The Other McCain

"One should either write ruthlessly what one believes to be the truth, or else shut up." — Arthur Koestler

Hateful Racist Teabagger from Pakistan?

Posted on | May 3, 2010 | 22 Comments

Keith Olbermann will be heartbroken:

Federal authorities are closing in on the man they say is a person of interest in the Times Square car bomb attempt this weekend, who is described as a naturalized American citizen who hails from Pakistan and just returned after spending five months there. . . .
There is growing evidence the bomber did not act alone and had ties to radical elements overseas, with one senior official telling ABC News there are several individuals believed to be connected with the bombing and that at least one of them is a Pakistani-American. . . .

When someone pointed out that the bomb was parked near the New York headquarters of Viacom (i.e., Comedy Central), I figured the perp might be a Muslim trying to avenge the “South Park” Mohammed episode, but I didn’t blog that hunch — or anything else about the Times Square bomb attempt — because I didn’t want to jump to a conclusion in the absence of evidence.

And I still don’t want to jump all the way to a conclusion. Ace of Spades notes that NYC Mayor Mike Bloomberg guessed “somebody with a political agenda that doesn’t like the health care bill or something.”

And who knows? Maybe there are lots of Pakistani-Americans upset about the health care bill. “Or something,” as Mayor Bloomberg said.

UPDATE: News is breaking quickly now, and Allahpundit notes this report from CBS News:

The source said forensic evidence uncovered in the vehicle led them to a Middle Eastern man’s name that was familiar to counter terrorism investigators.

So it’s apparently somebody who was already on their list. Will keep an eye on this story, now that the investigation has proceeded past the point where we’re not merely guessing about the perps and their motives. More at Memeorandum.

UPDATE II: A Green Room poster comments on the reluctance of Attorney General Eric Holder and some in the media to label the botched car-bomb an act of terrorism. That reluctance may have been mainly due to the crudeness of the bomb, which was so amateurish as to be an embarrassment to any terrorist organization that claimed credit for it.

UPDATE III: Speaking of embarrassments, the dimwit “Hutaree Militia” suspects have been released on bond and Professor Glenn Reynolds says:

It’s only speculation that [the feds rushed to arrest the suspects] because there was pressure from the Administration to generate some militia-threat headlines precisely at the time that the “militia threat” was the talking-point of the day. But it’s not unreasonable speculation, based on what we know so far . . . .

Like I say, not jumping all the way to a conclusion.

UPDATE IV: Speaking of professors, William Jacobson notices that New York Gov. David Patterson is expressing concern about the rights of criminal immigrants. Excellent timing, governor!

UPDATE V: Associated Press:

The vehicle identification number had been removed from Pathfinder’s dashboard, but it was stamped on the engine, and investigators used it to find the owner on record.
“The discovery of the VIN on the engine block was pivotal in that it led to identifying the registered owner,” Browne said. “It continues to pay dividends.” . . .

(More amateurism — the perp evidently didn’t realize that the VIN is stamped on every engine block.)

The SUV was parked near offices of Viacom Inc., which owns Comedy Central. The network recently aired an episode of the animated show “South Park” that the group Revolution Muslim had complained insulted the Prophet Muhammad by depicting him in a bear costume.

Location, location, location. Here’s an AP video report:

USA Today:

Evan Kohlmann, a terrorism analyst who has served as a consultant for the U.S. government, said the device — as described by police — is extremely crude and bears little likeness to the work of al-Qaeda.
“Calling this thing a bomb may be giving it too much credit,” he said. “This appears more like a glorified Molotov cocktail.
“I don’t think this looks like al-Qaeda,” he said, “but you have to be careful. Even organized terror groups are not always foolproof.”

We might consider the possibility that eight years of a global war on terror has degraded the ability of al-Qaeda to recruit members and organize attacks.

UPDATE VI: Allahpundit:

It’s almost not worth speculating on whether this is jihadis or domestic terrorists at work, since drawing the wrong conclusion either way will leave the left or right screaming at you.

Meh. I don’t care who screams at me, as long as I’m right. The evidence is “mixed,” as Allah says, and it’s too early to jump all the way to a conclusion, but if they’ve traced the car and ID’d the buyer as a Pakistani . . .

Category: Foreigners, New York, Pakistan, Terrorism

Comments

22 Responses to “Hateful Racist Teabagger from Pakistan?”

  1. Dandapani
    May 4th, 2010 @ 12:47 am

    But can the individual be tied to the TEA Party?

  2. Dandapani
    May 3rd, 2010 @ 7:47 pm

    But can the individual be tied to the TEA Party?

  3. Your blog headline of the day « The Daley Gator
    May 3rd, 2010 @ 7:54 pm

    […] Your blog headline of the day Published May 3, 2010 Blog of the Day! , Uncategorized Leave a Comment Tags: Tea baggers, Tea bagging Goes to The Other McCain for this piece of gold! […]

  4. Robert Stacy McCain
    May 4th, 2010 @ 12:59 am

    But can the individual be tied to the TEA Party?

