Terror in New York and the Massacre in Texas

Terror+in+New+York+and+the+Massacre+in+Texas

On the evening of  Halloween, October 31, 2017, Sayfullo Saipov purposefully drove a rented Home Depot truck through a busy bike lane down the street from the World Trade Center; he killed eight people and injured eleven more. Less than a week later, on November 5, Devin Kelley entered First Baptist Church at noon, at the end of the morning service, and opened fire, killing twenty-six people, almost half the congregation. After two such raw and quickly-followed, deliberate and calculated attacks, experts ask themselves whether this is the midst of a newer trend, a spike in crime.

Authorities consider the former, without doubt, an act of terrorism. Saipov, a twenty-nine year old Uzbekistan immigrant faces charges of violence, vehicle destruction, and terrorism. The FBI reports that Saipov had planned the attack a year in advance. He used tactics that Jihadist attackers employed in London, France, and Germany. Analysts have declared that it was well-planned indeed; young New Yorkers and trick-or-treaters were out and about as the dusk of Halloween drew closer, and Saipov carried out the attack down the street from the World Trade Center, a symbol of the United States’ rebuilding after 9/11.

Saipov emphatically expressed his pride in the work of his ideology. He even requested that he hang the flag of the Islamic State in his hospital room. The victims included two Americans and six tourists, five of whom were companions from Argentina. Because of these deaths, Saipov shall likely face capital punishment in federal court. The President commented in a tweet that the courts ought to act quickly and finished the tweet by typing “death penalty” in all capital letters. The defense in court might be able to argue that a jury could not decide judiciously or soberly whether Saipov receive capital punishment as a result of such a comment from a high authority.

A dozen more injured victims renders this attack the worst in New York since 9/11.

Sutherland Springs, Texas has only recently come into the national eye because of the actions of Devin Kelly. Kelly had a record of a dishonorable discharge from the Army for mistreating his family, and he had held a job as a security guard only for six weeks. Kelly fled the scene of the church after his shooting rampage in the sanctuary; some church members pursued him in a car chase. Kelly died shortly thereafter by a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Authorities are, at present, investigating the motive of Kelly.

Donald Trump, while on a diplomatic trip through Asia, at his visit with the Japanese Prime Minister, told members of the press that this was a “mental health problem” and not a “guns situation”, in response to questions of a change in gun policy and in reference to Kelly. Both sides of the aisle continue to push their agendas and they accuse each other of leveraging travesties to do so. No one in Washington seems to have changed their tune; those on the left continue to propose comprehensive gun control, and the right, extreme vetting for immigration.