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Edit: Boston police reporting at least 2 dead, 22 injured and 10 people losing limbs. http://www.foxnews.com/us/2013/04/15/explosion-reported-near-finish-line-

Edit: Boston police reporting at least 2 dead, 22 injured and 10 people losing limbs. http://www.foxnews.com/us/2013/04/15/explosion-reported-near-finish-line-boston-marathon-spokesman-says/ http://www.foxnews.com/us/2013/04/15/explosion-reported-near... Looks like there were two explosions. Picture: https://pbs.twimg.com/media/BH6fCgFCQAERWMB.jpg:large https://pbs.twimg.com/media/BH6fCgFCQAERWMB.jpg:large More details http://www.wcvb.com/news/local/metro/Explosions-reported-near-Boston-Marathon-finish-line/-/11971628/19757044/-/ktnc1wz/-/index.html?hpt=hp_t2 http://www.wcvb.com/news/local/metro/Explosions-reported-nea... "Witnesses said several victims lost limbs, and the area was being evacuated. Many of the injured appeared to be spectators who gathered for the 117th running of the race." Many more pictures(warning NSFW Gore): http://deadspin.com/explosions-reported-at-the-boston-marathon-473008941 http://deadspin.com/explosions-reported-at-the-boston-marath...

deleted 14y ago
[deleted]
pinaceae 14y ago
https://twitter.com/letsrundotcom/status/323874395632328706/photo/1 https://twitter.com/letsrundotcom/status/323874395632328706/... this looks really bad.
- deleted 14y ago
  [deleted]
  - rdl 14y ago
    Based on all the photos I've seen, I'd estimate 10 pounds of ANFO per device.
    - rdl 14y ago
      Or a bunch of black powder, really. Multiple smallish devices in bags in a public place is totally within the angry or crazy lone wolf threat profile. I really hope it is that vs anything more organized.
    - VLM 14y ago
      That seems a little high like out of a video game... I took the USAR week long explosives familiarization course back in 93 at AIT at Redstone Arsenal (now why a minicomputer system operator had to take that course was a mystery, other than general safety and familiarization because it was a minicomputer for a TSA (basically what civilians would call an ammo depot)) and got to prime and set off a pound of old fashioned TNT and as a group we got to prime and set off a demilled 105 round. Based on crater size and general blast effect this is probably somewhere in between. A pound of .mil TNT vaguely resembles a squarish soup can in size and a 105 round is, you guessed it, 105mm across so its dimensions are vaguely reminiscent of a 24oz/40oz big beer can. So what you're talking about is something pretty small, not the size of a car or truck or two 10 pound bags. But a bit bigger than a grenade. I got to throw two of those when I was in .mil and the damage is probably more severe than one of those can cause. Smoke pillar alone if nothing else. I will agree that you could F up a 10 pound device such that all you get is the primer and booster and not the main charge. That sounds about right.
      - rdl 14y ago
        Crater really depends on how high off the pavement, too. I assumed "top of a trash can" but that might not be the case. Just clearly a small bag device, not a serious carbomb or anything, and based on the smoke I don't think it was military or commercial explosives. I'm really only familiar with bigger devices and telling artillery vs anfo, though.
  - zackzackzack 14y ago
    It doesn't seem to be over yet. https://twitter.com/BostonGlobe/status/323885037877608448 https://twitter.com/BostonGlobe/status/323885037877608448
  - pinaceae 14y ago
    well, this is indeed a tricky subject. 1., we don't know if it is terrorism (well, is a loner like breivik a terrorist or "just" running amok?) 2., it might not be over yet. mumbai took 60hours. 3., lots of people nowadays have someone there, a friend, an aquaintance. maybe just an online friend or simple source of joy but yeah, terror spreads through news.
    - Udo 14y ago
      Used to be that a terrorist was defined as someone who likes to further their agenda by means of spreading terror. Explosions, destruction, loss of life - that's all completely incidental to the actual terror. A person running amok, in contrast, may be a terrorist (and people like Breivik certainly fit the bill in some aspects) but their main goal is committing mass murder, usually culminating in suicide. A convincing argument could be made that in some respects suicide bombers are also running amok, but we tend to reserve the term terrorist for a more organized type of crime that is supported by an entire network. > but yeah, terror spreads through news. Absolutely.
      - pekk 14y ago
        Breivik was someone pursuing a political agenda by means of spreading terror.
        flyinRyan 14y ago
        He wasn't trying to spread terror. He was trying to literally kill the next generation of people who fundamentally disagreed with him politically.
      - podperson 14y ago
