Beltway Sniper Shootings-FR Commentary-Sunday, Oct. 13

Fox News, CNN, Press Conferences | October 13, 2002 | Fox News, CNN, Press Conferences

[Peach]

To avoid multiple vanity threads regarding any news from press conferences, let's keep a live commentary thread going again today. Please stop by the Prayer Thread to leave a prayer for people in the target area http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/767040/posts

[Sacajaweau]

Boy, I picture the guy on his belly but it simply could vary as the site dictates.

Does the sniper have to use earplugs or something because of the sound. Would it look like portable radio earplugs and we wouldn't notice ....or something much bigger like what we see on target range photos.

[CHICAGOFARMER]

The only thing this scumbag needs is to be six feet under. A coward title is too good.

Last summer my niece daughter (8) and son (7) was introduced to Eddie eagle and firearm respect and safety.

Both fired on a 100 yard target with a 223 and hit a 3" bull’s eye.

This killer is not a sniper, not a marksman, not a expert, not a valuable citizen of the United States, not worthy of all the media attention give by the blood and guts media hype and thirst thrown at us by the media.

If you want the terror to stop in your life, turn off the talking TV heads; turn off the liberal media blood and guts 24-hour hype.

This morning on CNN interview with the Montgomery sheriff he stated than he appreciated the flattery given that policeman will protect the public. But he stated police seldom prevent crime. This was in response to police inept ability to stop the last shooting when a police officer was apparently within 50 yards of the shooting.

When the American public wakes up to the fact that that Law Enforcement cannot protect you. It is up to YOU the American citizen to protect yourself, your family and your loved ones. I hope and pray that some citizen will see or actually stop this scumbag in his tracks.

Unfortunately in Maryland, citizens are disarmed by government and are at the mercy of bad people. 25,000 gun laws are not stopping this scumbag. 80 million gun owners with 240 million firearms are praying this scumbag is nailed. Most all of them would pay the privilege to be excitation. I would bet that 75% of the anti gunners would pull the trap door on this scumbag as well.

It is time to get a life. Our hearts go out to all the victims and their extended families.

My comments on this scum bag not being a sniper is from personal experience. I live in the Midwest and prairie dog hunt. I have zero professional training and put hole in quarters at 200 hundred yards. We hunt prairie dogs 200 to 500 yards in 25 mph winds. What this scumbag is doing most anyone with a long gun (most all hunters) could show the same accuracy.

So the medias characterization this scumbag is a sniper is just media hype to sell airtime.

[Lion's Cub]

I've not seen anything about trajectory; but I remember reading or hearing on TV that police were considering that the shot came from the motel.

Since we're on the subject, here is an interesting tidbit from aristeides on this thread: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/767913/posts?page=1#29

To: forest

I was at the site of the killing of Pascal Charlot, the black Haitian, on Georgia Ave. in D.C. today. (I happened to be running an errand a couple of blocks north of the site.) Guess what? Three or four blocks north of where Charlot was when the bullet hit him is a Ramada Inn, also on Georgia Ave. (There was a Ramada Inn right across the street from yesterday's shooting. Law enforcement, according to today's Washington Post, was interested by the proximity of motels in several recent shootings of the sniper.) I didn't see balconies, but, because Georgia Ave. goes downhill as you go southwards towards where Charlot was, you would have a clear line of sight to him from the roof and from the upper stories of the Ramada Inn. And because the Ramada Inn is in Montgomery County, MD, whereas Charlot was just barely inside D.C., investigating the crime if the shooting was from the Ramada Inn would present jurisdictional difficulties. 29 posted on 10/12/02 9:25 PM Eastern by aristeides

[pttttt]

Undaunted by her gubernatorial loss, Janet invests in a cheap paint job and continues her Red Truck Tour in the nations capital.

Can't be her; hand isn't steady enough.

[humblegunner]

Cool!

[Peach]

50% of people in Maryland will want gun laws strengthened. 50% will go out and buy guns to protect themselves.

[Peach]

Let's hope they got him.

[CPL BAUM]

Good working theory. So, if the shooter is using a company vehicle (sometimes an Isuzu, sometimes an Astrovan) - what type of business would allow for such a large delivery area? Party rental store? Some specialty business, I'd imagine. Next step is run a search through DMV for business that own BOTH an Isuzu box truck and an Astrovan.

[Peach]

Thanks for the posting advice; I'll try again (fingers crossed). Regards.

[Elenya]

'Morning, Mero. The 36 year old man business seems to be a good sign for your older man theory. It could also be a red herring. So far, looks like we agree on the fact that they play violent video games. Am I right? See my post #157 for a recap. What's your take on it?

[bvw]

The sniper's greatest asset is the beltway mentality itself. Here are some parts of that psychology at least, in my view.

