Blasts Rattle Bangkok As Israel Accuses Iran

[OzMick]

After all, what do Americans, or the rest of the west, get out of Israel? the answer is absolutely nothing.

In the sciences,Jews have won 22 % of all the Nobel Prizes ever awarded. Most of the money Israel receives from the US is directly invested into the US weapons industry which in turn creates hundreds of thousands of American jobs. Much of the high tech weaponry in the US came from Israel.

If you're worried about your tax dollars going to waste perhaps you should ask, what kind of returns are you getting from the billions invested in the Egyptians, Palestinians, and Pakistanis?

You can keep the science that comes from the Israeil / Jewish 22%, and we'll keep the remaining science in exchange for world peace? Sound fair? Most sane people would take that exchange. However, i have a feeling that Israelis would have a harder time living without our science than we will living without theirs, but that's another discussion.

In no version of reality does the current conflict make sense, in terms of it being tolerated by the rest of the world, for israeli scientific accomplishments, nor for "windows xp" (a common 'accomplishment used by Israelis to justify why we put up with them and their politics), or whatever other trivial science that people can truly live without - or learn to live without. All of the nobel prizes in history don't justify dropping a single nuke.

To address your second point of logic, let me see if I have this straight: We give money to Israel, which creates political tension that makes it necessary to have a large defense industry that the money gets invested back into, which in turn creates jobs for a people whose taxes funded the process from the start?

Got it. Makes sense to me. I'm glad that's cleared up, and now I can feel good about the money that I spend, which creates a tumultuous political suituation that necessitiates that some of the money is funneled back me in the form of a paycheck. Good deal. However, I beleieve that I'll opt for the "no money" option. Somehow, call it a gut feeling, that option seems to be better for my own interest and that of my family.

I aks again, how does this strife and the countries that perpetuate it, benefit me, or more relevant to the news at hand, Thailand? Israel, Israeli interests, Iran, and Irani interests don't beenfit my life in any measurable way nor do they benefit the lives of Thais. It seems that having Israeli interests anywhere in Thailand has only caused them to be a target for bombings. That's not Thailands fault nor the fault of the Thai people. It's the fault of the countries involved in the conflict that-is-and-will-forever-be-without-end.

World peace is not achievable while one religion advocates the killing of the "godless". Israel is merely the focal point, and it is not only in science that Jews excel - they have also have many major achievements in the arts and literature, far in excess of the many multiples of people whose religious education precludes them from individual thought.

[Steely Dan]

After all, what do Americans, or the rest of the west, get out of Israel? the answer is absolutely nothing.

In the sciences,Jews have won 22 % of all the Nobel Prizes ever awarded. Most of the money Israel receives from the US is directly invested into the US weapons industry which in turn creates hundreds of thousands of American jobs. Much of the high tech weaponry in the US came from Israel.

If you're worried about your tax dollars going to waste perhaps you should ask, what kind of returns are you getting from the billions invested in the Egyptians, Palestinians, and Pakistanis?

You can keep the science that comes from the Israeil / Jewish 22%, and we'll keep the remaining science in exchange for world peace? Sound fair? Most sane people would take that exchange. However, i have a feeling that Israelis would have a harder time living without our science than we will living without theirs, but that's another discussion.

In no version of reality does the current conflict make sense, in terms of it being tolerated by the rest of the world, for israeli scientific accomplishments, nor for "windows xp" (a common 'accomplishment used by Israelis to justify why we put up with them and their politics), or whatever other trivial science that people can truly live without - or learn to live without. All of the nobel prizes in history don't justify dropping a single nuke.

To address your second point of logic, let me see if I have this straight: We give money to Israel, which creates political tension that makes it necessary to have a large defense industry that the money gets invested back into, which in turn creates jobs for a people whose taxes funded the process from the start?

Got it. Makes sense to me. I'm glad that's cleared up, and now I can feel good about the money that I spend, which creates a tumultuous political suituation that necessitiates that some of the money is funneled back me in the form of a paycheck. Good deal. However, I beleieve that I'll opt for the "no money" option. Somehow, call it a gut feeling, that option seems to be better for my own interest and that of my family.

I aks again, how does this strife and the countries that perpetuate it, benefit me, or more relevant to the news at hand, Thailand? Israel, Israeli interests, Iran, and Irani interests don't beenfit my life in any measurable way nor do they benefit the lives of Thais. It seems that having Israeli interests anywhere in Thailand has only caused them to be a target for bombings. That's not Thailands fault nor the fault of the Thai people. It's the fault of the countries involved in the conflict that-is-and-will-forever-be-without-end.

