, along with Boston PD, Massachusetts State Police, and ATF officially began its forensic evidence recovery effort at the site. Their goal was to recover physical items related to the blast. Those items have been recovered and sent to the FBI’s Laboratory in Quantico, Virginia. There, specialized examiners will reconstruct the device and determine its makeup and components. Among items partially recovered are pieces of black nylon—which could be from a backpack—and what appear to be fragments of BBs and nails possibly contained in a pressure cooker device. We are expediting this blast evidence to our Laboratory in Quantico, Virginia for a complete and thorough analysis.

In addition, this morning, it was determined that both of the explosives were placed in a dark-colored nylon bag or backpack. The bag would have been heavy because of the components believed to be in it. At this point, it is difficult to determine specific components used until we can eliminate other factors which may have been already present in the environment. In fact, that won’t be known with some certainty until the Laboratory completes its final review.

Away from the scene, yesterday afternoon, the JTTF began its investigation. Immediately after the bombing, the FBI initiated a command post. Those assigned to the JTTF, intelligence analysts, and other personnel from every state, local, and federal government agency associated with the JTTF—and many others on their own, including Boston PD and Mass State Police—more than 1,000 law enforcement officers across many agencies—have been assigned to this investigation via the command post. They began canvassing sources, reviewing government and public source databases, and conducting interviews with eyewitnesses and others to determine who is responsible for this crime. We are doing this methodically, carefully, yet with a sense of urgency.

All across the nation, and around the world, the force of the United States is working hard to locate those responsible.

Already, the FBI has received more than 2,000 tips as of noon today, many of which have already been reviewed, analyzed, and vetted.

We will continue to work around the clock, tirelessly, side by side with our partners to continue to investigate and act on these leads.

Regarding who might be suspected of this event, the investigation is in its infancy. As law enforcement, it’s our responsibility to thoroughly review each and every piece of evidence. Some of our activity you may see, some of it you won’t—but rest assured, we are working hard to get the answers.

At this time, there are no claims of responsibility. The range of suspects and motives remains wide-open.

Importantly, the person who did this is someone’s friend, neighbor, coworker, or relative. We are asking anyone who may have heard someone speak about the marathon or the date of April 15 in any way that indicated he or she may target the event to call us. Someone knows who did this.

Cooperation from the community will play a crucial role is this investigation. We ask that businesses review and preserve surveillance video and other business records in their original form. And we are asking the public remain alert and to alert us to the following activity:

    An individual who expressed a desire to target the marathon;
    Suspicious interest in researching how to create explosive device;
    The noise of explosions in remote areas prior to yesterday which may have been used as tests by those responsible;
    Someone who appeared to be carrying an unusually heavy, dark-colored bag yesterday around the time of the blasts and in the vicinity of the blasts.

As further substantive details become available that are appropriate for release, then together we will either issue a release or hold a press conference.

Tomorrow, we plan to hold another press conference in the early afternoon.

Thank you very much, and I also want to thank the public for their tremendous support in this investigation.

 

[Retired AF Guy]

As previous posters have mentioned, we should all be careful about jumping to conclusions about who may be responsible for this act. Here, reproduced under the usual caveats of the Fair Dealing section of the Copyright Act, is a timely reminder of what happens when people jump the gun.

Richard Jewell Cannot Accept Our Apology
Apr 16, 2013
By Patrick.

After a crime like yesterday's Boston bombings, it can be worthwhile to reflect on how we've reacted to similar tragedies.  Consider the case of Richard Jewell.

A terrorist detonated a bomb at Atlanta's Olympic Park, during the 1996 Olympic games. That terrorist was Eric Robert Rudolph, who pled guilty to the crime along with a number of abortion clinic bombings. Mr. Rudolph is presently a guest at the ADMAX hotel in Florence Colorado.

