Following on to Andy's earlier heads-up post this evening about the horrendous shooting at the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle: An eyewitness quoted in this Seattle Post-Intelligencer piece confirms earlier reports the suspect believed responsible for the killing of one and wounding of five at the organization's offices today did indeed say, "I'm a Muslim-American and I'm mad at Israel." Moreover, police tell the P-I they'll be trying to protect Seattle synogogues and Jewish organizations. Yet the FBI tells the paper the incident is not terrorism-related, apparently discarding the ascendant model of atomized terrorism rather quickly. The local Jewish federation had just organized a "Solidarity With Israel" rally that drew roughly 2,000 people last Sunday to Mercer Island's Luther Burbank Park. Nonetheless, Seattle unsurprisingly has a long history of local "progressive" hostility to Israel and I think local leftists - while they certainly would not condone the shooting - are likely due for a good hard think about why this happened here. They will want to wind up at a vocal re-affirmation of Israel's right to exist and defend itself, as explained in this Seattle Post-Intelligencer guest op-ed earlier today.
UPDATE: With a hat tip to Michelle Malkin, who's all over it, Seattle-based American Digest blogger and Pajamas Media editor Gerard Van der Leun offers his take. He sees the Seattle shooting today as emblematic of:
....a war that has, as war will, come home at last. Or perhaps, remembering the morning in September when I stood on the Promenade in Brooklyn Heights when the Towers fell, a war that is just coming around again.
UPDATE II: This just in from Steve Beren of Seattle, the clear-speaking Republican challenger to U.S. Rep. Jim McDermott (D-Tikrit):
Murder. Murder just a few blocks from my downtown office. A brutal shooting with a clear intent and motive to kill Jewish people. One woman dead, five injured. The killer said he was a 'Muslim' who is 'angry.'Hezbollah and Hamas launch terrorist attacks on Israel, and the Iranian dictators threaten to 'wipe Israel off the map.' Terrorism is real, hatred against Jews is real, the war is real.
All of Seattle, regardless of politics, religion, or ethnicity, must join in condemning this outrage. We must stand with the Jewish people against violence and hatred.
James J. Na wishes someone at the Jewish Federation had been armed and ready.
Posted by Matt Rosenberg at July 28, 2006 08:12 PM | Email ThisProbably just a coincidence. And Pasco does export enormous amounts of wheat, some of it to Pakistan.
Posted by: Jim Miller on July 28, 2006 08:38 PMIn this state, even in the local federal judicial district, we're unlikely to see this matter properly brought to justice.
Likewise it's doubtful we'll see a candlelight vigil of sectarians guarding synagogues as we previously witnessed being done at mosques. Ahh, life in a "world class city."
Posted by: Tyler Durden on July 28, 2006 08:41 PMI am an American and I am feed up with hyphenated-American.
In 1906, Teddy Roosevelt warned us, "that once we start hyphenating America and forget that WE are all AMERICANS is the day that America starts to die!"
Sorry Ted...
Posted by: Pacific Grove Phlash on July 28, 2006 08:53 PMNot to mention the fact that we now have (as we should) Uniformed officers as added security to Jewish Synagogues and other places on the Jewish Holy day.
Posted by: TrueSoldier on July 28, 2006 09:12 PMI really do hope this is the act of a troubled individual. I completely agree with the last paragraph of your post. The SPD do a great job (especially given their tiny numbers), but it would be nice to see some community support.
Edward, I'm hoping that's an attempt at sarcasm. If not, perhaps you should think of posting somewhere else. I hear that people are big on blaming jews for the world's ills in Iran. Perhaps there is an english language blog you can post to there.
Posted by: Sstarr on July 28, 2006 09:42 PMsadly, our local insane liberal legislators will now use this & recent Seattle shootings as a platform to disarm all of us & leave law abiding citizens at the mercy of fanatics;
Posted by: Jimmie-howya-doin on July 28, 2006 10:10 PMNo condemnation from David Goldstein at HorsesAss.org. Not even a mention. It's against the leftist playbook to acknowledge terrorism, because that would undermine their illogical conclusions that everything Bush does is wrong. So, right up until bombs are going off in Goldstein's backyard, he and the rest of the Seattle left will continue to pretend that there's nothing wrong with the world that isn't the fault of the United States.
Whether organized or not, this Seattle murder yet another face of Islamic Fanaticism leading to terrorism.
How many more have to die before we confront the menace? We must remove the Middle Eastern theocracies that allow their clerics to preach hatred and murder, and provide government funded support for terrorism. And, as much of this war is ideological, it's time we all expose any and all left leaning writers that refuse to acknowledge Islamic Fanaticism.
Posted by: Jeff B. on July 28, 2006 10:28 PMIt also came out that a recent RAND study had listed that location as one of the top targets in Los Angeles, and no action was taken by LA area officials.
I feel like I am watching the same denials over again.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/2115560.stm
Posted by: Karl Dahlquist on July 28, 2006 10:48 PMShoot a Jew, it's just random violence.
Even though the gunman says he's a Muslim angry about the violence in the Middle East, it's just a random shooting, according to the libs.
WWIII comes to Seattle. When will the libs wake up?
My thoughts and prayers are with the victims. May they recover from their wounds.