World peace is not achievable while one religion advocates the killing of the "godless". Israel is merely the focal point, and it is not only in science that Jews excel - they have also have many major achievements in the arts and literature, far in excess of the many multiples of people whose religious education precludes them from individual thought.

In 2007 Islam and Judaism's holiest holidays overlapped for 10 days.

Muslims racked up 397 dead bodies in 94 terror attacks across 10

countries during this time... while Jews worked on their 159th Nobel Prize.

[TimTang]

After all, what do Americans, or the rest of the west, get out of Israel? the answer is absolutely nothing.

In the sciences,Jews have won 22 % of all the Nobel Prizes ever awarded. Most of the money Israel receives from the US is directly invested into the US weapons industry which in turn creates hundreds of thousands of American jobs. Much of the high tech weaponry in the US came from Israel.

If you're worried about your tax dollars going to waste perhaps you should ask, what kind of returns are you getting from the billions invested in the Egyptians, Palestinians, and Pakistanis?

You can keep the science that comes from the Israeil / Jewish 22%, and we'll keep the remaining science in exchange for world peace? Sound fair? Most sane people would take that exchange. However, i have a feeling that Israelis would have a harder time living without our science than we will living without theirs, but that's another discussion.

In no version of reality does the current conflict make sense, in terms of it being tolerated by the rest of the world, for israeli scientific accomplishments, nor for "windows xp" (a common 'accomplishment used by Israelis to justify why we put up with them and their politics), or whatever other trivial science that people can truly live without - or learn to live without. All of the nobel prizes in history don't justify dropping a single nuke.

To address your second point of logic, let me see if I have this straight: We give money to Israel, which creates political tension that makes it necessary to have a large defense industry that the money gets invested back into, which in turn creates jobs for a people whose taxes funded the process from the start?

Got it. Makes sense to me. I'm glad that's cleared up, and now I can feel good about the money that I spend, which creates a tumultuous political suituation that necessitiates that some of the money is funneled back me in the form of a paycheck. Good deal. However, I beleieve that I'll opt for the "no money" option. Somehow, call it a gut feeling, that option seems to be better for my own interest and that of my family.

I aks again, how does this strife and the countries that perpetuate it, benefit me, or more relevant to the news at hand, Thailand? Israel, Israeli interests, Iran, and Irani interests don't beenfit my life in any measurable way nor do they benefit the lives of Thais. It seems that having Israeli interests anywhere in Thailand has only caused them to be a target for bombings. That's not Thailands fault nor the fault of the Thai people. It's the fault of the countries involved in the conflict that-is-and-will-forever-be-without-end.

It would appear that your own government disagrees with you. If you feel so strongly about it why don't you write your local congressman. In the mean time you can just pray that Iran is successful at wiping Israel off the map, then the world will be at peace and we can all sing Kumbaya.

[Ulysses G.]

Kumbaya.

Edited February 16, 2012 by Ulysses G.

[Scott]

Several off-topic posts and replies have been deleted. Please stick to the topic, which is a bomb blast in Bangkok. Alleged to have been perpetrated by Iranians possibly targeting Israeli's. I think Pakistan and the US are minor players in this thread.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

It's only speculation but I suspect that they had a mishap whilst manufacturing quantities of homemade explosive - C4 (plastic explosive) is often used as part of the detonation chain for large scale vehicle born bombs. Having had an accident, then I suspect they panicked, and that led to them running around lobbing grenades at taxis and policemen. If they had succeeded in manufacturing a large bomb, then I am afraid somewhere in Bangkok, probably where a lot of Israelis congregate, would have been hit, and many slaughtered.

You raise an interesting point... Were these guys planning a targeted assassination involving individual bombs to be attached with magnets to an (Israeli diplomat's) car? Or were they planning larger bombs aimed at exploding in an area and killing everyone in the vicinity?

The latest media reports seem to suggest they were planning car bombs aimed at Israeli diplomats. But the media reports also talk about the different bombs seized from the house containing 3 or 4 pounds of C4 each...

Someone with more explosives knowledge that me should opine... what kind of bomb do you get with 3 or 4 pounds of C4? One that just blows up a car? Or one that blows up a whole lot more?

[TimTang]

It's only speculation but I suspect that they had a mishap whilst manufacturing quantities of homemade explosive - C4 (plastic explosive) is often used as part of the detonation chain for large scale vehicle born bombs. Having had an accident, then I suspect they panicked, and that led to them running around lobbing grenades at taxis and policemen. If they had succeeded in manufacturing a large bomb, then I am afraid somewhere in Bangkok, probably where a lot of Israelis congregate, would have been hit, and many slaughtered.

