Explosion at Boston Marathon

[J70]

They're routine and normally merit only passing mention in NYC anyway.

[deiseach]

What left wing groups would you pinpoint as being as plausible as Islamic or right wing groups?

I don't see any mention of Martians either. Typical lamestream media, protecting aliens at the expense of white ordinary Americans!

[Main Street]

It seems to me that an American life is valued more than any other nationality in the world, judging the media and people's reactions (which are driven by the media).

Of course this is an awful tragedy, but it is not on our doorstep as some people have being saying.  Iraq/Afghanistan are actually closer to here than the US.

I think people are right to compare other bombings etc to highlight this point.

Half the people on the board have probably either been to Boston or have friends or relatives there. One of my wife's closest friends went to Boston for the marathon. Any of us or those close to us could have been caught up in it. It's just silly to take offense at the fact that this hit closer to home than atrocities in the middle east.

There are obvious reasons why there is countrywide attention in the USA focussed  with abhorrence on the no-warning bloody attack on a community, celebrating a festive event and why this attack resonated infinitely stronger than inhuman events inflicted outside the USA.
There are obvious reasons why some people here have more of a connection to Boston rather than Afghanistan and there are obvious reasons when also considering the media reporting which cements the images of horror.
But there are no moral reasons why we are not similarly bombarded with images of dismembered children from US/NATO bombing or bombings of similar festive community events in Afghanistan. For the most part Western media presents the first report straight from the lips of NATO, not even followed up by a 2nd report. and one has to search for some decent reporting. There are plenty of people who see no difference between the effects of one atrocity in the US and the other in Afghanistan, nor any difference in the value of those innocent lives who were murdered, nor any difference between the evilness of such attacks.

[LeoMc]

It seems to me that an American life is valued more than any other nationality in the world, judging the media and people's reactions (which are driven by the media).

Of course this is an awful tragedy, but it is not on our doorstep as some people have being saying.  Iraq/Afghanistan are actually closer to here than the US.

I think people are right to compare other bombings etc to highlight this point.

Half the people on the board have probably either been to Boston or have friends or relatives there. One of my wife's closest friends went to Boston for the marathon. Any of us or those close to us could have been caught up in it. It's just silly to take offense at the fact that this hit closer to home than atrocities in the middle east.

There are obvious reasons why there is countrywide attention in the USA focussed  with abhorrence on the no-warning bloody attack on a community, celebrating a festive event and why this attack resonated infinitely stronger than inhuman events inflicted outside the USA.
There are obvious reasons why some people here have more of a connection to Boston rather than Afghanistan and there are obvious reasons when also considering the media reporting which cements the images of horror.
But there are no moral reasons why we are not similarly bombarded with images of dismembered children from US/NATO bombing or bombings of similar festive community events in Afghanistan. For the most part Western media presents the first report straight from the lips of NATO, not even followed up by a 2nd report. and one has to search for some decent reporting. There are plenty of people who see no difference between the effects of one atrocity in the US and the other in Afghanistan, nor any difference in the value of those innocent lives who were murdered, nor any difference between the evilness of such attacks.

Good post.

[orangeman]

It seems to me that an American life is valued more than any other nationality in the world, judging the media and people's reactions (which are driven by the media).

Of course this is an awful tragedy, but it is not on our doorstep as some people have being saying.  Iraq/Afghanistan are actually closer to here than the US.

I think people are right to compare other bombings etc to highlight this point.

Half the people on the board have probably either been to Boston or have friends or relatives there. One of my wife's closest friends went to Boston for the marathon. Any of us or those close to us could have been caught up in it. It's just silly to take offense at the fact that this hit closer to home than atrocities in the middle east.

There are obvious reasons why there is countrywide attention in the USA focussed  with abhorrence on the no-warning bloody attack on a community, celebrating a festive event and why this attack resonated infinitely stronger than inhuman events inflicted outside the USA.
There are obvious reasons why some people here have more of a connection to Boston rather than Afghanistan and there are obvious reasons when also considering the media reporting which cements the images of horror.
But there are no moral reasons why we are not similarly bombarded with images of dismembered children from US/NATO bombing or bombings of similar festive community events in Afghanistan. For the most part Western media presents the first report straight from the lips of NATO, not even followed up by a 2nd report. and one has to search for some decent reporting. There are plenty of people who see no difference between the effects of one atrocity in the US and the other in Afghanistan, nor any difference in the value of those innocent lives who were murdered, nor any difference between the evilness of such attacks.

Agreed. Excellent post.

[LeoMc]

Suspicious packages will 'appear' everywhere as people have a heightened fear of everthing thing around them...

