It’s another version of the “depends on what your definition of ‘is’, is”….

I’m still betting the decisions ultimately came from Denis McDonough and Tom Donilon during those critical hours….   both Obama and Biden were indisposed.

Washington DC – On Thursday, while denying that a “stand-down order” was given to Special Forces members ready to help Americans who were under siege at the U.S. consulate in Benghazi last September, one of the heads of the Benghazi Accountability Review Board (ARB) admitted that a “hold in place” order was in fact given.
Testifying before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, Admiral Mike Mullen said that the direction given to Special Operations Command Africa commander Lt. Col Gibson was to “hold in place” on the night of the attacks.
Gibson is the boss of Gregory Hicks, the former deputy chief of mission in Libya who had testified that a “stand down” order was given to Special Forces who wanted to help Americans who were under assault in Libya.  (continue reading)

(Via HuffPo)  Before Aaron Alexis went on his Navy Yard shooting rampage, he reportedly carved the words “Better Off This Way,” into his shotgun.

Alexis, who died during Monday’s shooting spree, also carved the phrase, “My E-L-F Weapon” onto the stock of the gun, according to ABC News.

Now, investigators are questioning the meaning of the phrases and if “better off this way” might be a clue that Alexis knew he would die in the altercation.  (link)

I think the first carving, “Better off This Way” is self explanatory….  Suicide by COP, make a name for yourself, and take out a few folks who look like the folks you hate.  Rail against the world and everyone who has grieved you.
The second carving, “My E-L-F Weapon” is probably a reflection of his job and his psychology.   He was an electrical IT type guy right?   Obviously unstable but generally pretty intelligent.   He was more than likely using a common term in his profession as an analogy behind his decision and his weapon to execute the decision: (more…)

CLAYTON COUNTY, Ga. –  A teenager kidnapped from her home at gunpoint in the middle of the night has been reunited with her family.
Ayvani Hope Perez, 14, was found at a location in Conyers, Ga., according to Clayton County Police Chief Gregory Porter.
The details regarding how she was found have yet to be released.
“She was recovered at a location in Conyers, Ga. The investigation is still active,” the chief said. He added that she has been reunited with her family and is being evaluated.  […]
Porter said Ayvani has been in the metro area since her abduction. She was found around noon on Wednesday. (more…)

Under Secretary of State Patrick Kennedy said the government of Libya is not allowing U.S. law enforcement into the country to arrest individuals connected with the Benghazi attack because the Libyan government “is not in control to that degree” Wednesday in a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing.
Kennedy explained ever since the events of September 11, 2012 the country has taken a “serious turn for the worse.”

Last night I posted a question about the motive of the DC shooter, contrast against the reporting done by CNN.  Many people have fallen into the trap of reconciliation without actually looking at the framing of the discussion.
At 7pm Monday, on the CNN show outlined, the racial identity of the victims was an unknown variable.    While *that* racial identity of the victims was unknown, CNN was talking in very specific terms about how the shooter, Aaron Alexis, had the capability to be highly “selective” and “accurate” with his chosen victims.

 ….a novice with no training, with very little training could put just about every bullet in the magazine within about a two-inch area from 100 yards….

However, as soon as the identity of the first set of victims was released, the CNN talking points took a dramatic turn.   The five original victims were identified – ALL WHITE.

The released identity of the first set of victims showed they were all white.   All white victims, contrast against a black shooter -and- CNN flips the shooting narrative to be one of “random” inaccurate shotgun blasts.
The  “highly selective accuracy” changed to “random inaccuracy“.
Coincidence?   I think not, but you decide. (more…)

So that leads to the question: where did the AR-15 talking point come from?

(more…)

UNITED NATIONS — Careful not to blame either side for a deadly chemical weapon attack, U.N. inspectors reported Monday that rockets loaded with the nerve agent sarin had been fired from an area where Syria’s military has bases, but said the evidence could have been manipulated in the rebel-controlled stricken neighborhoods.
The U.S., Britain and France jumped on evidence in the report – especially the type of rockets, the composition of the sarin agent, and trajectory of the missiles – to declare that President Bashar Assad’s government was responsible.
Russia, Syria’s closest ally, called the investigators’ findings “deeply disturbing,” but said it was too early to draw conclusions. The Syrian government’s claims that opposition forces were responsible for the attack “cannot be simply shrugged off,” Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin insisted. (more…)

The Wash Navy Yard shooter had 3 guns including AR-15 assault rifle – same killing machine used at Aurora and Sandy Hook.

— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) September 16, 2013

The FACTUAL CCTV shows a differing story – Piers Morgan is full of his typical nonsense:

(FROM NBC) […]  Surveillance video shows the gunman entered the NAVSEA building, at 1336 Isaac Hull Ave., with a shotgun, law enforcement officials told News4’s Jackie Bensen.

He shot a security officer in the head, killing him, and took his 9 mm pistol and a magazine of ammunition. The shooter then continued through the building and seemed to target his victims, who were mostly on the third and fourth floors, Bensen reported. (more…)

PREDICTION – What you are getting here is the set up to a national gun ownership registry.   The shooter in DC Naval Yard, Aaron Alexis, was previously arrested for two separate gun crimes in two separate states.   Combined with the PTSD push, this will become the format for the legislation “everyone can agree on”….   The national registry.
SEATTLE (AP) — The man identified as the shooter in the Washington Navy Yard slayings had been arrested in Seattle in 2004 for shooting out the tires of a parked car in what he described as an anger-fueled “black out.”

Two construction workers told police that Aaron Alexis walked out of a home next door on May 6, 2004, pulled a pistol from his waistband and fired three shots into the rear tires of their parked car. Alexis later told police he thought the victims had “disrespected him.”
Court records show he was released on the condition he not have contact with any of the construction workers.
Seattle police said in a statement Monday that detectives later spoke with Alexis’ father, who told police Alexis had anger management problems associated with PTSD, and had participated in rescue attempts on Sept. 11th, 2001.  (read more)

Flags at US Capitol to be lowered to half staff to honor the dead at Navy Yard blocks away. Will remain at half staff until sunset Friday.

— Chad Pergram (@ChadPergram) September 16, 2013

(Via Huf Post) One shooter is dead after opening fire Monday morning at the Washington Navy Yard and authorities are investigating the possibility of an additional shooter wearing a military-style uniform, Metropolitan Police Chief Cathy Lanier confirmed.
Thirteen people were killed including the shooter, Mayor Vincent Gray announced at a late afternoon press conference. No motive is known at this time.
Multiple news outlets identified Aaron Alexis, 34, as the deceased shooter. Originally of Fort Worth, Texas, Alexis recently began working at the Navy yard as a civilian contractor, NBC reports.
At approximately 2:45 p.m., DC police announced over Twitter that one of two possible additional suspects, a white male in a tan outfit, had been identified and “is not a suspect or person of interest.”  (Continue Reading)

Aaron Alexis, a 34 year old from Fort Worth, Texas has been identified as the gunman in the shooting at the Navy Yard in Washington D.C. He appears to have been a civilian doing work for the U.S. Navy. According to reports, he was armed with multiple weapons. He has been killed, but there are two other possible suspects who have not been apprehended. As many as twelve people may have been killed.

(Via Mediaite)  […]   According to the reports, Alexis is a Ft. Worth, Texas, native who recently worked as a civilian contractor in Washington, D.C. An arrest record from Tarrant County in September 2010 shows he was arrested for discharging his weapon.
(more…)