Petty criminals..

"Police found 23 cartridges, 900g of plastic explosives, a 200g stick of dynamite, two home-made bombs and a rifle."

Not so petty any more it seems. Just enough explosives to take out one theater, and a couple guns to keep everybody pacified till it all goes off.

Let's see here:

23 bullets? Near enough to load all of Two Whole magazines, one if it's an AK?

900 grams of plastique? Do remember that the stuff is available almost wholesale across Russia. What kind was it?

One stick of dynamite? Gosh!

Two "homemade bombs?" Were they loaded or not? What was in them?

One Whole Rifle? What kind? Causes one to quake in one's boots, it does.

The error here is to attribute it to Terrists without Knowing that's the case. Given that the Russian Federation is simultaneously in the throes of a pretty fair-sized Crime Wave, in which things like Bombs are not at all unknown to have been used in pursuit of mere criminal aims in the past, Why Not hold open the pretty fair chance that the Russian security forces have a better handle on it than some weenie here in the US?

Makes perfect sense to me.

This is where the entire Terrism Thing works so wondrous well. Anything, and close to Everything nefarious going on Out There becomes automatically attributed to Terrism, pretty much across the board. Even when it isn't.

Were our LEAs to follow such a pattern, they'd look like fools. But worse, they'd act like Fools -- and there's no Up Side to that.

It is entirely possible for more than one sort of Bad Thing to be going on simultaneously with others. It is entirely possible for arms and explosives to be cached at a construction site, but not be intended for use At that site. Or is that just too simple an idea to comprehend?

It's hard to keep a proper arms-length rational mindset, when there's such an impetus to really Wanting to attribute everything Bad out there to Terrism. But it's a trap, and best not to fall into it.
The alternative is really crazier than to have a bomb go off now and then.

Best not to get too carried away. This sort of thing can be viewed as a Terrism Force Multiplier by the Terrists. Makes them seem Far larger than they really are, makes folks Far more afraid of them than they really should be, and excuses Far too much gubmint action purportedly Fighting Terrism that really isn't.

Keep a Cool Head on this stuff. It just works better that way.

Does anybody else see how tortured poor Don's logic and syntax have become? He is so committed to the "Terrorism is Bunk" meme, that it is driving him round the bend.

HV: Just a tad over-interpreted, doncha s'pose?

Terrism isn't bunk. Never said it was.

But everything out there isn't Terrism.

It's important to discern the difference, doncha see?

Oh I dunno Don, I think if pointed a rifle at your melon your boots might just shake a bit. It is not mentioned whether the rifle was loaded or not, and the 23 rounds apparently were not in a clip or event if it matched the rifle.

Still an easy attack if you planned it right, two bullets in the air, 2 bullets in the first person that tries to be a hero, 19 more for the next few heroic people. Herd em all into one side of the theater away from the doors, crowd gets the symtex, martyr gets the fishing stick. Boom heres your virgins.

Don: The really sad part is that I could tell it was your writing even before scrolling down far enough to see your name on the comment. You have become far too predictable.

Ronin: You argue with what hasn't been asserted. I assume each of the items listed were found separately. But as a supply cache for a Real Terrist Attack, it doesn't amount to all that much.

The RF security forces have the best current handle on it.

G3: You conflate consistency with predictability. Unpredictability is something you complain about, in other individuals.

Make up your mind.

Pleased you recognize the writing style, though.

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