        I don't think anything much has changed. It's interesting to look at Joseph Conrad's "The Secret Agent" -- published in 1907 -- which is based on a true story (of an anarchist attack on the Greenwich Observatory in 1894). All the elements of modern "terrorism" are there back then: a half-wit dupe bomber, nutjobs with a crazy ideology (anarchism in this case), and national actors manipulating them from behind the scenes.
  - InclinedPlane 14y ago
    A "tiny" explosion with "few" casualties can easily kill and maim more people than your average national-news-worthy mass shooting.
  - JPKab 14y ago
    There are multiple people dead, and multiple people with lost limbs. At what point does a line get drawn between tiny, medium, and large?
- Recoil42 14y ago
  This picture looks considerably worse: https://twitter.com/brm90/statuses/323876631980687361 https://twitter.com/brm90/statuses/323876631980687361
pinaceae 14y ago
vine vid of the explosion: https://vine.co/v/bFdt5uwg6JZ https://vine.co/v/bFdt5uwg6JZ :(
lifeguard 14y ago
For some reason this reminds me more of the Atlanta Summer Olympics or Moscow than the attacks on the World Trade Center. [edit to add links for clarity] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_apartment_bombings#Ryazan_incident http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_apartment_bombings#Ryaz... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Centennial_Olympic_Park_bombing http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Centennial_Olympic_Park_bombing Condolences to friends and families of the injured and dead.
- scarmig 14y ago
  The aim of the WTC attack was to make a very symbolic action: the goal was to destroy three symbols of American power, its military, economic, and political might, though the last ended up physically unscathed. Obviously a huge number of deaths associated with it, but the symbolism was key. You knew exactly where the attackers stood--American power is evil--once you heard a description of the attacks. This, in contrast, is incomprehensible violence. I can think of a dozen different viewpoints that could have driven it, but we'll have to wait for some idiotic statement from the criminals who did it before we have a clue "why" they did it.
  - youngerdryas 14y ago
    >You knew exactly where the attackers stood--American power is evil Who gives a fuck where they stand they will all be hunted down and killed. For all you know this bombing was because they don't believe women should run in marathons.
    - nolok 14y ago
      > For all you know this bombing was because they don't believe women should run in marathons. Or maybe their entire family was killed as collateral damage in an american drone strike in Yemen. Or they though the IRS is taxing them too much and wanted to get back at the country. Or they are just fucking crazy and didn't even have a reason. Stop making assumptions with no information whatsoever.
      - 14y ago
SODaniel 14y ago
The Boston Globe ‏@BostonGlobe 34s BREAKING NEWS: Police getting multiple reports of unexploded devices around Boston 3.38 pm Central time. Update: The Boston Globe ‏@BostonGlobe 28s RT @billy_baker: "It's not safe to be here." - Boston Police evacuating Commonwealth Avenue mall at Gloucester. 3.45 Central time. Update: The Boston Globe ‏@BostonGlobe 1m Boston Police: If anyone knows of any information call about explosions: 1 800 494 TIPS 3.55 Central time. Holy crap! UPDATE: Apparently cellphone service is SHUT DOWN! To make sure new devices are not remotely detonated! http://bigstory.ap.org/article/official-cellphone-service-shut-down-boston http://bigstory.ap.org/article/official-cellphone-service-sh... 4.10 PM Central Time!
- lifeguard 14y ago
  Expect numerous false positives for the next few months.
  - optiminimalist 14y ago
    Better false positives than false negatives.
    - lifeguard 14y ago
      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cost_benefit_analysis http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cost_benefit_analysis
      - deleted 14y ago
        [deleted]
      - yew 14y ago
        Don't be silly. No one ever does that in a crisis. They just spout platitudes about 'doing everything possible' and never stop to think about what that actually means. And if you point out the implications someone will quickly follow up by assuring you that 'no one would ever do that'. Sometimes I think the greatest weakness of policymakers is the delusion that other policymakers believe what they believe, and for the same reasons.
erpa1119 14y ago
Boston PD news conference coming up in ~10 minites
deleted 14y ago
[deleted]
washedup 14y ago
Has anyone set up a charity to raise money for the victims? Something to help pay for prosthetic limbs?
- nollidge 14y ago
  Probably best to let the dust settle and watch for offical reporting on where to donate. Fraudsters can spring up quickly.
- cdcarter 13y ago
  http://onefundboston.org http://onefundboston.org has been formed.
supervillain 14y ago
The explosions is so timely it gives more reasons to oppose any US immigration reforms next week.
erpa1119 14y ago
6:39AM 3 dead, 126 wounded, what a terrible incident this has been.

