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Sniper Attack on San Jose power substation

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Re: Sniper Attack on San Jose power substation

#5

Post by aaronem »

There's a lot of "we don't know anything, so we're going to make this sound as ominous as possible". For example:

> Reportedly firing bullets like those used by AK-47s -- an assault weapon favored by terrorists [...]

That could mean anything from "we've found 7.62x39 casings with extractor marks in the AK's distinctive pattern", which they probably haven't since they don't mention anyone having found where the "snipers" fired from, to "we've found some .308 Winchester slugs that could've come from any of a thousand different models of lawfully obtainable hunting rifle."

Seems a bit over-egging the pudding, to me. I'm not in favor of people wantonly shooting up defenseless power substations, of course, but there's a certain overheated tendency about the coverage I'm seeing that leaves me unfavorably impressed.

Re: Sniper Attack on San Jose power substation

#6

Post by fdavison »

aaronem wrote: post #5

There's a lot of "we don't know anything, so we're going to make this sound as ominous as possible". For example: > Reportedly firing bullets like those used by AK-47s -- an assault weapon favored by terrorists [...] That could mean anything from "we've found 7.62x39 casings with extractor marks in the AK's distinctive pattern", which they probably haven't since they don't mention anyone having found where the "snipe…

I thought the same thing: Some drunk asshole with a rifle and box of bullets. Shoots the transformers randomly, finds a spot where something finally happens, with the oil pouring out, runs out of bullets, and goes home.

Hanlon's razor: "Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity."

Next, bullet holes in rural road signs will be evidence of domestic terrorism.

Re: Sniper Attack on San Jose power substation

#7

Post by diydsp »

fdavison wrote: post #6
aaronem wrote: post #5

There's a lot of "we don't know anything, so we're going to make this sound as ominous as possible". For example: > Reportedly firing bullets like those used by AK-47s -- an assault weapon favored by terrorists [...] That could mean anything from "we've found 7.62x39 casings with extractor marks in the AK's distinctive pattern", which they probably haven't since they don't mention anyone having found where the "snipe…

I thought the same thing: Some drunk asshole with a rifle and box of bullets. Shoots the transformers randomly, finds a spot where something finally happens, with the oil pouring out, runs out of bullets, and goes home. Hanlon's razor: "Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity." Next, bullet holes in rural road signs will be evidence of domestic terrorism.

I agree rags, especially liberal-outraging-stoking ones like the Atlantic trump up the details to scare everyone into anxiety for control and profit.

And I would totally buy the explanation of drunk dumbass. The only thing that suggests something more sinister is that the attack was preceded by someone entering a vault and cutting telephone wires.

That suggests to me more of a "probing" to see just how secure these facilities are. With that in mind, it might not be an actual terrorist cell, but some big agency testing out the response of others. Speculation, but it makes sense for the FBI to look deeper into this.

Re: Sniper Attack on San Jose power substation

#9

Post by fennecfoxen »

fdavison wrote: post #6
aaronem wrote: post #5

There's a lot of "we don't know anything, so we're going to make this sound as ominous as possible". For example: > Reportedly firing bullets like those used by AK-47s -- an assault weapon favored by terrorists [...] That could mean anything from "we've found 7.62x39 casings with extractor marks in the AK's distinctive pattern", which they probably haven't since they don't mention anyone having found where the "snipe…

I thought the same thing: Some drunk asshole with a rifle and box of bullets. Shoots the transformers randomly, finds a spot where something finally happens, with the oil pouring out, runs out of bullets, and goes home. Hanlon's razor: "Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity." Next, bullet holes in rural road signs will be evidence of domestic terrorism.

FWIW, the people investigating strongly believe that this assessment is wrong. However, they are not giving out all the details to corroborate their assessment (they fear copycats).

"This wasn't an incident where Billy-Bob and Joe decided, after a few brewskis, to come in and shoot up a substation," Mark Johnson, retired vice president of transmission for PG&E, told the utility security conference, according to a video of his presentation. "This was an event that was well thought out, well planned and they targeted certain components." When reached, Mr. Johnson declined to comment further".

-- "Assault on California Power Station Raises Alarm on Potential for Terrorism", Wall Street Journal. http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB1000142405270230485110...

Re: Sniper Attack on San Jose power substation

#10

Post by bequanna »

This actually happened several years in a rural area where I grew up.

Some people shot up transformers at a larger substation. Maybe they expected to see an explosion, fire, or something but just ended up making a hell of a mess (The transformer oil leaked out, and is considered hazmat) and causing a lot of damage ($Millions).

They didn't catch those people either. But, I don't recall anyone calling them 'Snipers' or 'domestic terrorists'.

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