Well, anyone can see how that would make you want to kill random pedestrians out in front of the Jewish Community Center.
There is nothing in this story about how he identified himself as a terrorist. Looks as if that one has already dropped down the memory hole. And of course, I am sure he really is a mental patient suffering from stress. But this case joins the long, long line of other cases in which questionable aspects that suggest some other motive seem somehow to disappear without a trace or an explanation.
"THE SUSPECT: Recently began arranged marriage," from the San Francisco Chronicle, with thanks to Teri:
Omeed Aziz Popal, now in custody for a fatal hit and run rampage that apparently began in Fremont and ended in San Francisco, has a history of mental problems and lives in fear of the devil, some family members say. Other family members say he may have been anxious because of his recent marriage arranged by his family.But those involved in the investigation -- speaking on condition of anonymity -- discount any mental illness, saying Popal seemed coherent, unrepentant and claimed that he repeatedly drove at pedestrians because he "just wanted to.''
A month ago, the 29-year-old Fremont resident and one-time auto worker returned home after getting married in his native Afghanistan, his family said. There was a wedding celebration two weeks ago, and Popal seemed to have everything to live for, some family members said. The family said Popal's father had arranged the marriage.
"He was so happy and excited about being married -- I can't believe this happened today,'' said Homa Aziz, a cousin who lives in Hayward. "Omeed is not that kind of boy. I don't know what is wrong with him. He is the nicest boy.''
She said that Popal, who was studying auto mechanics at WyoTech, formerly known as the Sequoia Institute, intended to bring his wife from Afghanistan to settle in the area. "He just talked about his wife.''
Hamid Nekrawesh, another cousin, said Popal's arranged marriage could have been stressful.
"Arranged marriage is a very common practice -- people don't kill people over that,'' Nekrawesh said. "But that was the only thing new in his life.''
Popal was "a very loving, caring person,'' he said. "I can never see him doing such an act.''
He said that he joked with Popal before he went to Kabul about him becoming a man. "I didn't see anything out of the ordinary,'' Nekrawesh said. "After he came back, he went to the celebration gathering at his house -- he was happy.''
But another cousin, Zarghona Ramish, said Popal was having mental problems. Popal "thought the devil was coming to get him" and dreamed about bad things, Ramish said.
Any chance of a list of similar "non-terrorist" crimes being put up on your site?
It would be good for people to be able see at a glance how terrorism is quietly removed as a motive for crimes.
Any chance of a list of similar "non-terrorist" crimes being put up on your site?
It would be good for people to be able see at a glance how terrorism is quietly removed as a motive for crimes.
Any chance of a list of similar "non-terrorist" crimes being put up on your site?
It would be good for people to be able see at a glance how terrorism is quietly removed as a motive for crimes.
I wonder how many pioneers out in the wild wild west last century ran over folk in Dodge City with their covered wagons when not satisfied with their mail order brides?
"...has a history of mental problems and lives in fear of the devil (Allah?)"
A most succinct description of a Moslem...perhaps even a prerequisite?
Hold your press especially local press accountable. Write letters to the editors of local papers and just ask them to correctly report the news. Reference the article you have a problem with and give the reporter the questions you would like answered. A few phone calls and letters can work wonders. If you get no response why bother reading or watching, switch to another source.
It is not terrorism. It may be the case of just another angry Moslem. It may be an Islamic pre- nuptial ceremony. I love JULIANA BARBASSA, the journalist. She gets an F in journalism. Send her an email. "Hit and Run" has traditionally been defined as the conduct of a motorist after an auto accident, when the motorist flees the scene. There is no evidence of "run" here whatsoever. There is only evidence of "hit." One must also wonder how the motorist's motive, I am an agry Moslem, is not mentioned as a possibility. Join me in sending JULIANA BARBASSA an email that she gets an F in journalism.
Yes, exactly. "....a loving caring person....." And a card carrying member of the "religion of peace".......and "......not mentally ill".
Of course not....... I'm sure he's just MISUNDERSTOOD.......
The media will NOT say his name.
Hmmm.....forced marriages must be so bad, that, prison looks much better.
This clears it all up....when a muslim man feels inadequate, he simply goes out and murders. This solution solves everything.
