Larry Johnson put the whole thing in perspective rather quickly and to the point yesterday when the body count in the VTech shooting was still at 22.
Even with the latest numbers of those murdered in Monday’s shooting now at 33, it’s dwarfed by Sunday’s numbers in Iraq, where 65 lives were lost and 20 policemen were taken hostage.
And yet, that has been happening virtually every day for years now in Iraq, where jerks like Cheney and McCain and Bush continue to tell us that “things are getting better” and it’s the media who are failing to report the “good news.”
Take a look at the wall-to-wall media coverage ever since the 33 tragic fatalities on Monday in America, and imagine what would be going on here if a VTech-sized tragedy or two or three happened every single day in this country for years on end. Imagine if it happened just two or three days in a row! (Not to mention the population of Iraq is less than 10% the size of the United States.)
Would we blame the media for not reporting the “good news” each day? Or would we demand that something be done — now — to stop the carnage?
As usual, Johnson’s take, documented with AP’s reports on killings in Iraq on Sunday, is worth reading and noting.
In a follow-up today, Johnson notes the failures of the cable news channels, in their continuous, wall-to-wall coverage, to point out the following:
- “Bush is going to attend services for the victims of the Virginia Tech shooting today. When was the last time Bush did that for the troops? Oh, right, never!,” writes Leslie below.
- Bush has ordered the nation’s flags flown at half-staff until Sunday. Did Bush order flags lowered after Katrina’s devastation and the deaths of hundreds of people?
- It was astonishing to watch news reporters rabidly attack Virginia Tech’s president and chief of police. Why don’t news reporters regularly attack Bush and Cheney like that?
Lest we be criticized for not taking the VTech shootings seriously, make no mistake, they are an indescribable tragedy. But so are the number of human beings killed every single day in Iraq, day after day after nightmarish day, since the United States needlessly invaded their country.
And yet, the number one story reported by the media last week was Don Imus, followed by Anna Nicole, followed by the number one under-reported story: the death of our national conscience…
UPDATE 9:21pm PT: 85 killed or found dead in Iraq on Tuesday…
UPDATE 4/18/07: 233 killed of found dead in Iraq on Wednesday…
“Americans have the right to bear arms.” were the first words out of that pinhead’s mouth.
Way to cater to the NRA voting block in a time of national crisis and catastrophe, Dubya.
You know why Bush is attending the funeral? It’s a great way to win some approval ratings AND it’s close to D.C.
Had this happened at CalTech, Bush would barely remember to order flowers.
Personally, I’d like to see that changed to “the DUTY to bear arms”.
Pardon me if I point out that the wild west was a lot saner culture than we have now, by far.
I’d also like to see the daily slaughter in Iraq and Afghanistan get this kind of coverage.
Forget about the implications for gun control for awhile. Think of this: the worst school *killings* were committed by a guy protesting *taxes* back in 1927, and he used bombs and not guns. More importantly, *he blew himself up*! He was one of our first “suicide bombers”! This is something to throw at arrogant righties complaining about Cho’s gripes against rich kids, or that if everyone there had a gun they could have stopped him (our local ex-marine talk show host at WNIS 790 pointed out that many could die in a cross fire from untrained kids at that time, and in fights before such a tragedy), or Cho’s having an Islamic-themed “Ismael Axe” tattoo on his arm ,etc:
http://freepages.history.rootsw...e/disaster.htm
On May 18, 1927, 45 people, mostly children, were killed and 58 were injured when disgruntled and demented school board member Andrew Kehoe dynamited the new school building in Bath, Michigan out of revenge over his foreclosed farm due in part to the taxes required to pay for the new school.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ba...chool_disaster
The Bath School disaster is the name given to not one but three bombings in Bath Township, Michigan, USA, on May 18, 1927, which killed 45 people and injured 58. Most of the victims were children in second to sixth grades attending the Bath Consolidated School. Their deaths constitute the deadliest act of mass murder in a school in U.S. history. The perpetrator was school board member Andrew Kehoe, who was upset by a property tax that had been levied to fund the construction of the school building. He blamed the additional tax for financial hardships which led to foreclosure proceedings against his farm. These events apparently provoked Kehoe to plan his attack.
…
tyrannogenius
Agent 99,
I am with ya there man.
Neil B.,
Kinda hard to forget about the implications for gun control for awhile, when already it’s been pounded over and over by certain folks (who I won’t name) all day today. I guess they don’t realise that the Constitution got a few service patches over the last few years by some OATH OF OFFICE BREAKERS.
