(source: al Jazeera)
Once again, as the dust settles and the blood dries in Norway, stereotypes and archetypes raise their ugly heads as the media, various pundits and every anti-Islamic bigot out there began assuming that radical Islam had struck again, this time in Norway. But now we are learning that the gunman captured is tall, blonde and Nordic looking, and perhaps a Right-winger or Neo-Nazi, as noted in this MSNBC excerpt:
Friday's attacks that killed at least 16 people (92 AND COUNTING, LATEST UPDATE - EDITOR) in Norway could simply be the actions of a disturbed individual with no connection to al-Qaida or any other international terrorist groups, a prominent authority on Islamic militant groups said.*********Speculation that the attacks were the work of Islamist militants shot around the world after the twin attacks -- a massive explosion that killed seven people in the capital, Oslo, followed by a shooting spree at a political youth conference on Utoya island in nearby Buskerud, which police said killed at least nine more. (FOR THE FULL ARTICLE CLICK HERE.)
UPDATE :
The NY Times has developed something of a profile of the accused killer:
(source: NY Times)
After the shooting the police seized a 32-year-old Norwegian man on the island, according to the police and Justice Minister Knut Storberget. He was later identified as Anders Behring Breivik and characterized by officials as a right-wing extremist, citing previous writings including on his Facebook page.The acting police chief, Sveinung Sponheim, said the suspect's Internet postings "suggest that he has some political traits directed toward the right, and anti-Muslim views, but if that was a motivation for the actual act remains to be seen."
He said the suspect had also been seen in Oslo before the explosions. The police and other authorities declined to say what the suspect's motivations might have been, but many speculated that the target was Mr. Stoltenberg's liberal government.........
Mr. Breivik had registered a farm-related business in Rena, in eastern Norway, which the authorities said allowed him to order a large quantity of ammonium nitrate fertilizer, an ingredient that can be used to make explosives. Authorities were investigating whether the chemical may have been used in the bombing.
A Facebook page matching his name and the photo given out by the police was set up just a few days ago. It listed his religion as Christian, politics as conservative. It said he enjoys hunting, the video games World of Warcraft and Modern Warfare 2, and books including Machiavelli's "The Prince" and George Orwell's "1984." (FULL ARTICLE HERE)
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An older stereotype is now emerging: Timothy McVeigh and Oklahoma City , from MSNBC:
A report that Norway's bomb and gun rampage may be the work of a far-right militant confronts Europe with the possibility that a new paramilitary threat is emerging, a decade after al-Qaida's Sept. 11 attacks.One analyst called the attacks possibly Europe's "Oklahoma City" moment, a reference to American right-wing militant Timothy McVeigh who detonated a truck bomb at a federal building in Oklahoma City in 1995, killing 168 people.
Police forces in many western European countries worry about rising far-right sentiment, fueled by a toxic mix of anti-Muslim and anti-immigrant bigotry and increasing economic hardship. (FOR THE FULL ARTICLE, CLICK HERE)
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