What if your suffering from marriage in general ?
Can i go out an kill a few people ?
Thought not.
So much discimination in favour of these arranged marriage types....
Everytime something terrible happens like running down a crowd with an suv or shooting up a Jewish community center or a massive blackout in New York, the authorities say "IT DOESN'T APPEAR TO BE A TERRORIST ACT". Okay, the guy says it WAS.
So, authorities, please define terrorism for me.
When the terrorist says it is, or if we call it terrorism?
It seems to be a Muslim 'thing' - mowing down people in an SUV.
Done with radiant peacefulness.
Disturbed maniacs kill in terror and passion, worked up to a fever pitch of madness, delusion whatever.
This piece of human dreck went about his maiming and murder with the great calm only True Religion can give one.
Just a side note:
I just clicked on CNN and looked at their daily poll question. The question was:
Do you think the war on terror should be called a war on fascism?
I found that to be quite refreshing for CNN to discuss such an idea. I did notice that the poll numbers were still at 0. Must have been a brand new poll, I figured.
Well I refreshed the page, and that poll question was gone, replaced with another one.
In Islam, is the devil considered worthy of being saved?
If so, why would this terroist be afraid of him?
Accoding to Islam the devil is quick to punish those who do not follow his rules--sounds like an Islamic cleric.
Islam is evil.
The Devil, Satan, is not a fallen angel, but a fallen Jinn (2:34; 7:12; 15:27; 55:15).
In Islam, jinns are fiery spirits (Qur'an 15:27) particularly associated with the desert. While they are disruptive of human life, they are considered worthy of being saved. A person dying in a state of great sin may be changed into a jinni in the period of a barzakh, separation or barrier.
The highest of the jinns is Iblis, formerly called Azazel, the prince of darkness, or the Devil. The jinns were thought by some to be spirits that are lower than angels because they are made of fire and are not immortal. They can take on human and animal shapes to influence men to do good or evil. They are quick to punish those indebted to them who do not follow their many rules.
Wasn't it several months ago when a convoy of US soldiers accidentally ran down into some pedestrians in Afghanistans, which in turn sparked major riots throughout the country? Could it be that Omeed, between wedding toasts, was told that he could be a real Afghan hero, return to America and run down some infidels? The fact that he mowed down people in front of a Jewish Center is of course more pleasing to Allah...and the folks back home.
STRESS! Sounds like more like anger to me after trying to run people down all over the downtown streets of San francisco for 90 minutes. Witnesses who where able to look him in the face said that he looked angry as he continued to try and run people down. On some streets he turned around and actually came back to hit those that where trying to help others that had already been hit. It is simply amazing that numerous people where not killed I by this mad man.
Just an update. That poll question is back online and by a shocking 2 to 1 margin, people polled said that the war on terror is NOT a war on fascism.
Read my post at LGF from yesterday.
This page was on the internet just after the Abu Graib mess, can't find it now (on the 'net) but I made a copy and kept it.
http://littlegreenfootballs.com/weblog/?entry=22321#c0173
Carolyn, thanks for posting this! My oldest son is doing ROTC, and I intend to show him this when he gets back from university this afternoon. Wow.
As for the SF terrorist, who hasn't had a stressful life at one point? I had a lot of stress when my husband took his own life, but it never occurred to me to drive my car through a crowd of innocent people, God forbid. I was going to ask 'when will people learn?', but I don't think I want to know the answer.
DWI- Driving While Islamic
Wow, look what I found.
http://www.mehrnews.com/en/NewsDetail.aspx?NewsID=83053
Of course this is a terrorist act. All these half-assed "random" attacks are supposed to make ordinary Americans fear going about their daily lives in their own neighborhoods because they'll never know if today's the day some jihadi will shave his nuts and start mowing down infidels. That's pretty much the textbook definition of "terrorism" as a form of warfare...
Sure, he's mentally ill--he's a sociopath, like Bundy or Dahmer. No one cut them any slack for their crimes and no one should have; it's not appropriate to let non-white sociopaths play the "mental illness" card, either.
I wonder how soon CAIR blames the Zionist lobby and the mayor of SF is seen crying outside a mosque?