From the latest News conference:
An official with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives denies police had found seven explosive devices. The only bombs were the two that exploded, he says. He believes rumours begin as police dealt with suspicious packages.

[Declan]

As a friend of mine said this is the equivalent of a bomb at the St Patrick's Day parade in Dublin for the Bostonians.

[seafoid]

Suspicious packages will 'appear' everywhere as people have a heightened fear of everthing thing around them...

From the latest News conference:
An official with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives denies police had found seven explosive devices. The only bombs were the two that exploded, he says. He believes rumours begin as police dealt with suspicious packages.

I remember that straight after 911 there was a big media kerfuffle over anthrax letters 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2001_anthrax_attacks

The US is great for unfounded rumours allied to political ends.

[NAG1]

As a friend of mine said this is the equivalent of a bomb at the St Patrick's Day parade in Dublin for the Bostonians.

Or someone walking into a bar and spraying it with machine gun fire while innocent folk are sitting having a drink, ala many times here. 

[deiseach]

As a friend of mine said this is the equivalent of a bomb at the St Patrick's Day parade in Dublin for the Bostonians.

Or someone walking into a bar and spraying it with machine gun fire while innocent folk are sitting having a drink, ala many times here. 

I think Declan's point is that the Boston marathon isn't just any old foot race, it's the most prestigious marathon in the world.

[Declan]

I think Declan's point is that the Boston marathon isn't just any old foot race, it's the most prestigious marathon in the world.

Correct. That doesn't diminish any other atrocities just putting it into a perspective as to media  reaction

[stew]

More potential gun madness.

Waukesha is a suburb of Milwaukee in Wisconsin.

WAUKESHA - Officials have locked down the Carroll University campus in Waukesha after a report of a man with a firearm.

TODAY'S TMJ4's Jessie Garcia teaches a class on the campus, and Newsradio 620 WTMJ's Jodi Becker was assisting in a class there Tuesday morning.

They both say a text notification went to students' phones.  Jessie also said she received the notification.

Jodi tells us the reportedly armed man was seen near the campus' tennis courts.

This was the text that came to students:

"Text from Carroll:: Not a test There is a report of a male with a firearm walking near the tennis courts and the Barstow Building on Barstow. remain indoors until further notice"

A spokesman told TODAY'S TMJ4 that all students were being asked to stay inside.

[muppet]

Suspicious packages will 'appear' everywhere as people have a heightened fear of everthing thing around them...

From the latest News conference:
An official with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives denies police had found seven explosive devices. The only bombs were the two that exploded, he says. He believes rumours begin as police dealt with suspicious packages.

I remember that straight after 911 there was a big media kerfuffle over anthrax letters 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2001_anthrax_attacks

The US is great for unfounded rumours allied to political ends.

I remember an RTE correspondent reporting on the JFK AA587 Crash in nov 2001 when she said 'the event bore all the hallmarks of a terrorist attack'. I also remember shouting at the TV 'no it f*cking doesn't!'.

[Puckoon]

It seems to me that an American life is valued more than any other nationality in the world, judging the media and people's reactions (which are driven by the media).

Of course this is an awful tragedy, but it is not on our doorstep as some people have being saying.  Iraq/Afghanistan are actually closer to here than the US.

I think people are right to compare other bombings etc to highlight this point.

Iraq/Afghanistan is closer to here than the US? Well maybe you were talking geographically, I have to assume you are certainly not talking culturally. If you were, then in either instance you are wrong. By about 700 miles and a vast cultural difference.

Like it or not, Ireland and the UK are part of a western culture, strongly influenced by America. There was ginormous coverage of the massacre in Norway, the Cumbria shooting, the Connecticut massacre. It certainly isn't a case of American life being worth more in the eyes of the media. The media coverage and public reaction stems from the infrequency and seemingly random nature of these events, in our Western world.

American gun culture is so rampant that we are starting to become desensitized to the news stories, and it only really grabs the nation when it's a classroom of kindergartners rather than a movie theatre full of adults. The frequency of the events starts to dilute the media attention and public outcry that accompanies them. To highlight the point - here are a list of the bombings that Iraq has had to deal with in 2012.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/09/09/us-iraq-violence-timeline-idUSBRE8880K720120909.

Yesterdays attacks were awful. It was, however, the first time someone blew up the Boston Marathon, and it was also the latest in a long line of attacks by Iraquis, on Iraquis. Is it really reasonable to compare one to the other in order to make a political point?

[Count 10]

Horrible events, would love to know what the perpetrators hoped to achieve.