Leaving 1,2,3,4,5,6 and 7 removed.
Redundant question to everyone else:
Did the Emergency Alert System get used?
if no, then ask yourself how anyone is taking homeland security seriously. And then TIE that back to electronic voting machines and WHY IT IS SO IMPORTANT THEY ALL BE DESTROYED AT THE E-WASTE PLANTS!
I’d use a bit stronger word than “irony”, Brad, but the point is obvious.
How the man can hold himself together and not disintegrate into some kind of noxious blob is beyond me.
It’s probably time to pull out your copy of Bowling for Coumbine and reflect on why we still haven’t answered the questions it poses.
Imagine how the Iraqis feel … it happens every single day … for years …
I am proud to be against the Iraq war from before it started up to this very moment.
Katrina’s victims didn’t get the flags flown at half mast because Americans would have expected accountability.
It is all about politics with the White House.
I am with Keith Olbermann and wondering how these students can get more media coverage than our young dying every day in Iraq. The only ones counting our military deaths every day are Lou Dobbs and Keith Olbermann.
Truthster says:
I suppose I am concerned about the VT shootings because the effect may be similar to the anthrax that was sent to Daschle to get him to sign the patriot act. If there was more than a lone gunman (and their seems to be more mysteries in this story than in Disney’s Haunted Mansion-think it might be closed now) then this might have been planned to send a message to congress. Something like: We can get to your kids-stop messing with us.
If this is the case, then it could escalate Iraq, Iran, NK, paper ballot initiatives, basically we would again have what we voted against.
So the inquiry into this massacre might be warranted seeing as OK City, Columbine, Unabomber and 911 left many with unanswered questions and resulted in compromising our liberties out of fear.
So for the sake of argument, let’s look at some facts:
For over 30 years our taxes have been paying for the following CIA projects in an attempt to master mind control (we needed to do it, as we believed the Russians were doing it and we could not fall behind in new technologies):
Project Bluebird
Project Artichoke
Project MK Ultra
Project MK Delta
Project Monarch
Here is the table of contents:
http://www.blackvault.com/docum...ol/hearing.pdf
These documents were released to theblackvault.com under freedom of information act in 2005.
The following specific document titled:
“Hypnotic Experimentation and research”
2/10/54
Describes a hypnotic subject who has a disdain for firearms pulling the trigger of an empty gun while pointing it to another subject’s face.
http://www.blackvault.com/docum...90691_0001.TIF
The Project Monarch Delta Program deals with the following: This is known as “killer” programming, originally developed for training special agents or elite soldiers (i.e. Delta Force, First Earth Battalion, Mossad, etc.) in covert operations. Optimal adrenal output and controlled aggression is evident. Subjects are devoid of fear; very systematic in carrying out their assignment. Self-destruct or suicide instructions are layered in at this level.
http://www.bibliotecapleyades.n..._mindcon02.htm
With over 20 references
Since the 1950’s the projects involved using a combination of mind altering drugs, psychotherapy, hypnosis, repetitive loop listening (forcing the subject to listen to the same audio loop for hours even days). The subjects were unknowing citizens of US and Canada who went into various medical facilities for common psychological issues (anxiety, depression, etc.). Protocol in the hospitals were set up to trigger attention to those that fit specific criteria.
The knowledge of the project came to light when a congressman’s wife was used in a hospital in Canada. She became comatose from the “treatment” and the congressman ordered the hearings that revealed the thousands of documents.
After that happened, not one person when to jail for these seemingly heinous crimes. The projects have moves to more secretive areas after the hearings. Due to the revolution of mind control drugs, supposedly the conditioning of a subject can be expedited.
The symptoms of this killer seem to match the symptoms of someone in a monarch delta program, for instance:
He was void of any emotions
He listened to one song over and over
He acted robotic with deliberation
He made a suicide bomber video discussing how much he was fed up with being tortured or abused
He writes the most asinine stories
He shifts from a quiet stalker to the ultimate warrior in a second
He seems to be protected up until the shootings, although students complain that he is a stalker, he remains a student and after visiting a mental institution in 2005 he is able to buy 2 handguns
There are drugs found in his dorm room
His actions are almost identical to another killer in Australia that killed 35 in one spree:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gu...s_consequences
It seemed that the purpose or at least the result was more gun control and police powers. This was a desire for the president of VT Steger as is shown by his attendance to this interesting conference in 2005 (possibly can show motif):
http://www.covits.org/archives/2005/program.html
In addition he had Ismail Ax (or Ak) tattooed and written on his arm and the mysterious package was sent to A Ismail at NBC.