The attacks against innocent Americans by muslims continue in islam's war against America and Americans.
muslims are continue to use SUV's to attack and murder innocent Americans, but it will be bombs and weapons in the near future being used to murder and harm innocent Americans across America.
The islam is waging war inside America and our federal government refuses to admit we are at war with islam within America. When will our federal government start taking action against islam inside America and Protect Americans from the islam and the murderous muslims???
We are in a war with islam for our very survival and not allowed to fight back. islam's war with America, western civilization, Christianity and the peaceful religions of the world will not end until islam is defeated. There will only be one victor as there was in WWII.
The MSM and our federal government will not print nor release the truth about the attacks within America by muslims.
Truth in America is only coming from the internet. Thank God for the brave individuals that speak the truth.
The murderous actions of the muslims are embolden by the lack of commendation of islam and muslims of these actions by the MSM and our federal government. The only mental illness is the MSM's and our federal government's lack of revealing the truth about islam's war with America and Americans.
Be aware at all times what is going on around you. Protect your family and country for our government is not protecting us from islam’s war with America.
Prepare, be armed, be ready.
The Texican.
God, American, Freedom, the only choices at any cost and the cost will be immense.
I have to apologize to everyone out there, especially those people Jihad Joe mowed down.
See, my Zionist Machine™ was making some funny noises (random clicks, the fan turning on and off, and other somesuches), so I pushed a few buttons. That didn't work, and I gave it a little kick. Not much, mind you, just hard enough to let it know who's boss. It seemed to quiet down so I went back to my cartoons then off to bed.
When I got up and looked in on the goings-on at Jihad Watch I saw reference to this story on a previous thread. I'm sure the ZM had something to do with it, but it was entirely unintentional. All I can figure is that is started beaming out Joo Rayz at an alarming rate, and that's what pushed this poor, innocent mohammedan over the edge.
Gonna have to look out my warranty card.
*sigh*
Probably need to send an apology e-mail to our buddies at CAIR for creating a situation that tarnishes the previously polished-sterling reputation of gentle, peace-loving mohammedans everywhere.
His forced marriage was stressful so he ran over a bunch of Americans? 'Best reason ever to make forced marriage against the law and prevent people who practice it from entering the U.S.
Also, since the people that keep doing these things are constantly referred to as "very loving, caring" and "the nicest boy", as in this case and that of Don Stewart-Whyte from the botched UK plane bombings, it's time to pass and enforce a law that prevents "nice" or "caring" Muslims from entering our country and all "nice" and "caring" Muslims presently living here have to get their stuff and get out. That should alleviate the problem of "nice" and "caring" Muslims running over our citizens, because they "just wanted to".
Even if this attacker is mentally and not a terrorist, I believe he should still be executed for the safety of society.
DOJ, are you out there? Looks like you guys should get busy again.
If our Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez weren't so busy making appearances in Iraq, perhaps he would be available here to prosecute this terrorist scumbag. Since when is it the AGs job to travel overseas and assist ROP minions in establishing their sicko sharia law? We need a new "American Military Party", with Iraqi and Afghani war veterans on the ballot in every State! Some real Americans, instead of these paid dhimmi whores in the current administration.
Gee I guess the whole Islamic Jihadist world (millions) are all mentally ill suffering form stress, huh ? The 911 boys were all mentally ill and suffering from stress, same with OBL,the Nazi's probably had teh same affliction, in America the land of Prozac surely we can emphasise with these poor chaps
>sarcasm off>
....or....DWI: Driving While Insane
This guy reminds me of my own brother who is also "crazy", and he blames his mental illness on everything but the disease because my brother doesn't understand that's he's sick. Only instead of running people over with his car, my brother set a neighbor's house on fire and he's facing federal charges.
If it's true that Omeed has a history of mental problems, then he's doing the same thing, blaming someone/something else besides himself.
In my situation, I called the police several times explaining how crazy my brother was, but there was nothing they could do "until" he committed a crime, ie, setting that house on fire (or something else). I even informed the FBI of my brother's outrageous behavior; but I ran into the same problem because he hadn't done anything YET.
