How Tamerlan Died
On the night Tamerlan Tsarnaev was reportedly shot by police, then accidentally run over by his fleeing younger brother, CNN broadcast a video showing a crime scene teeming with police, in which a handcuffed man who looks quite a bit like Tamerlan -- having been made to strip naked -- is being hustled into a patrol car. The reporters speculated at the time that it might indeed be the bombing suspect.
Later on, the police issued a statement saying it was someone else, a case of mistaken identity. Fine. But who was it? Surely by now we can be told the name of that person -- and presumably that person would have no problem recounting his harrowing evening. Perhaps the police are withholding his identity at his request -- but given all the wild online speculation that the man in the video might have been Tamerlan himself, why not make more of an effort to clear up the matter? (While the original CNN video does not appear to be available online, numerous people copied and posted versions onto YouTube -- and can be found there with a search on "naked man Watertown CNN.")
Missing the Crucial Block
Somehow, the police managed to comb many blocks in Watertown, but not the block on which Dzhokhar was eventually found. As a result, police did not find him. A homeowner, David Henneberry, did -- and that story is rather strange. As soon as the governor relaxed the order that everyone stay indoors (why would the police do that if a deadly terrorist was still on the loose?), Henneberry came out to his driveway, took a look at his boat and noticed, according to the Boston Globe, that...
"...something was amiss. The straps weren't quite right. The pads seemed somehow askew.... Henneberry, a former telephone company technician, climbed a ladder and peeked inside. There was blood. A lot of blood. And on the other side of the boat's engine box there was a body."
The Dzhokhar Capture Story
Originally, we were told that Dzhokhar Tsarnaev held police at bay during a lengthy and formidable gun battle from the boat where he had taken shelter. We later learned that he was unarmed, and the hail of gunfire had all come from police. We did not learn what the basis for this deadly torrent was -- especially because there's no evidence that police even knew that the body Henneberry glimpsed on the floor of the boat was Tsarnaev's, or that this bloodied body, which put up no resistance, was an imminent threat.
From NoBos to Rambos
We were told that the brothers demonstrated great bravado and confidence with firearms, yet there's no evidence that they possessed either the experience or skills for such a hyper-charged performance. Ordinary people usually only turn into Rambo types in the movies. (Early stories that the brothers practiced at a firing range appear to have fizzled.)
FBI Monitoring
We were originally told that the FBI had no awareness of the brothers. Later, after reports surfaced that the Russians had warned the Americans about the brothers, the FBI admitted it had monitored them. Why the delay in admitting this? And if the FBI knew the brothers were potential problems, why did the bureau dismiss them as of no interest? The FBI has shown the capacity to be interested in, and a willingness to monitor, almost anyone, including peaceful anti-war protesters -- so why the purported lack of interest in these two brothers, given the Russian concern?
How Radicalized Were They?
It was widely reported that in 2010, Tamerlan declared that "I don't have a single American friend, I don't understand them." But in a call to local radio station WEEI shortly after Tamerlan's death, a good friend of his since 2005 -- an American -- disputed this: "It's not true -- all of his friends were American." Describing Tamerlan as "happy go lucky," this American friend said he was "completely shocked" by the turn of events. He said there were no indications of anything amiss or afoot. In fact, he said, Tamerlan had called him just two months ago, and asked him to go skiing, and had been at his house in the past month.
Also, we are told that Tamerlan became more active and radical after the Russians and FBI took an interest in him. What's this about? Blowback in response to what he felt was bullying by the feds?
Equally dubious is the evidence of his purported conversion. To wit, an article in which the New York Times interviewed some friends of Tamerlan Tsarnaev, and concluded that during a trip last year, as the headline put it, "Suspect in Boston Bombing Talked Jihad in Russia."
But if you read the report carefully, and think about it contextually, it's pretty thin gruel. Imagine that you were looking into most any young person who went back to the "homeland" -- the homeland was the scene of war and unrest -- Israel, Palestine, Northern Ireland, Kurdistan, etc. How shocking would it be that the young person might discuss his enthusiasm for the "cause" or even professions of interest to "suit up"? Would that be so unusual? Would it point to a probability of someone wanting to kill and maim a large number of innocent people in his adopted country -- especially when the adopted country was not the enemy of the people in the homeland?
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