Norway and Europe’s “new” terrorist threat.
The radical right terrorist attack on Norway has been called the “Oklahoma City of Norway.” Well – some of us thought that – sooner or later - right wing terrorists would attack a target in Europe, but it would be a mosque, and if 90 people were going to be killed, it would be Muslim worshipers.
The “twin” terrorist attacks in Norway fit a familiar pattern of terrorist attacks in the US. They are carried out by a home grown, “lone wolf,” terrorist with a grudge against government, Leftists, minorities, wrapped in rants against multiculturalism and “elites.” While Timothy McVeigh got some help with his attack on Oklahoma City, these right wing terrorist attacks by loners are difficult to pridict, but not hard to guard against in terms of securing places where such terrorists would carry out attacks, especially against Muslim communities. [CAIR Community Tool Kit - Mosque Security from About.com ]
Europe would do well if it got off its collective ass and realize that terrorism is not just “something only Muslims do.” What Europe may now be facing is a “new” twist on the old radical right that has cost millions of lives in Europe over the past 100 years. The “new” terrorism is the same kind of radical right terrorism faced by Americans as a domestic terrorist threat from the Western side of the Atlantic. Europe would do well to watch and coordinate intelligence and law enforcement against radical right extremists and terrorists – but at least start paying some attention to “non-Islamist terrorism.”
The disclosure of Breivik’s claimed links with other far right organisations came as details emerged about the rightwing Christian fundamentalist and freemason behind Norway’s worst post-war act of violence.
It was revealed that the 32-year-old former member of the country’s conservative Progress Party – who had become ever more extreme in his hatred of Muslims, left wingers and the country’s political establishment – had ordered six tonnes of fertiliser in May to be used in the bombing. While police continued to interrogate Breivik, who was charged with the mass killings, evidence of his increasingly far right world view emerged from an article he had posted on several Scandinavian websites, including Nordisk – a site frequented by neo-Nazis, far right radicals and Islamophobes since 2009 [ Mark Townsend, Peter Beaumont and Tracy McVeigh - The Guardian].
Rater than red flags, groups and individuals admired by Anders Behring Beivik are ‘free speech.” Well - the “counter-terrorism experts” are now doing cognitive flops and stunts to try and explain how the attacks in Norway were “Islamic.” Even as we know that the terrorist, Anders Behring Beivik, admired Geert Wilders, contributed to Atlas Shrugged, and had contacts with the EDL – and called the PVV a “true conservative party.” If a Muslim had admiration for “radical groups and people,” he’d be in big trouble and his viewpoints and associations would not be “free speech.”
Europe has an obligation to protect all of its population from terrorist violence, no matter the source. Muslim communities need protection from terrorism and hate crimes – and now Leftist political parties and persons need to be concerned. The notion that “only Islamists and jihadists are terrorists” is a danger to public safety and security as certain as a terrorist attack itself.
The reason why “we did not see this coming” in Norway is because the so-called “counter-terrorism experts” were simply not looking at the Scandinavian radical right. There is a hot bed of anti-Muslim (Islamophobic), anti-Left, pro-Wilders radical right centered on Denmark, but includes Sweden too. Europe and Scandinavian especially, need to have a crash course in how their some of their citizens, almost exclusively men, form radical views about racial and religious minorities (believe conspiracy theories about “Muslims”), acquire role model-leaders (like Geert Wilders), belittle Leftists and “elites” – then become radicalized enough to form the motivations to kill people and break things. Again – often these are “lone wolves” who we many not be able to detect and stop in time – so surveillance and intelligence gathering is very important.
Also see:
How a clueless “terrorism expert” set media suspicion on Muslims after Oslo horror. Good article on how “terrorism experts” manufactured and then disseminated yesterday’s “Muslims did it” myth. Again – I told you so…
Glenn Greenwald – yet another great article – The omnipotence of Al Qaeda and meaninglessness of “Terrorism”
Media Reacts to News That Norwegian Terror Suspect Isn’t Muslim – How “terrorism experts” are straining to find a “jihadist” some place, anyplace!!!
Breivik, Rightist Mass Murderer, ‘Atlas Shrugged’ Contributor – Nice article on the radical right terrorist.
