Terrorism arrests on my doorstep (almost)

[der_kluge]

I don't think I've ever seen a thread so active before 7 am in the morning! And the first page of this thing reads like a "who's who" of the European community. How funny.

 

[Darkness]

Thanks Goblyns Hoard, Zander (I agree, they were hard on poor old S'mon) and all other well-wishers, I feel rather better now.

I'm very glad you do. I, too, wish you and yours the best. Be safe, mate.

 

[Voadam]

Rotten luck with that one. He's confronted by the police, and then does just what they'd expect a suicide bomber to do - flee, run into a subway car while wearing a sturdy jacket. Not that everyone could stay calm when confronted by the police ..

Armed plain clothes police. According to the news reports I read and heard on the radio, despite the police statements after the fact to the contrary none of the witnesses of the events heard any police identify themselves as such or give him a warning, they chased him, tackled him, held him down, and shot him in the head when they had him pinned.

Bombings killing innocent people, attempted bombings apparently only prevented by bad bombs, police killing an innocent man as their first action to deal with it, arrests, plenty to feel concerned about there S'mon.

Hang in there.

 

[GentleGiant]

I was in London when the first bombings took place. Pretty scary to think that if we (my girlfriend and I) had followed our original plan we would have been very, very close to one of the tubes that were hit (maybe even on it - around Liverpool Street)
We were also unsure whether I would actually be able to get to my plane on time since large portions of the tube system was still shut down on the day I had to leave... and getting on the coach to the airport and driving past the cordoned off bus at Aldgate wasn't a pleasant experience either... nor was it a pleasant view when stopping at two intersections while police on motorcycles stopped the traffic to let a big white van pass, either containing forensic evidence or the victims of the bombings.
It's always nerve-wracking to be dependent on a transport system which has been targeted several times over the last couple of weeks and I hope that the police has unravelled the entire network (if there is a network as such) before I have to go visit my girlfriend again in mid-August.
I can definitely sympathize with S'mon, and the rest of the Londoners on here, when they're concerned about the wellbeing of their loved ones (and the general population I'd wager).
My girlfriend lives in Lewisham, another area with a large population of immigrants, mostly Africans, and I fear for them too with the focus a lot of people are aiming at anyone with a different skin colour and/or religion when terrorism raises its ugly head.

And now I just have to find a way to winnow my way into a group like S'mon's when I, hopefully, move to London within a year's time (it sounds like they have a lot of fun)

 

[S'mon]

And now I just have to find a way to winnow my way into a group like S'mon's when I, hopefully, move to London within a year's time (it sounds like they have a lot of fun)

Gimme an email at simontmn at postmaster.co.uk when you arrive, chances are I'll have a space for you.

BTW Thayan or anyone who wishes to discuss politics & events with me (in a reasonably friendly manner), you're welcome to email me likewise.

-Simon

 

[GentleGiant]

Oh also, my visit before the one at the time of the bombings happened when the plane from France(?) had to be escorted down by two RAF fighters at Stansted because of a mobile phone left on the plane. I was actually sitting on my own return flight when the pilot announced that we were going to be a bit delayed since the whole airport had been shut down for security reasons and that the RAF fighters were escorting a plane down close to where we were to take off from...
From someone not living in the UK (yet) I sure seem to know how to land in the thick of it, so to speak.

 

[HellHound]

nevermind

 

[GentleGiant]

Gimme an email at simontmn at postmaster.co.uk when you arrive, chances are I'll have a space for you.

-Simon

Will do!
If there's a chance to pop by and have a look on one of my monthly visits I'd be grateful of that too

 

[Faoiltiarna]

First, before stating my 3 cents worth, I want to offer my support and prayers to S'mon and his wife. They are living in a perilous time with all that has happened in London lately. Only by the grace of God goes I, as the saying goes.

Now I will step on my soapbox. I think it is completely wrong to accuse S'mon of jumping the gun or in anyway being unduly anxious in light of recent events. I am lucky, I live in small town USA and don't have any mass transit to rely upon that is prone to attacks by terrorists of any kind, however, my family has witnessed and almost been victims of terrorist type attacks. My husband works in a sawmill, has all his adult life, as many individuals in the Pacific Northwest. Several years ago, while at work, one of the saws (a chopsaw) hit a metal spike in a log (put there by eco-terrorists). The sawblade exploded and shrapnel went everywhere throughout the mill. A large chunk just missed my husband's head and embedded in a nearby pillar. My husband still works in a sawmill 15 years later and I worry everyday he goes to work that another such incident will happen that will either maim or kill my husband of 22 years. Am I jumping the gun for my concerns, hell no. I have a legitimate concern. With this in mine, S'mon's concerns and fears are justified, not overreaction. Whether or not the suspects arrested today in his neighborhood are terrorists is not the point. The point is, the threat exists and now it exists all that much more for S'mon and his family. There is a good chance that those arrested are innocent, but there is an equally good chance they are guilty. That is for the courts to decide, but in the meantime, what if S'mon's concerns are not only justified, but real. What if the authorities missed one of the guilty parties responisble for the bombings? What if this person, seeing the authorities closing in on his acquaintances and cell members decides to make one last statement by detonating another bomb that can injure S'mon and/or his family? What if members of the terrorist cell decides to take on the authorities with firearms and S'mon or his wife are struck by stray bullets? There are plenty of reasons for S'mon to be concerned. So to say he is jumping the gun or have irrational fears is not only unjustified, it is insensitve to him and other victims of terrorism.

Okay, I'm off my soapbox now. Like S'mon, if anyone wants to discuss the political aspects of combating terrorism, feel free to contact me at drgn_rydr1055@yahoo.com or at my AIM identity DrgnRydr1055.

Dragon Ryder

"Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!"

 

[MonsterMash]

As a Londoner and one of S'mon's players I can obviously understand his concerns, and with the initial bombings on the 7th July I definitely had a near miss as my commute to work was always on the Circle Line and walking away from Liverpool Street station towards Aldgate just after the bomb went off I saw the police closing the roads and the emergency services arriving at Aldgate station.

Without getting political it is important to maintain our community in London, where we have people from every nation on earth and its sad to see that racially motivated attacks have risen since the first bombings.