I wonder if Omeed's family did the same thing -- reported his mental illness to the authorities; but the police said they couldn't DO anything....not "until".
I understand how the law works, but the police would be wise to listen to family members a little more attentively because someone would have to be PRETTY nuts to generate a call to the police!!
P.S.
The officer I initially talked to about my brother -- the one who 'at first' was very dismissive and who pratically patronized my phone call, finally came around and told me, "Your brother is crazy!!"
YEAH!! That's what I've been trying to tell you!!
Mental illness is NO excuse to commit murder, or any other crimes, and they still need to be prosecuted; so please don't write me back assuming I'm in any way lenient concerning Omeed's crime -- or my brother's -- because I'm not.
The guy must not have gotten the memo that guns are now allowed back in SF, so he had resort to a vehicle.
But I thought only guns killed.....you mean we should now ban cars in SF. Ok, lets bring it to a vote in SF. Guns are protected by the Constitution but cars are not.
Lets parade down the street, you guys prepare banners that say "ban cars now".
"Convert or die" is already here but our dear Authorities don't want to say it.
First it came September Eleven and we discovered that islam is a "religion of peace".
Then the long series of murders by muslims, and we came to know that ALL the muslim terrorists are a "disturbed persons".
Then it will come the rioting, the continuous violence and our Authorities will rage against anyone who will dare protect himself and his community.
HOW DO I KNOW ?
I HAVE SEEN IT HAPPENING IN EUROPE IN THE LAST TWENTY YEARS.
Plus, the Saudis don't pay me to tell lies.
Do you feel like the workload is too heavy ? Your boss comes down hard on you ? Wife nags too much ? Kids out of control ? Your neighbour breeds skunks in his house ? Well, if it is stress you are suffering from, Dr. Arjun has a remedy. And he will share it with you for free. Yes, for free.
Polish your SUV. Fill 'er up. The rest is up to your imagination, ladies and gentlemen. If you choose to drive to a park, or to a school, or just an ordinary crowded street, it is all the same. All are populated by human beings. (they are instrumental in your relief from stress.) Now just target the nearest bunch going full speed. You will feel the relief flooding you when you hit them at 60mph. Do look in the rear view mirror, and, if a few are moving feebly about, reverse and let them have it. (You might consider buying a heavier SUV, one that does the job at a single go.)
Am reading "stress relief, the islamic way", and found this remedy there. This is one of the latest, along with the one involving planes.
It's tempting, Arjun. But my mom would frown upon that kind of behavior and I'd never hear the end of it. She brought me up on the golden rule and though once in a while I might think about doing something inappropriate to someone who has wronged me, I don't do it because a) it isn't right and b) my conscience won't abide it.
Come to think of it, I've NEVER considered getting in my SUV and running anybody down, because "I just wanted to" or for any other reason. My mind doesn't work that way.
Hmm. My mind doesn't work that way. And neither does yours. But his does. Interesting.
Liberal headline on this story:
"Pressures of society and high gas prices drive man and his SUV to distraction; some injured; should charges be brought?"
Conservative headline:
"Man, 29, mows down innocent pedestrians in San Fran street; one dead, many injured; manslaughter charges filed"
JW reader headline:
"Lone mujahid, inspired by Koranic verses, indulges in calculated auto-Jihad attack on American soil; one infidel dead, many injured; Jihadist to be sent immediately to Guantanamo Bay for interrogation"
Watch this San Francisco news story on this deranged driver just after it happened. Note the comments at the end of the newscast and how it demonstrates such incredible ignorance whether dometically, driven or Ideology driven.
http://www.ktvu.com/video/9758766/index.html
Was this a hit and run? No. It was a hit and run and hit and run and hit and run and hit and run and hit and run and hit and run and hit and run and hit and run and hit and run and hit and run and hit and run and hit and run and hit and run and hit and run.
There now. That's more accurate.
What is it going to take to get a Constitutional Amendment? At least Popal is repentent.
Here is another curious incident: Dateline, Pikesville, MD (suburban Baltimore) On June 24th of this year Mujtaba Jabbar produced a pistol 20 minutes into a matinee screening of "X Men", ordered all movie patrons to lie on the floor, then shot and killed 62 y.o. Paul Schrum. Jabbar then waited for Baltimore County Police to arrive and proceed with his arrest.