1. There is some government agency that is going to take of this for me, e.g. some FBI-CTTF counter-sniper will take out the sniper. Some official will save my life. Somebody else will save my children.

   This is also related to victimology.

2. The people are a rabble and can't be trusted. For example, DC bans guns, Maryland nearly bans guns and the level of zoning enforcement and the power of planning boards in the MD-DC-NVA area is without equal in the nation.

   Therefore "armed" citizen patrols, "armed" citizens are beyond the pale.

3. I can't trust my neighbor -- I don't even know him. This is an interesting feature of the DC area. Although there is a great, overwhleming conformity in new architecture, in town layout, in how one landscapes, how one dresses, how one runs one life -- people don't really know their nieghbors! It is a place full of cul-de-sacs, both in road layout and in sociology.

   Therefore each percieves himself as alone, and is unable to reach out to the nieghbors and establish locally organized patrols. This kind of grass-roots organization would have happened nearly anywhere else in the US.

4. Inability to deal with radically changed situations. In other parts of the country there are floods, tornados, hurricanes, fires. These all produce radical changes that must be dealt with. DC Metro has none of these. The great masses of pensionaires are absolutely uncomfortable with change, period, much less radical change.

   Rather than getting out and dealing with it, the modal response in the DC Metro area is to withdraw, to attempt to hide, hole up.

In reality, the snipers are "At play in the Fields of the Lord" so to speak, as that phrase is understood to mean someone exploiting a blindness or abject weakness in some culture.

Bid for Action!

Folks and individuals in the DC Metro must "empower" themselves and get out there and stay out there with their nieghbors and mount local organized and constant cooordination responses to this attack. Get out there, buddy-up, soon and NOW!

[woofer]

I live in the Midwest and prairie dog hunt. I have zero professional training and put hole in quarters at 200 hundred yards. We hunt prairie dogs 200 to 500 yards in 25 mph winds.

I presume South Dakota as you fave short-tailed ankle-buster spot. It was mine when living in Minnesota. Used a .22-250 to bag my ferret bait. Everything else let the bang get to the prairie pop-up whistlers before the bullet, causing too many misses. BTW, I first tried shootin' with a Ruger Mini-14 chambered in .223, then the Rem. .222 bolt-action before being made wise by the rancher on who's ground I was plinking on as to the merits of going super-sonic on the ammo.

As with you, I have no background in professional shooting. I read a lot about Marine scout-snipers and how they learned to shoot. Mostly, my training was courtesy of the red squirrel of SW Illinois and assorted bottles and cans. Did't shoot at a paper taget until I was 30. That and the fact that my dad taught each of us boys to shoot with a Springfield '03 after we had mastered it's breakdown, cleaning/care and reassembly ala his Army background.

[Merovingian]

Good Morning Geo,(can't think of another nickname!)

Yes, you are correct in that I would not be surprised if this guy is very involved in interactive online gaming, esp the sony playstation game socom:Navy Seals...

I also can only see one shooter, and definitely NOT anyone under 30...actually i think he is more like 40+.. This entire operation is WAY too sophisticated for any kid or kids..Bo is way off there, although he does keep mentioning games..

I also have never put any stock whatsoever in the white box truck...at least not until the most recent shooting in VA again talking about one..still say that when a shooting occurs, the mind is under the powerful suggestion of WHITE VAN, thus immediately zeros in on anything white..This guy would have to be a moron (he is not) to be driving around in a monstrous white truck, even after the first mention of it...even the guy on MSNBC also says "LE sources tell me that they think he has changed vehicles"..err duh

[Merovingian]

beltway mentality itself

Very concise and thoughtful summary...........

[isthisnickcool]

I posted this a few days back.

There is a site here that gives the Muslim prayer times.

It appears that none of the shootings are right at or near prayer times. I'm just pointing out that some people that happen to be Muslims have been wanting to kill Americans and terrorize Americans. That's what's happening here.

[tomkat]

Additionally, I think the Tarot card shooting is a red herring and possibly likely a copycat

i agree

[tomkat]

sounds like your running into an IE security block within your browser (?)

$0.02

[Peach]

I think you could very easily be correct.

[Elenya]

This guy would have to be a moron (he is not) to be driving around in a monstrous white truck, even after the first mention of it...even the guy on MSNBC also says "LE sources tell me that they think he has changed vehicles"..err duh

Agreed. Certainly by now with the composite photo they won't use the truck anymore unless they're ME terrorists and could care less about being spotted. It's possible they continued using it last week even after the mention of a white van since there are soooo many of them as we saw on Friday.

One thing I disagree on is the number. I really think it would be very difficult for one man to pull it off. And I read theories about the perp(s) waiting for a white van to come by before shooting someone. That I definitely can't imagine. Way too risky and complicated on all accounts. What's your take on that one?

[Peach]

At least somebody knows what they're talking about, because when it comes to IE(?) security blocks, I sure don't.