You raise an interesting point... Were these guys planning a targeted assassination involving individual bombs to be attached with magnets to an (Israeli diplomat's) car? Or were they planning larger bombs aimed at exploding in an area and killing everyone in the vicinity?

The latest media reports seem to suggest they were planning car bombs aimed at Israeli diplomats. But the media reports also talk about the different bombs seized from the house containing 3 or 4 pounds of C4 each...

Someone with more explosives knowledge that me should opine... what kind of bomb do you get with 3 or 4 pounds of C4? One that just blows up a car? Or one that blows up a whole lot more?

Here's what 50lbs of C4 looks like being detonated:

I don't think 2lbs would cause a lot of damage, but properly placed it could kill the occupants of a car.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

The Malaysians have arrested the third Iranian bomber...

[xavierr]

Even if the bomb blast has allegedly been perpetrated by Iranians, please refrain from posting inflammatory rhetoric against Iranian people. Please keep in mind that the regime is a stern religious dictatorship and there are quite a few Iranians living in Bangkok who have sought shelter from the harshness of their regime. Some of these are already in a difficult position here in Thailand because they live here illegally and are already having a difficult time surviving on a daily basis.

[xavierr]

The essence of terrorism is its unpredictability.

Usually all the measures that are taken in the face of it amount to "locking the stable door after the horse is stolen". They deter future terrorists from using exactly the same method in the same place.

Not effective, but they give the public, who sees these measures and thinks that at least something is being done about it, a certain amount of consolation. Rest assured that the authorities are doing the best they can.

I have rested.

Are you immune to irony?

[jshorts]

The essence of terrorism is its unpredictability.

Usually all the measures that are taken in the face of it amount to "locking the stable door after the horse is stolen". They deter future terrorists from using exactly the same method in the same place.

Not effective, but they give the public, who sees these measures and thinks that at least something is being done about it, a certain amount of consolation. Rest assured that the authorities are doing the best they can.

I have rested.

Are you immune to irony?

I must have been too obtuse. "I have rested assured that the authorities are doing the best they can."

[TimTang]

Even if the bomb blast has allegedly been perpetrated by Iranians, please refrain from posting inflammatory rhetoric against Iranian people. Please keep in mind that the regime is a stern religious dictatorship and there are quite a few Iranians living in Bangkok who have sought shelter from the harshness of their regime. Some of these are already in a difficult position here in Thailand because they live here illegally and are already having a difficult time surviving on a daily basis.

Too True! Nobody hates the Iranian Theocracy more than the average citizens of Iran.

[bryanlunadelacruz]

"Intelligence analysis said [the suspects] were arguing with one another, and the incidents are being treated as normal crimes."

so bombing a taxi and explosion infront of a school is a normal crime now in bangkok..wow! i feel safe..

[TimTang]

"Intelligence analysis said [the suspects] were arguing with one another, and the incidents are being treated as normal crimes."

so bombing a taxi and explosion infront of a school is a normal crime now in bangkok..wow! i feel safe..

I'd still like to know how Intelligence knew they were arguing; was the place bugged?

[Jingthing]

Even if the bomb blast has allegedly been perpetrated by Iranians, please refrain from posting inflammatory rhetoric against Iranian people. Please keep in mind that the regime is a stern religious dictatorship and there are quite a few Iranians living in Bangkok who have sought shelter from the harshness of their regime. Some of these are already in a difficult position here in Thailand because they live here illegally and are already having a difficult time surviving on a daily basis.

Too True! Nobody hates the Iranian Theocracy more than the average citizens of Iran.

You're conveniently simplifying the situation. Their fundamentalists have a large base just as the more moderates have a large base. In Iran, President Ahmadinejad is more moderate than the clerical leadership though there is also a base for somewhat left of him as well. No, they haven't had fair elections, something they share with their good friend Russia. Edited February 16, 2012 by Jingthing

[Morch]

Stop buying into all the crap people and start looking at the big picture here....

The big picture is that a bomb factory blew up and they have Iranian passports and Iranian currency.

The bigger picture is that Mossad used Iranians to kill the Iranian nuclear scientists. Same kind of magnetic bombs has been found and used in Bangkok and New delhi and Tbilisi. Wouldn´t that be perfect for Mossad to blow up people and blame Iran for that so they can justify a attack on Iran.

This is not the first time Isarel use such method for covert/false flag operation. You can google the lavon affair so you can understand better.

--------------------

The Lavon Affair refers to the scandal over a failed Israeli covert operation in Egypt known as Operation Suzannah, in which U.S. and U.K. targets in Egypt were bombed and evidence left implicating the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood; a textbook example of a false flag operation.