Yet another "soft" jihad approach. It's quite effective, because this way it is much harder to prove premeditation. The assailant always "snaps"
just like one going "postal." The media is always quick to pick up on that spontaneous theme as well. Whether it's the UNC student, the Home Depot jihadist, the drunk muslim who used his suv as a weapon in Oakland because he was "insulted" by a club bouncer,the Seattle shooter; you can rest assured every motivation in the book will be explored and applied and the family will always tell us how wonderful they are and this was so "out of character." It might take a few timely concealed handgun owners to add a new twist to these ongoing assaults.
I watched Bargain Hunt on the telly recently and on the red team was an American lady who had married an English man she met on the Internet. She obviously loved him enough to move to windy and rainy Britain and stay here. And she was right up for a bit of Bargain Hunt nonsense because she loves car boot sales.
Tim Wannacott, who is the most stereotypical English person to have lived since the Raj treated her with great respect and she looked like she had a great day out.
That is multiculturism working. But the left think that Muslims can do the same.
So where an American lady made a decision to come to this country for her own reasons and as immersed herself in the culture…
We have Muhammad and his wife in Bradford living by the law of Sharia because it is the law that he was taught. He sends his daughters to Pakistan to be married off at his discretion to other members of his tribe. If the daughter disagrees she has dishonoured him and he has the right to kill her. That is an honour killing. You destroy your own seed because they displease you.
I have a Doberman bitch that would fight to her death to protect her pups regardless of their perceived ills.
Because of that observation I have decided to class conservative Pakistani fathers lower than my dog.
If they don’t like it tough. My dog Tara thinks you’re a wanker too.
Right. He was so stressed out he drove across the San Francisco bay and just happened to run people over outside a Jewish community center. He said he was a terrorist but police were quick to state that this was not a terrorist act. Deny the truth, deny what he himself said, deny the facts, we mustn't start a panic! Ask the people who were run down wheteher or not they were terrified as his SUV bnore down on them. If this guy was a white skinhead with Nazi tattoos who ran over blacks or gays the story would be reported differently. This always happens in states tht do not have concealed carry laws, and it will happen more frequently. The terrorists are picking liberal, pacifist states that will not allow their citizens to defend themselves so they can get maximum results and impact from the terrorist's actions. You will not see this shit happening in Texas, New Mexico, Arizona or Oklahoma, where they have concealed carry laws. The media and the government are afraid of fighting a war on terror on two foreign fronts and a civil war in the US between the one million muslims who live here and the non-muslim population. That is why this and all future attacks like it will be played down. Peace at all costs! Remember the same kind of attack in North Carolina earlier this year? Same thing, but that too was buried in the news and forgotten, just as this will be.
I have to agree with the Police and media playdown of the perpitrators comments being crazy.
Anyones statements made in the event of a crime, before, during or after would be evidence of the crime and crime scene. But to actually have your statement discredited by police at and on the scene is bizarre and in itself would become evidence in the defense of the perpitrator, and would be used by defense counsel against prosecution.
So, are the police in SF admitting that they can over ride evidence, statements, miranda rights, and can become curb side jury, judge and probation officer all at the same time? No wonder their crime scene is so high.
I guess if I were a criminal in SF and I was arrested I would not make a statement, I would let the police make a canned statement for me. Just in case they were getting ready to make one that I did'nt like I might mention to the police that my nickname was "abdul or ali" or something like that. This way I would be guarenteed to walk.
I wonder if jihad against Americans was part of the marriage contract between him and his wife. If not, the new wifey is thinking her family did her wrongly by marrying her to a soon to be lifer convict.
In the other thread, RBLA said
Wow, that is too true. Eerily true. What evidence would there have been? Al Qaeda denied any involvement for months. There was no video or audio of the event. The media claimed it was an accident that day, right up until the second attack (and the third and fourth).
It may have been just like Egypt Air Flight 990, where Gamil Al-Batouti calmly put the plane into a dive into the ocean while chanting "Tawakalt ala Allah". Pilot error.
