London bombs terror attack The Times and Sunday Times — It will be interesting to compare the resolve of the British compared to the quick panic and pathetic submission of the Spanish under a terrorist threat. The English have resolve and don’t put up with a lot of crap. I expect a round up of lots of suspects shortly.
The claim of responsibility – which could not be verified, was posted made on the Al Qal’ah – or Fortress – website by a group calling itself the Secret Organisation Group of al-Qaida of Jihad Organisation in Europe. The message, posted this morning, said: “The heroic mujahidin have carried out a blessed raid in London. Britain is now burning with fear, terror and panic in its northern, southern, eastern, and western quarters.”
If this is such a secret, why are they telling us who they are? Oh, and the website is a great idea if you don’t want to get caught, right? And if anyone is panicked it has to be the average workaday secular Muslim who had nothing to do with this lunacy.
Britain lost 62,000 civilians, mostly Londoners in WWII during the various buzzbomb and aerial attacks and didn’t knuckle under then. Then for decades had to put up with IRA bombings, mostly in London.
As you note, London used to be the focus of a lot of IRA bombings, many of which were deliberately meant to kill people (before the IRA realised that that was bad PR and so started giving out warnings). It used to be a (sadly) not uncommon thing to hear of a bomb going off.
It’s why there are no rubbish bins in any tube stations and near them (there haven’t been any for decades due to the fact the IRA used to put bombs in them). I actually had, like most people, pretty much got used to it. Still, it’s a bit stranger this time. It’s been a while and, however horrible the IRA were, they did have some limits.
But you’re right that these attacks will do nothing to weaken the government’s will. It’ll only make it stronger.
Secret Organisation Group of al-Qaida of Jihad Organisation in Europe
Do they have a secret clubhouse with a “No Girls Allowed” sign on it?
If it wasn’t such a sad day, I’d waste time trying to update “capeche”‘s ignorance of the various factions of the IRA, what they did, where and when. Which supported terror tactics against civilians and which didn’t.
Meanwhile, i just viewed an interesting discussion among Arabic philologists who agreed, uniformly, the web site posting was doubtless contrived by a non-Arabic speaker working their way through a dictionary in an attempt to come up with some self-thrilling stunt.
And, then, we get a translation of lousy Arabic — written by the Associated Press! Talk about the blind leading the blind.
It was not written by a native Arabic speaker.
“When you start the war, fight with arrows, spears and swords!”
Um, I think the case of the Spanish deal was due more to the Spanish government lying about the terrorist attack, and the public acted to remove them for their malfeasance.
Ed Campbell (if that is your real name), I don’t know what you mean by my ignorance. I know what I lived through and I don’t care which faction of the effing IRA bombed which building. ‘Twas all the same to me. A cousin of mine was nearly killed by them, thank you! Luckily, she escaped serious injury but did feel the dust and wind upon her face from one of their atrocities (Carlton Club–you can read this and skip down to the box that says “In Context” for details).
Perhaps you are one of those Irish-Americans who now feel guilt for having funded the IRA terrorists in the past. I’m sure I don’t know. PLUR, mate!
“Capeche”, the name is mine. I don’t hide behind pseudonyms. Being half-Italian, I’ll correct another of your illiteracies. Unless you’re using a family name, the word is “capiche”. My experience with folks who excuse the history of what the Brits and other Europeans inflicted on subjugated people is consistent. Just one of the reasons why we kicked British butt out of the United States back in 1776. A bunch of terrorists headed by Washington, Jefferson, Paine, et al, were successful for all the right reasons.
I don’t feel guilty about any support I’ve ever offered to the IRA. Folks who don’t know the difference between, say, the IRA and the Provos — are as guilty of slander and collaboration as those who supported the French paratroopers who relished their torture and murder of anyone who resisted their colonial politics — whether that resistance was demonstrated in Algiers or Paris. As blind, politically, as a Saudi named Bin Laden who considers all infidels his deadly enemy. You casually perpetuate slander that an educated military officer — or an ethical student of history — is required to comprehend. Among local folks, with whom I discuss military history, one of the best is an ex-member of the British forces used to “keep the Irish in line”. He knows damned well what I’m talking about. He knows the differences I refer to because he was on the ground, trying to sort out day-to-day resolution of the end result of hundreds of years of English colonial politics. None of which apparently bothers you a jot.