Israel will not go to war over 3 attempted attacks, 2 of them being failures.

If it wanted to, I'm pretty sure they could arrange a decent show.

As for the bombs being similar to those used in the assassinations in Iran - well, yeah...that's sort of your basic tool, I guess. Going for a more advanced version draws attention and may have some operational issues. Keep it simple works nicely.

But hey, got me thinking: I notice most firearms, anywhere, that are used to kill people, employ pretty much the same bullets! Must be a plot behind it...

[TimTang]

Even if the bomb blast has allegedly been perpetrated by Iranians, please refrain from posting inflammatory rhetoric against Iranian people. Please keep in mind that the regime is a stern religious dictatorship and there are quite a few Iranians living in Bangkok who have sought shelter from the harshness of their regime. Some of these are already in a difficult position here in Thailand because they live here illegally and are already having a difficult time surviving on a daily basis.

Too True! Nobody hates the Iranian Theocracy more than the average citizens of Iran.

You're conveniently simplifying the situation. Their fundamentalists have a large base just as the more moderates have a large base. In Iran, President Ahmadinejad is more moderate than the clerical leadership though there is also a base for somewhat left of him as well. No, they haven't had fair elections, something they share with their good friend Russia.

I'd have to disagree with you about the number of moderates in Iran, but that's just my opinion after watching the demonstrations during the last election. People were begging Obama for help and some even carried signs saying "please invade us". As for Ahmadinejad being moderate. He's a member of the Hojjatieh sect which believe that humans can stir up chaos (read...nuclear Holocaust) to encourage the early return of the al-Mahdi or the Twelfth Imam (the Islamic equivalent of the Messiah). Moderate is not what comes to mind when I think of Ahmadinejad.

[Jingthing]

There are more anti-regime people in Tehran. I didn't mean the current president is moderate by western standards. I meant by Iranian standards, compared to the clerics, he is left of them, and that is a fact.

[cdnvic]

The topic relates to Bangkok's bombings. Please stick to that. Any more off-topic religious nonsense will be deleted.

[JAG]

It's only speculation but I suspect that they had a mishap whilst manufacturing quantities of homemade explosive - C4 (plastic explosive) is often used as part of the detonation chain for large scale vehicle born bombs. Having had an accident, then I suspect they panicked, and that led to them running around lobbing grenades at taxis and policemen. If they had succeeded in manufacturing a large bomb, then I am afraid somewhere in Bangkok, probably where a lot of Israelis congregate, would have been hit, and many slaughtered.

You raise an interesting point... Were these guys planning a targeted assassination involving individual bombs to be attached with magnets to an (Israeli diplomat's) car? Or were they planning larger bombs aimed at exploding in an area and killing everyone in the vicinity?

The latest media reports seem to suggest they were planning car bombs aimed at Israeli diplomats. But the media reports also talk about the different bombs seized from the house containing 3 or 4 pounds of C4 each...

Someone with more explosives knowledge that me should opine... what kind of bomb do you get with 3 or 4 pounds of C4? One that just blows up a car? Or one that blows up a whole lot more?

The C4 is used as a booster - the detonator sets of the C4 which in turn sets off the home made explosive. They would have needed a relatively small amount of C4. Unless detonated C4 is very stable. Not so the homemade stuff, which can be horrifically unstable. This (the home made mix) is what I suspect caused the initial explosion in the house. Our legless friend then went a tad loopy with some handgrenades. Lucky that he came off worse than the people he was chucking them at!

[geriatrickid]

Reality is that Thailand is an easy place to attack your enemies with lax policing and its 'mai pen rai' attitudes.

Thailand is lucky these terrorists screwed up their operation before they could do some serious damage. Certainly it makes the local security services look lax for not identifying this terror cell.

Thailand seems more concerned in protecting it tourist industry than locals and foreigners? Its advisories show this?

My advice would be to aviod areas frequented by foreigners. Stick to the Thai areas that wont be targeted and that foreign terrorists wont know about.

Sage Advice, MaiChai.

Ahh so that means Hat Yai and Pattani will be the new foreign destinations of choice. No need to worry about bomb blasts or killings in these areas which foreigners have avoided to date.....

[Scott]

A post discussing religion and moderation has been deleted.

[harleyclarkey]

It is quite frightening when the Thai authorities are not facing the reality with this terrorist act. What else is happening that they consider "normal"? By sticking their stupid heads in the sand they will unfortunately cause further innocent casualties.