Or American Air Flight 587, which crashed off NY just after the 9/11 attacks. Numerous witnesses saw a missile launched from the ground strike the plane, but the official investigation found that the pilot turned the rudder too hard, which caused the tail to fall off. Pilot error.
Or USAir Flight 427, where the tail rudder "mysteriously malfunctioned" while turned at low speed, causing loss of control. Pilot error.
Or Arrow Air Flight 1285, which killed 248 U.S. soldiers en route to the Sinai for peacekeeping, after takeoff from Newfoundland, Canada. Half the investigators believed a bomb had caused the crash, but the official cause was left as "unknown".
I'm not saying that all of these were terrorist attacks. I am saying that when "the authorities" deliberately hide details pointing to terrorism, out of political correctness and a desire not to offend anyone, like in this case and others, it leads to a lack of trust. We cannot trust that our government understands the nature of jihad, and if they do, that they would trust the public with the truth.
I wonder if we could figure out how to make Iran's heavy water reactor folks have an 'operator error'.
ElderlyZionist said
Agree 100%. Rather than having all our citizens armed and firing at each other in a crowded city, being a man of peace, I'd prefer to focus on avoiding the situation in the first place.
If there is a group that, according to it's core documents and it's founder, is dedicated to the violent overthrow of the democracy of the U.S., and many, many members of the group have actually carried out violent attacks on U.S. citizens (along with citizens of almost every other country in the world), then why are members of that group welcomed into the U.S.? We didn't welcome members of the Communist Party from the Soviet Union during the Cold War. What has caused our sudden strategy of kindness towards those who have declared themselves our sworn enemy? Whatever the cause, the strategy is not working.
That is a bit odd.
The family members saying, "he's a good boy who would never harm anyone", and "he's very nice and a good guy, I can't imagine any reason for him doing such a thing as this" ect.
But if he indeed had mental problems wouldn't the family members KNOW about it, and that would then explain his actions. Correct ?
So why is it his family seem clueless as to his actions. Only one member is saying he is mental (probably in order to help his defence in court).
The local news said the DA is pressing charges of 14 counts attemped murder. But if he's insane....
It just seems odd that his family, at large, didn't know of illness.
Ah-hmmmm.....
special_guest, they are afraid of a civil war in America while our military is divided on two fronts in Afghanistan and Iraq. There are over 1 million muslims here, many who have served in the military and many more who legally own guns. If people start to feel threatened and burn mosques and shoot muslims, it would cause a civil war in America that could spread to a world wide jihad against Americans and the American ecconomy could collapse, which is what the terrorists want. The media has to make it appear as if it's business as usual, and these attacks are random anomalies, not part of a greater islamic plan.
However, since 911 there have been OVER 5,000 attacks by muslims against non-muslims worlwide.
http://www.thereligionofpeace.com/index.html#attacks
As long as they are happening in India, Indonesia, Afghanistan, Africa, Russia, China or anywhere else, Americans have a "it can't happen here" mentality. As the muslim population in the US grows, we will see more and more violence from the believers of the "religion of peace".
Ultimately, Islamism is a part of many cultures where Islamism is the majority religion. It creates the world view among the fanatics who are merely the true believers of the values of their culture... and it creates the world view of the moderates and those who do not consider themselves very religious.
This cultural foundation, inherited from their religion, has a value system which is nearly the opposite of our own.
In our cultures, murder is a crime, in theirs it is a holy religious act. We view savages who give their children to idols as abhorrent, they worship them as gods.
And so on with just about any societal shared value one might consider.
So, when the man says he is a "terrorist", he speaks truly, and ultimately he did do this because of his Islamist mindset.
However, it should be noted that the first real surfacing of the radical Islamism here in the States in its' current incarnation was through the assassination in NY of rabbi Jahane. The authorities here claimed and operated as if this individual operated alone. Their amazing error led to many acts of terrorism against us afterwards, such as the first WTC bombing -- which, however connected to 9/11, surely helped inspire 9/11.
Eventually, when the next real horrible thing happens and whatever else after that... we all know a large of the blame lays squarely on the shoulders of those who refused to stand up to the horrible truth today.