That’s why the crap continues.
I’ve felt more than blowing dust during decades of civil rights struggles right here in Freedomland. I don’t need any object lessons about political violence. I’ve acquired enough experience along the way — starting with being beaten and arrested for daring to challenge what folks considered the historic right to discriminate against Black folks. The first time was 50 miles from the White House.
Am I supposed to be sorry that one of Britain’s subject nations got pissed off enough to strike back and disturb your political snooze? It happened in India. It happened in the Caribbean. It happened in the US colonies. It happened everywhere the British flag signified foreign rule. Doesn’t mean I support attacking civilians. Failure to understand how and why it happens — continuing the same sort of public political bigotry that makes Abu Ghraib a statement of policy in Iraq — is what engenders fanaticism. Its called desperation, dude. It’s maintained by blind allegiance to reactionary standards and ignorance by the fools who keep thugs in power. Whether those thugs are Lord So-and-so in Dublin and Mombasa — or George W. and Tony Blair in Baghdad and Basrah.
Eduardo….there is more afoot than “living in fear” in the US….we’re awash in a struggle to get accurate information to the masses (because a very few corporations control the media), our schools are not doing a very good job of educating, and we are more divided — as a people — than ever before.
We’re a very large country…… and, you must take into account the internal battles we face. We are a nation of relatively educated urban dwellers v.s. rural v.s. uneducated urban dwellers v.s. suburbanites, displaced blue collar workers, service workers, and “professionals”. It’s a confusing mass of humanity.
We have been marketed to…to consume, consume, consume….to the point where many of us think that what Brittney Spears, or Tom Cruise, or…any of the “stars” think is as important as what an intelligent “educated” expert might speak, probably more so, unfortunately. The “average” American has never been out of the country, has little working knowledge of current world events (our news really does not cover it), and, has never been taught simple geography (cutbacks, weird educational agendas). The fact that we are relatively “literate” is misleading. The “average” American lives in a very strange, self-indulgent world. We eat overprocessed, tasteless (salty and fatty) foods until we can barely waddle, we are overly concerned about getting a good “deal” at Walmart, and most everyone is an expert at what’s on television at a given moment, and never have a clue what the G8 conference is. .
We are 50 states — each with it’s own “state” government, each trying to work under the federal umbrella. It’s massively confusing. To speak of “US” would mean to talk about 50 different sets of state laws, 50 different internal politics, 50 different needs and problems. We are united by our media, and by our federal government. Meanwhile, our Federal government appears to not be fully accountable to the people, and corporations are without limits. It is a rats nest of agencies, burecratic confusion, and a maze of who has jurisdiction compounded by special interests, hidden agendas and budgets, and doubletalk. I doubt the “average” American has any real knowledge of what our oversea’s agenda is, anymore than what agency would aid them to prosecute a company that…say…overcharges on fees and outright defrauds them.
Don’t assume that “we” are as organized as a massive unit of people as ANY European country, or Asian for that matter. We are not..
Meetsy
A very well written and reasoned piece. I agree with your argument about the multi-sectored society in reality. I might add that the arrogance that the rest of the world sees is due to the “American” culture driven into us by the mass media.
John Wayne couldn’t loose a battle. America won WWI and WWII by itself while the rest of the world watched. American products are the biggest and the best. American ideology is the best while the rest of the world are inferior wannabes. America invented democracy. America is the biggest, best, and baddest nation on this planet.
As this arrogance is driven into us, the same message is communicated to the rest of the world. And it is this message that makes us the most envied and hated nation.
Thanks for the comments, meetsy. For the record, I lived in the US for three years (in the Lone Star state 🙂 ). And I have a lot of good and bad things to say about the US. But what really infuriated me in this case was Dvorak’s comment about Spain bending to the terrorists, when we have had terrorism in Spain for the last 40 years, and we have managed to live in democrazy and to still respect the terrorists’ rights, doing what the law says. And fortunately, we have no Guantanamo Bay. Because having terrorists is one thing, but the State becoming a terrorist, and doing things behind (or above) the law is the worst thing that can happen to a country. And the people of that country not complaining about it is even worse …..