For nine years, Richard Jewell labored under suspicion that he'd been the bomber. In fact, Richard Jewell was a jewel of a man, a private security guard who spotted the bomb, informed the police of its existence, and escorted park visitors off the site until the bomb exploded. Jewell was a hero.

Such an unlikely hero, it occurred to the FBI, and CNN, and NBC, and the New York Post, and the Atlanta Journal Constitution, that he must have planted the bomb. After all, private security guards are losers. Mall cops. And Jewell, for all his common sense and bravery in a crisis, was an odd man. A little weird, a law-enforcement wannabe who'd just happened to be in the right place at the right time, then went on tv talking as though he was an actual cop. And he was fat.

Obviously that weirdo Jewell had planted the bomb so he could take credit for discovering it.

Or so it seemed, for some reason, to the FBI, which leaked Jewell as the primary suspect, and CNN, and NBC, and the New York Post, and the Atlanta Journal Constitution, which took the leak, a perfect story after all, and used it to make Jewell's life Hell on Earth.

And to All Of Us, who behaved like beasts toward Jewell, because after all CNN, and NBC, and the New York Post, and the Atlanta Journal Constitution reported that the FBI had fingered him as the bomber.

Jewell died 11 years after the bombing, exonerated and a little richer thanks to several settlements against media outlets like CNN, but still a broken man. In its obituary, the New York Times, which had also reported on the allegations against Jewell, eulogized him as the hero of the Atlanta attack.

Which did Richard Jewell no good whatsoever.

Eric Robert Rudolph has never apologized to Jewell. Nor, for that matter, have the people of Georgia who spat on him. All Of Us.

If the FBI, and CNN, and NBC, and the New York Post, and the Atlanta Journal Constitution, and All Of Us, could get the Atlanta bombing so tragically wrong in 1996, they, and we, can do it today. In the days to come, it would behoove All Of Us to take what the FBI, and CNN, and NBC, and the New York Post, and their ilk, have to say about suspects and motives with a grain of salt.

Lest we find ourselves owing someone a Richard Jewell-sized apology.

Perhaps the best apology we, All Of Us, can give to Richard Jewell is to be a little more skeptical of what we're told by the FBI, and CNN, and NBC, and the New York Post, and the Atlanta Journal Constitution, and their ilk.

It will do Richard Jewell no good whatsoever, but it will make All Of Us better citizens.

Article Link

 

[CougarKing]

As previous posters have mentioned, we should all be careful about jumping to conclusions about who may be responsible for this act.

The need to be careful hasn't stopped a wave of speculation about who may be behind this attack.

link

Who's behind the Boston Marathon bombings? 4 theories

By Peter Weber | The Week – 21 hours ago.
More than half a day after the explosions in Boston, police still have few answers. That hasn't quieted the speculation

Law enforcement officials don't have any official suspects in Monday's twin bombings at the finish line of the Boston marathon. And President Obama specifically urged people not to speculate on who's behind the attack, which killed at least three people, including an 8-year-old boy, and wounded more than 100 others, including several amputations.

"We still don't know who did this or why," Obama said Monday night. "People should not jump to conclusions before we have all the facts. But make no mistake. We will get to the bottom of this. We will find out who did this. We will find out why they did this. Any individual or responsible groups will feel the full weight of justice."

Of course, plenty of people are speeding by the president's advice and jumping to conclusions, or at least jumping to theories. "We all wonder first who did this," says Michael Tomasky at The Daily Beast. And, Tomasky says, a little careful speculation isn't such a bad thing. Here are four groups that are the focus of early (and — let us be clear — sometimes baseless) finger-pointing in the Boston attack:

1. Islamist jihadists
This theory was inevitable in the worst attack on U.S. soil since the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, and it gained some initial credence from a New York Post report that a 20-year-old Saudi national had been picked up as a "person of interest." Police quickly threw cold water on that report, but then Boston TV station WABC reported that police are "searching for a darker skinned or black male with a black backpack and black sweatshirt, possibly foreign national from the accent of the individual."

