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| A Web based image said to be the couple Syood and Tashfeen |
(These are the dead suspects, who leave behind a six month old daughter; she was left with a grand parent on a claim that her parents were going to the dentist. Syed's father reportedly: “ . . . identified his son as “very religious. He would go to work, come back, go to pray, come back. He’s Muslim.”)
A third suspect may be Farouk's brother.
U/D 7:37 pm, CNN indicates Farouk was in contact with international terrorism:
(CNN)Syed Rizwan Farook -- who along with his wife, Tashfeen Malik, carried out the San Bernardino shooting massacre -- apparently was radicalized and in touch with people being investigated by the FBI for international terrorism, law enforcement officials said Thursday.Farook's apparent radicalization contributed to his role in the mass shooting of 14 people Wednesday during a holiday party for the San Bernardino County health department, where Farook worked, sources said.Still, it wasn't necessarily the only driver behind the carnage, as workplace grievances might have also played a role.
Sadly, maybe that is precisely why -- doubtless on excuses about guns being un-mentionable (but look at how many nauseating sexual pathologies etc are now openly brought up without batting an eye) -- we heard nothing on this vital point.
UPDATE, 7:05 am EC time: Police chief confirms, AR-15 family 0.223/ 5.56 mm x 45 mm rifles, suggests on the preparations, there was planning. He confirms explosive devices -- leaning is pipe bomb type designs, which implies a significantly higher level of knowledge and skill as well as preparation than just a shooter. It also makes terrorism, likely lone wolf, a highly likely explanation. Pipe bomb preparation is not a simple thing to do, especially fuzing . . . the assumption is, something like bullet reloading propellant is being used as primary detonating charge. If a different explosive is implicated, that will point to much deeper laid preparation, whether home brew or something like C4 or Semtex etc.
U/D Dec 4, 6:55 am: A note on the weapons by CBS:
All four guns used by the suspects in the deadly San Bernardino shooting have been traced and they were all purchased legally, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives confirmed Thursday. [--> NBC: "the two .223-caliber assault rifles were a DPMS model and a Smith & Wesson MMP 15 model, while the two semi-automatic hand guns were manufactured by llama and Smith & Wesson. "]
SW M&P15 rifle, US$509
CBS News' Paula Reid reported that two of the guns were purchased by someone who is already known by investigators.
A law enforcement source told CBS News senior investigative producer Pat Milton the weapons were purchased legally in California. The long guns were legally transferred from a friend. [--> silence on the pistols, LAT says bought by "the man" and recovered ammunition suggests standard 9 mm parabellum]
Meredith Davis of the ATF said all four guns were bought four years ago. [--> when did the weapons come into the possession of the couple, and what about reports of other weapons, the consistent gappiness of these reports is troubling, as in we tell you what to think, what to think about and induce how to feel] Davis said California requires paperwork when guns change hands privately but many other states don't.
She also said the rifles involved were .223-caliber - powerful enough to pierce the standard protective vest worn by police officers, and some types of ammo can even plow through walls. [--> not said: such is normal for rifles (and in fact due to uncontrollability of full calibre rifle rounds on full auto save in a much heavier machine gun, Assault rifles use intermediate power rounds and in the M16 family, reduced calibre as in .22 inch not .30 inch the early-mid C20 standard full mil rifle round calibre), which due to being unwieldy and hard to conceal are seldom used in criminal activities.] . . . .
Burguan [Chief of SB Police] says the suspects were wearing "assault-style clothing" and were both armed with assault rifles [--> unless modified to full auto/burst and semi auto mode this cannot be; likely, semiauto AR15 based on a semiauto only version of the M16, i.e. one round per trigger pull not 3 round bursts or full auto at about 10 shots per second] and handguns [--> what types, what calibre, semiauto or modified to go full auto].
The suspects' clothing was "loaded with magazines for a gunfight," Davis said.
U/D 7:17 pm: Found in the Farouk townhouse:
It seems there was a neighbour who, for fear of being deemed racist for profiling, did not report work in a garage at odd hours, multiple package deliveries and more. Had a report led to a raid, the incident likely could have been averted. This lends sinister colour to Islamist apologists seeking to desensitise onlookers who may notice suspicious behaviour.
We should be drawing lessons from the contrasting case of the attack on a Geller meeting in Texas, stopped by a brave security guard in the parking lot.
Unsurprisingly, ISIS supporters are celebrating this incident as a case of Jihad by bands carrying out a Razzia, a small unit operations raid that may be hit, loot and run or a suicidal attack meant to strike fear into the hearts of dar ul harb (the house of war) whilst perceived to be securing paradise for those fallen in jihad. This is the heritage of the infamous Assassins cult of Islam, resurrected in our day by the IslamISTS.
The direct lead-up to the incident as reported is:
Farook, 28, was currently an inspector for the San Bernardino County Environmental Health department and was attending the meeting/luncheon at the center [which seems to have been a Christmas-themed training event]. At some point, he was apparently asked to leave. It was unclear why.Video, from the same story:
So, it is reasonable to speculate that Farouk was radicalised, and prepared for something like this. Weapons, equipment and significant training are implicated -- it is not easy to achieve a death-wounded ratio of 14:17, military ratios tend to be much lower.
Something happened and triggered the razzia.
And no, no direct connexions to ISIS etc are required.
Though, Farouk may have simply pledged loyalty to Al Baghdadi as Caliph, who has plainly called for global jihad by the simple expedient of declaring his conquered swath of land in Syria and Iraq, THE Islamic State. In radical eyes that is enough to delegitimise all other states and to re-ignite the global jihad of subjugation of the whole world, It is not for nothing that Islam means submission under Allah, Allah's prophet, Allah's law and Allah's warriors. That is the sense in which "peace" is meant.
And, you will not hear that explanation from pundits, state leaders or Islamic spokesmen intent on strategic deception (taqiyya or the equivalent) as part of the jihad of the tongue.
It is to history and to the established 1400 year corpus of core Muslim teachings and precedents that we must look, look for ourselves.
That, is chillingly clear.
Mohammed, with his early raids against and looting of Meccan caravans from his then newly acquired base in Yathrib (renamed Medina) is more than enough precedent in the Islamic corpus for the radicalised.
Our whole civilisation is now a target zone, and in radicalised eyes all of us are legitimate targets once we have failed to submit to the demand to surrender.
If we are wise, we will follow Israel's example and will now look at any public situation, event or context tactically, and will seek to harden target zones.
No more soft targets:
If we are sensible, we have had enough warning from Israel, Nigeria, Mali, London, Paris and so many other cases.
U/D, 8:20 am: US President Obama calls for . . . stronger gun control laws. In short, more soft targets and more dependence on police who are minutes to dozens of minutes away when seconds count with lives on the line. That either makes no sense to the point of fatal policy blindness, or else it makes all too chilling sense.
But, that common good and prudent sense backed up by determined, unyielding courage and fortitude for the long haul is precisely what is in question. END