deleted 14y ago

[deleted]

pinaceae 14y ago

https://twitter.com/letsrundotcom/status/323874395632328706/photo/1 https://twitter.com/letsrundotcom/status/323874395632328706/... this looks really bad.

deleted 14y ago
[deleted]
- rdl 14y ago
  Based on all the photos I've seen, I'd estimate 10 pounds of ANFO per device.
  - rdl 14y ago
    Or a bunch of black powder, really. Multiple smallish devices in bags in a public place is totally within the angry or crazy lone wolf threat profile. I really hope it is that vs anything more organized.
  - VLM 14y ago
    That seems a little high like out of a video game... I took the USAR week long explosives familiarization course back in 93 at AIT at Redstone Arsenal (now why a minicomputer system operator had to take that course was a mystery, other than general safety and familiarization because it was a minicomputer for a TSA (basically what civilians would call an ammo depot)) and got to prime and set off a pound of old fashioned TNT and as a group we got to prime and set off a demilled 105 round. Based on crater size and general blast effect this is probably somewhere in between. A pound of .mil TNT vaguely resembles a squarish soup can in size and a 105 round is, you guessed it, 105mm across so its dimensions are vaguely reminiscent of a 24oz/40oz big beer can. So what you're talking about is something pretty small, not the size of a car or truck or two 10 pound bags. But a bit bigger than a grenade. I got to throw two of those when I was in .mil and the damage is probably more severe than one of those can cause. Smoke pillar alone if nothing else. I will agree that you could F up a 10 pound device such that all you get is the primer and booster and not the main charge. That sounds about right.
    - rdl 14y ago
      Crater really depends on how high off the pavement, too. I assumed "top of a trash can" but that might not be the case. Just clearly a small bag device, not a serious carbomb or anything, and based on the smoke I don't think it was military or commercial explosives. I'm really only familiar with bigger devices and telling artillery vs anfo, though.
- zackzackzack 14y ago
  It doesn't seem to be over yet. https://twitter.com/BostonGlobe/status/323885037877608448 https://twitter.com/BostonGlobe/status/323885037877608448
- pinaceae 14y ago
  well, this is indeed a tricky subject. 1., we don't know if it is terrorism (well, is a loner like breivik a terrorist or "just" running amok?) 2., it might not be over yet. mumbai took 60hours. 3., lots of people nowadays have someone there, a friend, an aquaintance. maybe just an online friend or simple source of joy but yeah, terror spreads through news.
  - Udo 14y ago
    Used to be that a terrorist was defined as someone who likes to further their agenda by means of spreading terror. Explosions, destruction, loss of life - that's all completely incidental to the actual terror. A person running amok, in contrast, may be a terrorist (and people like Breivik certainly fit the bill in some aspects) but their main goal is committing mass murder, usually culminating in suicide. A convincing argument could be made that in some respects suicide bombers are also running amok, but we tend to reserve the term terrorist for a more organized type of crime that is supported by an entire network. > but yeah, terror spreads through news. Absolutely.
    - pekk 14y ago
      Breivik was someone pursuing a political agenda by means of spreading terror.
      - flyinRyan 14y ago
        He wasn't trying to spread terror. He was trying to literally kill the next generation of people who fundamentally disagreed with him politically.
    - podperson 14y ago
      I don't think anything much has changed. It's interesting to look at Joseph Conrad's "The Secret Agent" -- published in 1907 -- which is based on a true story (of an anarchist attack on the Greenwich Observatory in 1894). All the elements of modern "terrorism" are there back then: a half-wit dupe bomber, nutjobs with a crazy ideology (anarchism in this case), and national actors manipulating them from behind the scenes.
- InclinedPlane 14y ago
  A "tiny" explosion with "few" casualties can easily kill and maim more people than your average national-news-worthy mass shooting.
- JPKab 14y ago
  There are multiple people dead, and multiple people with lost limbs. At what point does a line get drawn between tiny, medium, and large?
Recoil42 14y ago
This picture looks considerably worse: https://twitter.com/brm90/statuses/323876631980687361 https://twitter.com/brm90/statuses/323876631980687361