Another anonymous law enforcement official "notes that the manner of the attack suggests it may have been Al Qaeda inspired — if not Al Qaeda directed," says Christopher Dickey at The Daily Beast. That's because the construction of the bombs — gunpowder with ball-bearings and other shrapnel to maximize the damage — is similar to a bomb recipe shared by Al Qaeda "on its internet manuals for terrorist attacks."

Of course, not everyone is convinced. "Horrific as this obviously was, it doesn't seem big enough" for an attack by Arab terrorists, says The Daily Beast's Tomasky. "Everything we know about their m.o. — the 1993 WTC bombing, the 2000 LAX plot, and 9-11 — suggests that they aim bigger."

2. Right-wing militia types
This theory, too, was inevitable. And most proponents point to the date — Patriots' Day — as a clue. Residents of Massachusetts and Maine celebrate Patriots' Day by taking the day off of work and re-enacting the first battles of the American Revolution, says Sommer Mathis at The Atlantic Cities. "But in recent years, Second Amendment activists and anti-government modern-day militia members have tried to co-opt the holiday, which also roughly marks the anniversary of the Oklahoma City bombing."

It's also "wise in these cases to remember that the 1995 bombing of the Federal Building in Oklahoma City and the bombing at the Atlanta Olympics in 1996 were carried out by Americans who espoused extreme right-wing causes," says The Daily Beast's Dickey.

There's also the fact that the Boston Marathon fell on tax day this year, and the last mile of the race "was dedicated to Newtown victims," says Tomasky.

But man you would have to be a really 100 percent out-there sicko to think that this was how you wanted to make a political statement about gun rights. I think there are dangerous extremists among that group, but I don't think even they would do or approve of doing something like this. [Daily Beast]

3. The government

"False flag" attack proponents wasted no time blaming the government for staging the Boston explosions to achieve their own ends, says Alex Seitz-Wald at Salon. First out of the gate was Alex Jones, who tweeted: "Our hearts go out to those that are hurt or killed #Boston marathon – but this thing stinks to high heaven #falseflag."


Then "Dan Bidondi, a 'reporter/analyist' (sic) for Alex Jones's InfoWars, managed to ask Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick the very first question in a nationally televised press conference," notes Slate's David Weigel:

Why were the loud speakers telling people in the audience to be calm moments before the bombs went off? Is this another false flag staged attack to take our civil liberties and promote homeland security while sticking their hands down our pants on the streets? [Via Slate]

"Patrick, looking on with a mixture of rage and pity, said 'no,' surely aware that he couldn't halt this guy's incipient Internet fame," says Weigel. But the inevitable Boston marathon "truthers" will have a hard time with this conspiracy theory. There were too many cameras and witnesses to "concoct a really compelling conspiracy theory," and the real-time fact-checking on Twitter has decimated the bad information that conspiracies need to thrive. For example, those "loud speakers" urging calm never happened.


4. A criminally insane lone wolf

There's also the possibility that this attack was perpetrated by some "local nutcase," says Tomasky at The Daily Beast. "I guess I am right now leaning in that least conspiratorial direction." Unfortunately, in our "open and free society," people can cause massive destruction with a few well-placed bombs. There's a decent chance the Boston marathon attackers were "motivated by simple revenge of some kind, or by nothing but the disease in someone's brain."

 

[Journeyman]

The need to be careful hasn't stopped a wave of speculation about who may be behind this attack.

....nor people re-posting such speculation. 

It's even better when the re-posters don't even have the competence to provide comment or insight into the posts.....it's just cut & paste....  :boring:

 

[CougarKing]

....nor people re-posting such speculation. 

