As well as the 7 killed in the Oslo blast, at least 84 people, mainly young members of Norway's ruling Labour Party, have been killed in a murdering horror-spree on the island of Utoeya.
Arrested and it would appear the orchestrator of both events is Anders Behring Breivik who has a biography of shorts already on this BBC News website article.
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| Will The Sun apologise for this shoddy piece of fact-less journalism? |
Despite the claims by many and headlined in today's Sun newspaper that this was another home-grown Al-Qaeda led attack, it now looks as if this is in fact a home-grown assault in the same mold as Timothy McVeigh who killed 168 people at the Oklahoma City bombings in 1995. Far from being a Muslim extremist as presumed by many, it would seem that he was in fact a Christian fundamentalist with strong nationalist, right-wing views. If indeed it turns out that he was a lone participant in these horrific happenings, with no links to the international war on terror, then I would expect The Sun to apologise - but I wouldn't hold my breath. There are rumours that there was a second gun-man but these have not been confirmed.
The island paradise which was turned into a hell on Earth is a sight of pure evil.
The words Dunblane, Columbine and Virgina Tech are seered into the public consciousness. Utoeya has outstripped those 3 tragedies with a combined death toll of 61. Utoeya's death toll and the way it was orchestrated, on an island where there was no escape, and for a timescale of between 60-90 minutes, is incomprehensible.
The apparently local and politically-led motives that may have led to these shootings will make it even more difficult for Norwegians to comprehend.
The home of the Nobel Peace Prize has now been transformed into the home of the worst kind of horror. My thoughts are with everyone who has been touched by his human tragedy at this dark time.
I really hope they do apologise - what amazes me is that people fail to realise that The Sun is also an integral part of Murdoch's empire
ReplyDeleteI really can't comprehend what would motivate someone to do this - poor people
Good post Mr. Cole :)
I don't blame The Sun for the "'Al-Qaeda'" headline. The parallels between Oslo and Mumbai are uncanny, there is blatantly some Al-Qaeda inspiration. The main difference is this guy was apparently a Christian and a lone gunman. They were both perpetrated by zealots with access to explosives and weaponry in the name of religion.
ReplyDeleteI cant be bothered with religion myself, but am happy for others to have whatever they want. That said, I still live my life in what anyone else would consider to be "Christian". I imagine how JC would react in any situation and I know the difference between right and wrong.
ReplyDeleteAnonymous above calls the gunman a Christian. The media call him a Christian fundamentalist and I have always held the view that there is no difference between an Islamic fundamentalist and a Christian fundamentalist. Just look at the weird right wingers in the US and God help everyone if Sarah Palin becomes President.
Christ preached forgiveness. The 10 Commandments also state that Thou Shalt not Kill.
I tend to be against the death penalty as that is a form of revenge. Not justice.
We have had several high profile court cases where had we retained the death penalty, the Guildford Four would have been dead, before they were declared innocent.
Yet, the US still has the death penalty in many states and we saw the case of the guy executed in Texas the other day, where one of his injured victims was pleading for him to be reprieved. Texas executed him on Thursday.
Yes, there are some people I feel deserve the death penalty, like Mladic for the Srebrenica massacre.
No doubt if Breivik is the murderer and is convicted, he will wish he was dead as everyone in the prison will want him dead, from the prisoners to the warders.
Like Mark, my thoughts are with the people of Norway.
I have the Sun paper and posted on Facebook a comment that maybe Al Queda will sue the Sun for defamation. They certainly owe Al Queda an apology, by the looks of things.
The Sun, to be fair, usually get it right. However, someone's ass is probably getting kicked, BIG TIME, for their disastrous cock up.
An horrific tragedy.
ReplyDeleteThe copys of the Sun I saw in Morrisons today said "Bomb and Gun Massacre" rather than "Al Qaeda". Might have been a mid print run change?
The extreme right has always lurked in Scandinavia. Remember Vidkung Quisling.
ReplyDelete