pinaceae 14y ago

vine vid of the explosion: https://vine.co/v/bFdt5uwg6JZ https://vine.co/v/bFdt5uwg6JZ :(

lifeguard 14y ago

For some reason this reminds me more of the Atlanta Summer Olympics or Moscow than the attacks on the World Trade Center. [edit to add links for clarity] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_apartment_bombings#Ryazan_incident http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_apartment_bombings#Ryaz... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Centennial_Olympic_Park_bombing http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Centennial_Olympic_Park_bombing Condolences to friends and families of the injured and dead.

scarmig 14y ago
The aim of the WTC attack was to make a very symbolic action: the goal was to destroy three symbols of American power, its military, economic, and political might, though the last ended up physically unscathed. Obviously a huge number of deaths associated with it, but the symbolism was key. You knew exactly where the attackers stood--American power is evil--once you heard a description of the attacks. This, in contrast, is incomprehensible violence. I can think of a dozen different viewpoints that could have driven it, but we'll have to wait for some idiotic statement from the criminals who did it before we have a clue "why" they did it.
- youngerdryas 14y ago
  >You knew exactly where the attackers stood--American power is evil Who gives a fuck where they stand they will all be hunted down and killed. For all you know this bombing was because they don't believe women should run in marathons.
  - nolok 14y ago
    > For all you know this bombing was because they don't believe women should run in marathons. Or maybe their entire family was killed as collateral damage in an american drone strike in Yemen. Or they though the IRS is taxing them too much and wanted to get back at the country. Or they are just fucking crazy and didn't even have a reason. Stop making assumptions with no information whatsoever.
    - 14y ago

SODaniel 14y ago

The Boston Globe ‏@BostonGlobe 34s BREAKING NEWS: Police getting multiple reports of unexploded devices around Boston 3.38 pm Central time. Update: The Boston Globe ‏@BostonGlobe 28s RT @billy_baker: "It's not safe to be here." - Boston Police evacuating Commonwealth Avenue mall at Gloucester. 3.45 Central time. Update: The Boston Globe ‏@BostonGlobe 1m Boston Police: If anyone knows of any information call about explosions: 1 800 494 TIPS 3.55 Central time. Holy crap! UPDATE: Apparently cellphone service is SHUT DOWN! To make sure new devices are not remotely detonated! http://bigstory.ap.org/article/official-cellphone-service-shut-down-boston http://bigstory.ap.org/article/official-cellphone-service-sh... 4.10 PM Central Time!

lifeguard 14y ago
Expect numerous false positives for the next few months.
- optiminimalist 14y ago
  Better false positives than false negatives.
  - lifeguard 14y ago
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cost_benefit_analysis http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cost_benefit_analysis
    - deleted 14y ago
      [deleted]
    - yew 14y ago
      Don't be silly. No one ever does that in a crisis. They just spout platitudes about 'doing everything possible' and never stop to think about what that actually means. And if you point out the implications someone will quickly follow up by assuring you that 'no one would ever do that'. Sometimes I think the greatest weakness of policymakers is the delusion that other policymakers believe what they believe, and for the same reasons.

erpa1119 14y ago

Boston PD news conference coming up in ~10 minites

deleted 14y ago

[deleted]

washedup 14y ago

Has anyone set up a charity to raise money for the victims? Something to help pay for prosthetic limbs?

nollidge 14y ago
Probably best to let the dust settle and watch for offical reporting on where to donate. Fraudsters can spring up quickly.
cdcarter 13y ago
http://onefundboston.org http://onefundboston.org has been formed.

supervillain 14y ago

The explosions is so timely it gives more reasons to oppose any US immigration reforms next week.

erpa1119 14y ago

6:39AM 3 dead, 126 wounded, what a terrible incident this has been.