Ishmael Ax refers to a Judeo/Christian/Islamic story about chopping up the idols so that we can worship the one true God.
But”¦
Ismail Ak refers to a Turkish Physician that is very skilled in mind altering drugs and violence.
Dr. ISMAIL AK is a Professor of Psychiatry at a university in Turkey. His research interests include the following:
Personal Disorders, Aggressive behavior and self-mutilation, ECT, Substance-related disorders, Sexual Disorders, Forensic Psychiatry, Sleep Disorders
From the Turkish Association of Psychopharmacology website:
Professor Ismail AK, M.D. Head, Department of Psychiatry, KTU School of Medicine, Trabzon, Turkey
Ismail AK is Professor of Clinical Psychiatry at Head, Department of Psychiatry, KTU School of Medicine, Trabzon, Turkey
He is an experienced on clinical psychopharmacology of schizophrenia and bipolar disorders.
Dr. Ismail Ak is one of the authors of an article about patients with mental disorders, psychotic features, etc.:
As regards pharmacotherapies, 354 (50.2%) were given antidepressants. . . . Among antidepressants, Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) were 72.8%. . . .
This is an abstract of an article co-written by Dr. ISMAIL AK:
Even though all psychiatric disorders do not have the same potential with regard to committing a crime, the number of individuals having psychiatric disorders is gradually going up depending on the increase of crimes and violent behaviors committed in a society. . . . The relation between existence of psychiatric disorder and crime behavior has been significantly emphasized in several earlier studies. In conclusion, it is notable that the rates of committing crime for the individuals with psychiatric disorders are on the rise.
Dr. Ismail Ak is apparently one of the world’s leading experts on the psychiatry of antisocial and suicidal behavior, psychotic and bipolar disorders, psychopharmacological therapy, etc.
The young man had been noticed to be disturbed and had been referred to counseling. Dr. Ismail Ak is an expert and author in the particular field most directly related to the guy’s disorder.
So it’s possible that the writing on the guy’s arm said
ISMAIL AK
I am not sure what was written, but did he see the name written or maybe he only heard the name and did not know how to spell it in that moment of climax.
Surprising to me is also the timing of the changes in the morning lineup from more spontaneous newscasters to more controlled ones:
CNN – Soledad out/John Roberts in
MSNBC – Imus out (not that there is anything wrong with that, but the timing is peculiar)/David Gregory in
Of course other timing issues are obvious, because of this the following has occurred:
Delay in AG Testimony
Delay in sending VP’s articles of impeachment
Delay in debating the details of Bush’s intelligence expenditure and details of his secret prisons
Shift in focus of attention on Iraq and Wolfowitz
Anyway, just thought this might be a way to have more evidence presented without the lack of coverage such information gets in the MSM. But I think we realize from the Libby trial that the MSM is capable of deceiving many toward an individual’s agenda.
I think it is time for us to realize that murders, rapes, kidnapings and other hedious acts are the consequence of a society that every day cares less about others. We don’t care when a new kid comes to our school, we don’t care being rude on the streets, or cold towards others problems. We need to be able to go back in time and remember when people used to say “Good morning” or “Good afternoon” on the street, or when we used to take dinner to our sick neighbor. We have to care for one another!! we should be able to make others confortable around us, help others become all they can be, we must become a society in which its people love and care about others. I know it may sound cheesy, but if we cared enough maybe the other “Chos” that at this moment are thinking about killing others in elementary or high schools, at malls or other public places, maybe they will think twice before commiting such atrocities. Maybe if we care for others, others will care about us too.. lets love one another, care for one another, that way we can make this world a better place for everyone to live.
It completely angers me when some people have the intent to use their freedom of speech as a way to renounce the president. People have died at a place where death is not common. Death is common in war. War is a horrible thing but without it, we would not have this great country. Before you post about how horrible the president is or how he is blamed with killing troops in Iraqi, think of those you were effected by this horrible act. The selfishness in this blog is outstanding.
… Isaa Hardy said…
“It completely angers me when some people have the intent to use their freedom of speech as a way to renounce the president.”
No no no… we’re just using our freedom of speech to denounce the current President.
We’ve used the ballot box to renounce him, but he didn’t get the message.
Next up is the jury box…