Added to the Mix

The Boston Marathon bombings have sucked up the media oxygen this week. The explosions, the victims, the mystery of who was responsible, the citywide lockdown, the release of photos and identification of the perpetrators, the chase, the shootouts, and the final manhunt took turns being the lede over a dramatic five days.

Stories that took a back seat:

1) the West Texas explosion, which had more fatalities (14 so far) than the Marathon bombings; while the cause of that tragedy is officially unknown, the public and media appear to have concluded that it was a horrible accident perhaps exacerbated by inadequate safety protocols.

2) the gun control bill; it had weighty Constitutional matters at stake, but the motivations of the important players and the major talking points have been known for years.

But back to Boston: the Tsarnaev brothers fit no one's standard model of terrorists, whether they be foreign jihadists, native white supremacists, or solo sociopaths.

But should we think of the Tsarnaevs as a threat that was “homegrown”? Or “foreign”? Again, they are both...

Were the Tsarnaevs “suicide bombers”? Yes and no. Getting into shooting matches with police while wearing IEDs would seem to suggest the brothers knew they were dead. But after they murdered a child and two young women and maimed scores more on Monday, the brothers appear to have gone back to business as usual...

Lastly, were the Tsarnaevs ideologues, evil, or “just nuts”? This might be the most complicated question. As with all the others, the best answer again is “all of the above.”

The discomfiture of terrorism experts was matched by the questioning of new-media enthusiasm for crowdsourcing as a great leap forward in information gathering. On Wednesday night this humble, impatient observer turned off the TV and began following Twitter, which not only named the suspects but delved into their background and motivations. The only trouble is, Twitter said one of the bombers was a missing Brown University student and was completely wrong.

While we have a strong appreciation for the scientists, mathematicians, analysts, researchers, and public safety experts who are advancing knowledge in ways that we barely fathom, the Marathon bombings show that we should accept their assurances with skepticism. When it comes to our safety and that of our families, a healthy dose of plain old common sense should be added to the mix. © 2013 Stephen Yuen

[Update: The world is a dynamic place. And reality throws curve balls at us all the time. In the end the world is what it is whatever government and media say.]