It's even better when the re-posters don't even have the competence to provide comment or insight into the posts.....it's just cut & paste....  :boring:

Professor,
In spite of the uncalled for comments about implied incompetence, I am not obligated to make comments about everything that is posted. Furthermore, if you read other threads such as in the China superthread, you would see I have provided commentary in the past on issues that interest me more. I post certain articles such as the one above mainly to spark discussion and I only comment if an interesting discussion develops.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Moving on, it appears the US authorities have identified a suspect:

Sun News link

JOE WARMINGTON | QMI AGENCY


BOSTON - Boston is bracing itself for a major development to drop in the Boston Marathon bombing case.

Sources say there is a "substantial" lead in the case which will be explained this afternoon.

"There are a couple of pictures of a potential suspect that the FBI has had sent to them," said a Boston police officer.

Another officer said a description of the suspect is coming but that leads from the picture have provided "movement" in the investigation.

A third officer said law enforcment has identified who the bomber may be.

It is unclear if there is anyone in custody but many sirens in past hour have fuelled that speculation.

One officer suggested there may be people who fit descriptions being questioned, but that does not qualify as "a person in custody."

The FBI has not officially confirmed or denied the lead.

 

[Bruce Monkhouse]

CNN blog says a suspect has been arrested.......

 

[BeyondTheNow]

CNN blog says a suspect has been arrested.......

I tuned into CNN and they're clarifying that there has been no arrest(s), no one in custody. I didn't catch the name or official position of the gentleman who was speaking, but he was law enforcement. He explained that at this time there is simply a "clear" suspect based on photographs and descriptions. 

 

[muskrat89]

InfoWars is typically  a little too much "tinfoil hat" for me, but I admit, these photographs are pretty interesting.

http://www.infowars.com/boston-bombing-culprits-found/

http://www.infowars.com/navy-seals-spotted-at-boston-marathon-wearing-suspicious-backpacks/

 

[krimynal]

interesting , but I just hope it's not what I think it is ............

 

[PuckChaser]

They look military, but their presence their could be less sinister in that they were covert security. I'll wait and see what the FBI says.

 

[kevincanada]

InfoWars is typically  a little too much "tinfoil hat" for me, but I admit, these photographs are pretty interesting.

http://www.infowars.com/boston-bombing-culprits-found/

http://www.infowars.com/navy-seals-spotted-at-boston-marathon-wearing-suspicious-backpacks/

To add to the Tinfoil hat aspect.  The bomb detonation was at 4 hour 9 minute according to the race tracker,  The white hat individual is moving the distance of one street lamp to the next at 2 hour 35 minute according to the photo's.  Assuming 10 minutes of leisure walking.  If it was his backpack.  In those particular stills it would mean the individual dropped the backpack roughly 1 hour and 44 minutes before detonation.

It would be really damning evidence if he shows up again after the 2hr 35m mark with another duffel bag.  I'm sure FBI has their list of suspects, boy what a task to piece together hours of footage and look at every second from every angle.  It's good though, if amateurs can come up with this that quick.  With some luck 1000's of pro's are way ahead of us rookies with the images.

 

[cupper]

:facepalm:

It's the DC Sniper Case all over again.

Because someone saw a white box truck speeding away from one of the early shootings, the police were running around stopping white box trucks. (Take a look around you sometime and do a survey of the number of white box trucks)

Turns out the shooters were driving a blue Chevy Caprice.

Next time you are out walking around, do a survey of how many people have back packs. How many are black?

The problem is that when you are told to look for a particular thing, you will see that thing everywhere (and sometimes even when it isn't really there).

 

[Container]

im pretty sure the brown pant and black jacket guys are cops.

See here:

http://i.imgur.com/58ZoJ51.jpg?1

Where 10 of them are standing together behind a cop truck.

 

[J.J]

im pretty sure the brown pant and black jacket guys are cops.

See here:

http://i.imgur.com/58ZoJ51.jpg?1

Where 10 of them are standing together behind a cop truck.

I believe them to be Homeland Security, I have seen them wear the tan pants, brown boot etc several times.

 

[Container]

I should be more clear- agents of the state in some form rather than suspects like in the links.

 

[muskrat89]

Agreed, on the tan pants guys