It is NOT an ordinary spit between criminals. I believe they were out to bomb the Israeli or American embassies or God forbid they were after nearby targets frequented by tourists.

What is the reality that you expect the government to face up to ? Surely if the government makes a big deal of this matter resulting in panic reactions then that is exactly what the terrorists want. Based on the facts available so far we know that 3 Iranian nationals were ineptly handling explosives resulting in one of them blowing his own legs off. Unless they were friends of yours I can't understand why you would believe that these idiots were going to attack the US or Israeli Embassies or anywhere else for that matter. They could even be on US or Israeli payroll as part of a campaign to stir up anti Iranian feelings ahead of an important vote on sanctions. in fact the more i think about it the more plausible that seems

Maybe you missed the original post.

The Thais to face up to the reality they were not common criminals. They don't normally go around with C4 and hand grenades...or maybe in your circles they do.

And no...they weren't friends of mine. What a stupid comment.

[Ulysses G.]

This event was very amateur and bungled. I doubt that there was any official backing, and it seems more of a splinter faction than anything.

Thanks for sharing your opinion, but as you have absolutely nothing to back it up with, an opinion it remains. By the way, if the bomb had not gone off prematurely, the attack might, very well, have been successful and no one would think that it was amateurish then.

Personally, I would guess that the action did have official backing from the Iranian government, but as I have no evidence to prove it, that is an opinion too.

Edited February 17, 2012 by Ulysses G.

[Naam]

What a ridiculous argument. Israel did not sign the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, so they are not violating it and have done nothing illegal in regards to it. Iran HAS signed it and is refusing to honor their word.

ridiculous is referring to the non-proliferation treaty of nuclear weapons. Iran has every right to enrich uranium used for any other purpose than the production of weapons. everybody knows that but of course it is politically incorrect to refer to it as it is politically incorrect but utmost ridiculous and lame to refer to Israel's stockpile of nukes "they didn't sign an agreement."

[Ulysses G.]

Iran has every right to enrich uranium used for any other purpose than the production of weapons everybody knows that

If you say so, but they intend to use it for weapons and "everybody knows that" too.

[Ulysses G.]

So, you are saying that Iran is completely innocent, has no intention of making a nuclear weapon and does not support Hezzbolah - the terrorist group - attacking Iran's enemies? Food for thought.

Edited February 17, 2012 by Ulysses G.

[spidermike007]

Thank goodness the Iranian "wanna be" was an amateur and his mission wasn't totally carried through. I realize my Western thinking is different than the governments, but you would think the govenment would take this as a "wake up call" and get serious instead of acting like nothing serious is happening in the capital city. Also, don't they realize countries today have terrorists problems of some sort and tourists are (usually) not scared off - it has happened in London, Paris, New York, Madrid, Jakarta...the list goes on and these cities are still receiving tourists. What will scare people off is the government's denial of "evil doers" and not taking any pro-action about it.

I don't think that the government has said what they are doing, nor what their security services. What they have said is that they don't want the general populace to do anything, nor to panic.

I don't have a good view of everything the thai security forces do, but if I was a senior officer therein, I'd be making sure that the next 'normal crime' didn't occur on my patch...

SC

Taking this as a wake up call would denote competence. You are asking a lot. You are asking small minded men, with the emotional development of a 12 year old adolescent, to behave in a professional, and competent manner. That is asking a lot of Thailand.

[StreetCowboy]

Thank goodness the Iranian "wanna be" was an amateur and his mission wasn't totally carried through. I realize my Western thinking is different than the governments, but you would think the govenment would take this as a "wake up call" and get serious instead of acting like nothing serious is happening in the capital city. Also, don't they realize countries today have terrorists problems of some sort and tourists are (usually) not scared off - it has happened in London, Paris, New York, Madrid, Jakarta...the list goes on and these cities are still receiving tourists. What will scare people off is the government's denial of "evil doers" and not taking any pro-action about it.

I don't think that the government has said what they are doing, nor what their security services. What they have said is that they don't want the general populace to do anything, nor to panic.

I don't have a good view of everything the thai security forces do, but if I was a senior officer therein, I'd be making sure that the next 'normal crime' didn't occur on my patch...

SC

Taking this as a wake up call would denote competence. You are asking a lot. You are asking small minded men, with the emotional development of a 12 year old adolescent, to behave in a professional, and competent manner. That is asking a lot of Thailand.

You're obviously more intimate with the senior officers in the security forces than I am...

SC

[SomTumTiger]

Anyone who thinks Iran is the "innocent victims" in all this - need to put down the crack pipe - Chalerm is on the drug warpath and you might get a visit from the BiB.