SF hit-and-run killer suffering from stress from arranged marriage
Re: Dreamworks-
The authorities in S.F. are as out of touch with reality on this, as are Muslims who think that their rush to explain away or excuse this kind of behavior (in Seattle, in Tar-heel-land, etc.) is working anymore. Nobody but PC frauds or Muslim liar-propagandists will buy this crap in Seattle, San Fransisco, Tar heel land, or anywhere else anymore.
Times have changed, but they have not changed with the times.
maybe we should feel bad for this poor muslim man with an arragned marriage, you see when he peeked under the burka and viel he saw an ugly muslim women that looked a lot like bin laden! he probably passed out and hit his head, and therefore could not leave his parents house. there you go, a young man with a brain disorder, called "islam".
I live right in this area, in Oakland. The Bay Area suburb of Fremont has a *huge* ex-pat Afghan population, the largest in the US (if I recall correctly, it is the largest in the world after Pakistan). Ahmed Chalabi spent a lot of time here. Omeed Aziz Popal was born in Afghanistan but came to the US as a small child.
A lot of people not familiar with the region might think that the location of these hit-and-runs are close--they are not. Fremont is located in the South East Bay Area, close to San Jose. This is where Popal ran over and killed his first victim (in front of a church, incidently--not sure if this is significant or not).
He then had to be in control enough to drive to San Francisco--35-40 miles away over busy freeways and one or another toll bridges--a trip that can take an hour or more midday. Depending on the route he took, he had to go through several fairly large towns or cities--San Mateo, Hayward, Oakland. These roads are all patrolled by the CHP--especially the bridges. If he had been speeding or driving erratically he almost certainly would have been pulled over.
His victims did encompass a wide range of San Francisco citizens--men and women, people from 18 to late 70s, black, white, and hispanic. He drove through Civic Center, Polk Street (large gay population), the edge of Japan Town, the edge of the Western Addition (white and black), upscale edge of Pacific Heights and Laurel Heights.
San Francisco doesn't exactly have a Jewish neighborhood, but this area and the adjacent Richmond district do have fairly large Jewish populations, as well as a number of Synagogs. It may not be a coincidence that he plowed into the sidewalk, striking a bicyclist and pedestrian right outside the large Jewish Community Center on California Street right before he was captured.
Not only were these not accidents, but in at least two cases he returned to the scene of the crime to try to finish victims off. He returned to one scene *twice* (three passes in all). He returned to one scene even after an ambulance had arrived. In another case, he tried to run over a good samaritan who was out in the crosswalk trying to help a victim he had hit in his first pass.
There were at least 17 victims in all (exact numbers are still a bit unclear)--the fatality in Fremont; in San Francisco, 14 people brought in to hospitals by ambulance, and two people who were able to walk to a nearby medical center. Several victims were critically injured.
As soon as I heard about this, I wondered if it could be "Sudden Jihad Syndrome". When I heard his name and that he had just returned from his arranged marriage in Afghanistan, I was virtually certain. Yet San Francisco's Mayor Newsom said:
“These are the things, these are so senseless,” Mayor Gavin Newsom said after meeting with victims and their families. “They’re utterly inexplicable. They’re impossible to rationalize.”
Not really. The sad thing is that Newsom is hardly the densest politician around. Popal's family, of course, is talking mental illness and "what a nice boy" Popal is (at 29!). To their credit, the SFPD is not buying this--several officers and spokespeople have said that he seemed rational and completely unrepentant.
I've had a rough day at work. I am therefore feeling quite disturbed and would like to unload a few shells of buckshot into someone's gut. Who needs an arranged marriage to go postal?
Graven, thank you for the succinct insider's account for those of us 3,000 miles away. It's important for people to understand the dynamics (e.g. demography and geography) of the area. It allows us to crystallize this event.
These stories and the ever-so-predictable reactions of politicians, law enforcement, and other talking heads are numbing people to the rising tide of one-off jihad attacks. It's like death by a thousand cuts.
Someday, however, an armed American is going to intersect with one of these guys on his way to an attack. A gun or knife fight will ensue and one or the other will end up on trial for murder. We will then FINALLY be able to define in court exactly what the 'victim' was preparing to do prior to his/her untimely demise. Or the guy will escape and end up in Thailand dodging tidal waves and chasing 6-year old beauty queens.