    Doesn’t tea come from Pakistan?

  5. Robert Stacy McCain
    May 3rd, 2010 @ 7:59 pm

    But can the individual be tied to the TEA Party?

    Doesn’t tea come from Pakistan?

  6. just a conservative girl
    May 4th, 2010 @ 2:21 am

    I am sure that the administration is sorely disappointed that the 40 year old white man was just changing his shirt.

  7. just a conservative girl
    May 3rd, 2010 @ 9:21 pm

    I am sure that the administration is sorely disappointed that the 40 year old white man was just changing his shirt.

  8. JeffS
    May 4th, 2010 @ 2:48 am

    We might consider the possibility that eight years of a global war on terror has degraded the ability of al-Qaeda to recruit members and organize attacks.

    Being hunted by the US military, law enforcement, and spooks for eight years would have that effect, yes.

  9. JeffS
    May 3rd, 2010 @ 9:48 pm

    We might consider the possibility that eight years of a global war on terror has degraded the ability of al-Qaeda to recruit members and organize attacks.

    Being hunted by the US military, law enforcement, and spooks for eight years would have that effect, yes.

  10. KG
    May 4th, 2010 @ 2:54 am

    So much for the “police are looking for a white male” thing that the leftists were so giddy over.

  11. KG
    May 3rd, 2010 @ 9:54 pm

    So much for the “police are looking for a white male” thing that the leftists were so giddy over.

  12. The American Spectator : AmSpecBlog : Bomb Suspect is Pakistani? Darn That Glenn Beck!
    May 3rd, 2010 @ 10:18 pm

    […] officials investigating Saturday's attempted car-bombing in Time Square are now seeking a suspect with ties to Pakistan. Ah, but Monday morning — before this latest development in the investigation was reported — […]

  13. Estragon
    May 4th, 2010 @ 9:30 am

    The would-be bomber was a man of Pakistani origin who had recently spent weeks in Pakistan. We don’t know where he went or what he did while there – at least, not yet.

    But of course it’s possible he got home, caught up on the news, and got really ticked about health care and rigged up a car bomb in a similar fashion as known Qaeda car bombs in Europe in the last three years.

    It’s possible, but it ain’t bloody likely now, is it?

  14. Estragon
    May 4th, 2010 @ 4:30 am

    The would-be bomber was a man of Pakistani origin who had recently spent weeks in Pakistan. We don’t know where he went or what he did while there – at least, not yet.

    But of course it’s possible he got home, caught up on the news, and got really ticked about health care and rigged up a car bomb in a similar fashion as known Qaeda car bombs in Europe in the last three years.

    It’s possible, but it ain’t bloody likely now, is it?

  15. NYC Bomb Suspect Faisal Shahzad Arrested at JFK; Glenn Beck Still at Large : The Other McCain
    May 4th, 2010 @ 5:29 am

    […] who were guilty of a rush to judgment.UPDATE: OK, so the bomb suspect isn’t a right-wing teabagger. What do we know about the guy? Via Hot Air Headlines, here’s NBC News:Law enforcement […]

  16. McGehee
    May 4th, 2010 @ 11:47 am

    Maybe the bomber had a grievance against NYC for the parking situation.

  17. McGehee
    May 4th, 2010 @ 6:47 am

    Maybe the bomber had a grievance against NYC for the parking situation.

  18. The Left Bombs…Bigtime « The Camp Of The Saints
    May 4th, 2010 @ 12:46 pm

    […] – Hateful Racist Teabagger from Pakistan? […]

  19. NYC Times Square Car Bomb: Latest News on ‘One-Off’ ‘Lone Wolf’ Faisal Shahzad : The Other McCain
    May 4th, 2010 @ 2:18 pm

    […] HARDEST HITPREVIOUSLY:NYC Bomb Suspect Faisal Shahzad Arrested at JFK; Glenn Beck Still at LargeHateful Racist Teabagger from Pakistan? var addthis_pub='smitty1e';var addthis_language='en';var addthis_options='twitter, digg, email, […]

  20. Adam Brooks
    May 9th, 2010 @ 6:59 pm

    Southpark is quite funny but some of the scenes maybe a bit too morbid even for adults.:~*

  21. Adam Brooks
    May 9th, 2010 @ 1:59 pm

    Southpark is quite funny but some of the scenes maybe a bit too morbid even for adults.:~*

  22. Times Square Car Bomb Suspect a “Bald White Man” from Pakistan :: The Lonely Conservative
    July 7th, 2010 @ 3:43 pm

    […] until the following day. It looks like the suspect is a “bald white man” from Pakistan, not a teabagger. Sorry lefties. You won’t be able to pin this on the tea […]