Posted by: Obi-Wan on July 28, 2006 11:06 PMThat makes it even more imperative that Goldstein respond. That's another thing that goes against the leftist playbook; backing your group when it's moral to do so, but there's a political conflict. Ever notice that many left leaning Jews in the US are quick to play the race card when they need an out, or want to capitalize on proper world sympathy towards a group that is continually trying to dodge "eradication." However, these same left leaning US Jews are nowhere to be found when it comes to backing Israel's right to exist, or anything that lands them on the conservative side of the fence. Not one single post from Goldstein regarding support for Israel since the latest Hezbollah action began, yet you defend him on the basis that he is a Jew.
It's relativism 24/7/365 on the left. David Goldstein should be coming out and condemning this shooting rampage as an afront to Jews and an example of an ideology of violent hatred that simply will not be tolerated in the US. And the same goes for Stefan or for anyone else with an official or unofficial media voice. If we don't all loudly confront and condemn terror and it's ideological roots, can we really expect it to end?
This is why Bloggers here have already condemned this attack and why Sound Politics is a great blog, it's focused first and foremost on ideas, and second on politics.
Posted by: Jeff B. on July 28, 2006 11:31 PMBomb the embassy. Hizbollah has declared war on Israel. Hizbollah's leader is a legitmate target. What a coward.
Attack on an embassy is an attack on a soverign country. We saw what happened in 1979 when the American embassy in Tehran was invaded. The limp-dick loser President Carter (a surrender Democrat) didn't respond.
The Iranians have a history of attacking soverign countries, i.e., the American embassy. Israel should flatten the Iranian embassy, and if the Iranians want to get involved in a war we should bomb the s@#t out of their military/nuclear facilities.
The surrender left will call for peace, negotiations, disarmament, etc., for the peace loving people of Israel, but not the terrorists.
War came to Seattle today. There are many Muslims living in our community that deserve our respect.
But some want war, and attack pregnant women as we saw today. They should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, and locked away for life.
When will the surrender leftists realize that this is a war and quit hoping for America's defeat in the war on terror?
Posted by: Obi-Wan on July 28, 2006 11:39 PM
Yeah that's really a concern....I'm thinking that a Seattle area Jew might just strap a bomb on to his CHILD to have him march into a Mosque and BLOW HIMSELF UP!! GOOD GREIF!!!!!
Posted by: GR on July 29, 2006 12:01 AMI have always said that Liberals aren't merely wrong - they are evil. If that statement doesn't prove that than nothing was.
I have never been so ashamed of Seattle than I am tonight. I was born here, but I feel that Seattle has turned in to Nazi Germany. The Nazis were the Nationalist SOCIALIST WORKERS Party so it isn't surprising that Liberal Seattle, which has so many socialists living here, is now becoming known for Jew Hating.
I have always said that Liberals aren't merely wrong - they are evil. If that statement doesn't prove that than nothing would be.
I have never been so ashamed of Seattle than I am tonight. I was born here, but I feel that Seattle has turned in to Nazi Germany. The Nazis were the Nationalist SOCIALIST WORKERS Party so it isn't surprising that Liberal Seattle, which has so many socialists living here, is now becoming known for Jew Hating.
Strange, but Michael Savage predicted that when these kinds of Muslim attacks begin in earnest - the government would react ass-backwards and prosecute the victims. I connect this with an odd, counter-intuitive feeling about Kerlikowseke's announcement. It has to do with this: we will never never never hear any words of admonishment from our leaders towards the Muslim community - (as in: "hey, get your shit together" or "hey, rein these suckers in!") no matter what they do. These same authorities will not even whisper the slightest reminder that we have extended every tolerant courtesy and hospitality to them. However we - the potential victims - at some level, do expect our leaders to admonish us, to remonstrate with us not to over react, not to associate these murders with Islam. And we will take this ass-backwards condescension from our leaders without a peep.
Posted by: Doug on July 29, 2006 01:16 AMRemember when so-called concerned citizens flocked to stand guard at local mosques following 9/11? Where are those concerned citizens now and why aren't they doing the same at synagogues?
Posted by: oh well on July 29, 2006 03:56 AMRE Sue, Wow you found a silly liberal. It's almost like we're like, I don't know, every other group in society, and have our share of the not too bright. Now if I were going to treat your post as representative of all conservatives, I would have too conclude that your all a bunch of morons who can't even muster enough respect for democracy too allow them to treat those they disagree with, with respect. But, being a decent human being I am not.
already spd defending mosques; yeah like jews are equiv in terror to the moslems.
Posted by: righton on July 29, 2006 07:34 AMI'm horrified by this terrorist act but more horrified at the people who pretend that it is nothing more than the random act of a "lone madman." Yeah, right, there sure are a lot of "lone madmen" practicing the Religion of Peace. Has everyone forgotten that Hezbullah and Al Qaeda have urged Muslims around the world to rise up and start striking Jewish targets everywhere?
Don't get your hopes up about this Goldstein character -- sadly, we have too many of our Jewish brethren brainwashed by the Leftist propaganda of today. Sigh. It is very depressing, perhaps the most depressing thing of all. Leftist Jews want so much to be accepted by the literati and that means denying their heritage and turning their backs on their people (and on rational thought, too).
Posted by: batyah on July 29, 2006 11:30 AMI'm sure they'll get there.
Posted by: Johnny on July 29, 2006 02:46 PMIncoherent self serving delusion, illogical nonsense, and rank illiteracy . . . that's a liberal for you.
Good job as usual Giffy.
then blindfold, last smoke, officer, squad, blank round, bullets, burial detail
tribunal - if not guilty --
then criminal trial for murder
Posted by: Jericho on July 30, 2006 03:59 PM