A jihadi in San Francisco . . .
was seen with hate in his eyes,
was he chanting allah akbar
as he ran the infidels down
all over town?
oh jihadi, afghani boy,
a toy in the hands
of your brothers and others,
a puppet in the hands
of the moon god allah
and his prophet, mohammed.
A jihadi in San Francisco
was seen sitting on the curb,
calm and peaceful,
did he feel powerful too
emulating his perfect prophet,
spilling filthy infidel blood,
as a sacrifice for his moon god,
as his moon god asked him to do?
The jihadi in San Francisco
has not secured his place
in heaven, but he fought the enemy
face to face, the best fight he knew how.
He brought terror and death,
he killed and maimed the enemy,
and he will proudly go to jail now.
For he has reclaimed his tribal honor,
proven his islamic manhood
as a jihadi
in the land
of the great shaitan.
Not entirely down the memory hole. On WABC talk radio today, Mark Levine was furious, or pretending to be furious, about how the police pretended the SUV driver was anything but a terrorist, even though he had self-identified as a terrorist and apparently had various required markers and motives. Levine was full of fury that we as a society are not honest with ourselves about the enemy we face.
The driver's inordinate fear of the devil may be just a natural response to the Quran, where on average, about one in every twelve verses alludes to Hell as punishment, and where a number of verses go into terrifyingly sadistic detail about the kinds of tortures the damned face. Terror is a profound part of the psychology of Islam, far more so than in the theologies of any of the other major religions.
What a Muslim man does when he cannot stand against his dominating farther, cannot cope with a fear of a woman in his life, or just feels not a man enough? He goes and kills some hard-working Jews, or their loved and looked-after kids, and everyone is happy.
I am sick and tired of this. How about - full ban on arranged marriages with overseas brides, zero-tolerance of inequality of children in family, and $20,000 (or $200,000) to anyone who believes that is discrimination and wants to abandon his citizenship and move back to Afghanistan/Egypt/Lebanon/whatever.
"There is nothing in this story about how he identified himself as a terrorist. Looks as if that one has already dropped down the memory hole."
George Norry on Coast to Coast AM radio last night
told listeners that the man identified himself as a terrorist after he was caught.
And that program is heard by millions of people from all over the world every day (night).
Go get'em George !
The latest on Mr. Popal:
1). KNTV news in SF said today, that Mr Popal's lawyer up and quit. His lawyer said (on tv) that he would no longer defend Mr popal.
2). The gov will take til Wed. giving psychiatric tests to determine if crazy.
( But I thought they already said (from the git-go) that he had psychiatric problems), were we being lied to buy the press? )
3). Family still don't know why he did this, "he has never ever hurt anyone in his life, good boy" ect.
(Of course again, if this guy is and WAS crazy he would most likely have a past record of unusual actions (violence ect.) and the family would have known about it.)
4). The family says the only thing they know is that he had a few break downs (whatever that means) during this summer.
"He was married a few weeks ago and very happy."
5). They said the latest on him was that he planned this out the day before he did it.
(premeditated)
Stopthem,
Quote:5). They said the latest on him was that he planned this out the day before he did it.
(premeditated)
"if this is proven true, i assume then that the muslim family will be promptly arrested for aiding a terrorist, and as an acsessory to murder."
Stopthem, the way it (5.) was reported by the press, it sounded like the police were getting that info from Mr Popal himself and not his family. The news report wasn't clear at all were this info came from. But they made it sound as though it came from the interview of Popal himself.
Sorry for the confusion.
Stopthem,
Quote:5). They said the latest on him was that he planned this out the day before he did it.
(premeditated)
"if this is proven true, i assume then that the muslim family will be promptly arrested for aiding a terrorist, and as an acsessory to murder."
Stopthem, the way it (5.) was reported by the press, it sounded like the police were getting that info from Mr Popal himself and not his family. The news report wasn't clear at all were this info came from. But they made it sound as though it came from the interview of Popal himself.
Sorry for the confusion.
Isn't teaching someone who lives in our country that his neighbors are evil considered a hate crime? Where is the law on the books to take care of that one?