Assassination news hits Blogosphere

The disturbing news of two young men plotting to assassinate Democratic candidate Barack Obama have reached the blogosphere with global citizens commenting on what it means for the election and the U.S.

Canadian blogger, Ian Welsh, stated that the Republican candidates should speak out against any racism.

“I think maybe McCain, and Palin in particular, might want to start calming the waters. And Palin in particular needs to call out the racists in her crowds and stop whipping it up. Because yes, lady, you will be held responsible if anything happens.”

Fellow Canadian, The Strong Conservative, said he was thankful the plan was discovered before the men were able to act on it.

“This disgusting plan has thankfully be averted, but the Secret Service and other law enforcement agencies will need to be extra vigilant to protect Mr. Obama from wackos who harbour violent radical and racist views.”

Across the Atlantic, England for Obama wasn’t sure what to say, but is certain November 4 will be marked as a historic date.

“I don’t quite know what to say… except: this is a turning point in American history, what’s about to happen on November 4th. And crackpots like these guys, and fearmongerers and race-baiters on the Right, are in the thankful, and very small, minority. From November 4th, a new page will have been turned in the history of American race relations. And nobody can ever, ever undo that.”

In Indonesia, Pyong commented on the continuous racism found in the States and how it’s distributed to others.

“I never believe that all American is racist free. Some of them are still so racist and judged people by their skin-color, origin, culture, etc. But are these irreasonable aspects really has to be passed to some other people? I mean, if you don't like something that's your personal problem, you don't need to force or makes everyone support your idea.

Americans condemned the action of the Islamist Fanatic when they tried to target any US's interests or Diplomats, but when we look into the detail, those fanatics are also like those racists American who try to attack others who they thought don't have same idealogy, class, whatever is that.”

She then leaves some advice for American voters:

“Come on, let it be a clear and fair election. No more smears, no more lies, and no more dangers attack. The most important thing you can do is go out and vote on November 4th, don't listen to those robocall, campaign flyers, but…listen to your heart, it's only you who know who is the best fit for you.”

Back in North America, Crooked in Canada, is skectical to whether the report is even true.

“Either skinheads are as stupid as they are racist, or the FBI is making up the story as they go along that they disrupted a plot to assassinate Barack Obama and shoot or decapitate black students in Tennessee.

It’s hard to say whether the planned hit on Obama and a preceding high school massacre by a couple of dopey neo-Nazis is a credible one or not, but it makes for a good headline in the lead up to the American election, and the story if it is embellished will either win more support (call it sympathy support) for Obama or hinder him in his bid to become America’s first black president.”

The Canadian blogger further adds that if it is true, it may have been dramatized.

“Like I said, Cowart and Schesselman don’t sound intelligent enough to organize a hooded apple bobbing contest, let alone organizing what would have been the biggest mass shooting in American history. I think the ATF and FBI are embellishing this story a little. But I could be, and wouldn’t be surprised to be wrong on this one.”

2 comments

  • Not your average Joe.

    I can only have dismay at news of the plot. The threat level is very real; however, there’s something that I view with a certain amount skepticism — suppression. What does a news story like that of the plot do to dampen one’s hopes to go out there and vote. If it turns some away from voting because they fear reprisals then it works — that’s a form of voter suppression. Another thought is that these two skinheads were caught, but what of the skinhead organization itself? Was the Organization part of it? Again, we don’t know, it would seem logical to state that rather just identifying the two as neo-Nazis — that’s suppression of information. Either way, a failed plot and the presumed accompanying fear work. It’s sad but is as just as real as the plot itself. I do find it peculiar that the story broke scantily in the US, but as I read on the internet there were more links to foreign press news entities that had the stories than US news entities.

  • Steve

    Those of you out there in the rest of the world should avoid giving our media too much trust.

    See, this was not a “plot” to assassinate Obama. In America, threatening to kill or even joking about killing the President or a Presidential candidate is one of the very few exceptions to the First Amendment guaranteeing freedom of speech. As such, the Secret Service and other federal law enforcement agencies take such things very, very seriously. Should you ever come to this country, don’t EVER make a joke about such a thing. Because what happened to these two idiot rednecks could easily happen to you.

    The story is this: these two morons, who are clearly racist, talked online about a fantasy they had of going on a killing spree, which was to end in an attempt to assassinate Senator Obama. That much you’ve probably heard. What you probably haven’t heard is that they planned to drive their vehicle as fast as possible straight at Senator Obama while firing their guns out the windows. They both stated that they would be wearing white tuxedos and top hats while they did they. In order to do all this, they planned to ROB A GUN STORE. (Funny thing about gun stores: the people inside tend to be armed.)

    In reality, the only illegal thing they seem to have done is shoot out a church window. Reprehensible, certainly, but it seems highly unlikely that they would have ever actually tried to assassinate anyone. But they fantasized about the wrong thing, and the hammer of the US justice system is now coming down hard on them.

    – A U.S. voter whose vote basically doesn’t count

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