New terrorist chic: ‘Dozer company with no sense of humor (updated)
posted at 11:40 am on July 22, 2008 by Ed Morrissey
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For the second time in a month, a terrorist in a bulldozer attacked Jerusalem, injuring more than a dozen before getting shot and killed. The driver left a construction site and attacked a number of vehicles, stopped only by a hail of bullets from border guards. The repeat of last month’s attack suggests either a copycat or a new, and somewhat ineffective, strategy:
The attack occurred while Israeli President Shimon Peres hosted Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas at his official residence less than a kilometer (half-mile) away.Israeli officials said the driver was a Palestinian from a village in an area of the occupied West Bank that Israel considers part of Jerusalem. Its residents have freedom of movement throughout the city and Israel.
“The bulldozer driver left a construction site, and hit two cars,” a police spokesman said. “A civilian who saw what was happening, shot him. The bulldozer continued on its way. A border police patrol … continued to shoot and the terrorist was killed.”
The bulldozer also hit a bus. Emergency services said at least 16 people were wounded, one seriously. After the attack, police set up a cordon around the yellow bulldozer and the slumped body of the driver inside.
Bulldozers do have the charm of easy access, but as both attacks proved, they don’t exactly make for effective terrorism. This attack resulted in only one death — the terrorist — and a moderate number of injuries. Israelis can secure construction sites better than they can civilian commerce areas, and heavy equipment will start getting more difficult to commandeer as they react to this mini-wave of rampaging dozers.
One thing seems clear: the Israeli security forces must be doing a pretty good job if this tactic is all the Palestinians can muster.
More interesting is the timing. Barack Obama will visit Israel later today, and maybe the terrorists want to make a statement while the world is watching. However, it makes it more difficult for Obama to speak on behalf of the Palestinians as he has done in the past; he can’t afford to look soft on terrorism while attacks are occurring in Jerusalem. Once again, the Palestinians have proven themselves to be their own worst enemies, and if they planned this, their own worst generals as well.
Update: I had to change the title of this post because the company I named as an ironic joke has no sense of humor.
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I have to strongly disagree, here. The most effective form of terrorism is that which turns the most mundane tools of daily life into threats to the populace. The actual deaths and injuries are secondary to the change in attitude that the population will have about all those things we see and live with every day.
Eventually the terrorists will move to regular cars, just driving up the sidewalks and taking out cafes full of people. At that point, when the standard car becomes a dire threat, society will have to change, and change dramatically.
progressoverpeace on July 22, 2008 at 11:46 AM
The Caperpiller that ate Jerusalem
Coming soon, to a theater near you.
franksalterego on July 22, 2008 at 11:50 AM
I see this as another reason we need the second ammendment.
The armed civilian was first to react.
Les in NC on July 22, 2008 at 11:50 AM
Bulldozer.
Front loader.
Back hoe.
Weed wacker.
I wish the press would learn the difference.
Limerick on July 22, 2008 at 11:50 AM
When you mentioned that Obama would be there today, it made me wonder where the term, “Bulldozer came from.
Apparently, this occurred six hours before Obama’s scheduled arrival. It is completely believable that the incident’s timing was not a coincidence.
Syd B. on July 22, 2008 at 11:53 AM
If only Rachel Corrie had been there to stop the guy…
AlexB on July 22, 2008 at 11:58 AM
I blame the Israelis. I mean, if they weren’t existing and fixing roads and junk, the Palestinians wouldn’t have attacked them. Silly Israelis. (peace people’s thought process)
mjk on July 22, 2008 at 12:01 PM
Actually, it was a JBC.
Shy Guy on July 22, 2008 at 12:06 PM
Fortunately, it doesn’t sound as if any humans were killed this time.
Master Shake on July 22, 2008 at 12:08 PM
Actually, I heard she was on the way but got a flat.
Shy Guy on July 22, 2008 at 12:08 PM
I thought she was having breakfast at the International House of Pancakes…
rbb on July 22, 2008 at 12:13 PM
I’m with Limerick. I’m not a heavy equipment specialist, but even I can tell the difference between a ‘dozer (blade, tracks) and a front-end loader (bucket, wheels).
Bob Owens on July 22, 2008 at 12:14 PM
Here is a video of the takedown (again by an armed civilian):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h54LP36uOW4
Aristotle on July 22, 2008 at 12:16 PM
Seems to me like they’re out of ideas and are reaching for something, ANYthing they can get their hands on.
I blame the Israelis for building a wall! If they hadn’t built a wall and chocked off the supply of illegal weapons, this never would’ve happened!
Thank God for armed civilians.
Tony737 on July 22, 2008 at 12:22 PM
Why should anyone be surprised? Israel has been pushed and bullied into assimilating these killers. When will we learn that acceptance of these people into a community is not healthy for humans and other living things?
MNDavenotPC on July 22, 2008 at 12:23 PM
Perhaps the guy was just heading to the airport in preparation for removing the load of crap that Obama would start spewing.
Bishop on July 22, 2008 at 12:30 PM
Why was an Arab after the attack a couple of weeks ago allowed anywhere near a bulldozer? Just asking.
Hilts on July 22, 2008 at 12:31 PM
Amen. I have sit and watched this and laughed out loud at them. So far, we’ve had a front end loader attack and a back hoe attack. If they ever really do use a bulldozer, they’ll call it a SUV.
Big Orange on July 22, 2008 at 12:31 PM
Again, if these loaders, bulldozers, and weed-whackers were not so readily available, those troubled, poverty-stricken young men would not turn to violence. Michael Moore’s next Docudrama should be about going to Jim Owens’ house and bully him about loaders!
p40tiger on July 22, 2008 at 12:32 PM
Dream on, Eddie – “It just goes to show how the enforced poverty and sense of hopelessness of the Palestinians within Israel has driven them to yada,yada…”
Look at all those people with guns! That poor man was yet another victim of gun violence!! /MSM
eeyore on July 22, 2008 at 12:52 PM
“Bulldozers…don’t.. make for effective terrorism…”
tell that to the dead person’s family and the wounded.
The bulldozer attacks are a testament to the effectiveness of Israeli security but they seem to keep coming when given any opportunity. Keeps Israelis wondering from what axis the next attack will emerge. I’d call that effective terrorism. That’s why its called asymmetric warfare.
elduende on July 22, 2008 at 12:53 PM
Just wait until they get their hands on a Katamari. I shudder.
geckomon on July 22, 2008 at 12:53 PM
It’s quite possible (although not probable) that some things in this world might happen that have nothing at all to do with Obama.
rhombus on July 22, 2008 at 1:06 PM
Well this is unavoidable! The Hezbollah classes for Bulldozer Rampaging 101 comes directly after the ever so popular Flaming Hoop Jumping survival course.
Egfrow on July 22, 2008 at 1:08 PM
Plus one on these comments. You see this stuff on a daily basis. Some full of themself “journalist” totally misrepresenting the finite elements involved in a story. That is on top of making up part or all of the story in some cases. I sometimes laugh out loud while watching the local news on TV. It would not be so bad if the journalist and TV newsers did not think they were so educated and elite.
brtex on July 22, 2008 at 1:13 PM
from http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/950666.html
Now that Paletsinians are trying to use Caterpillar bulldozers to kill Jews, will the Methodists and their leftist friends take back their resolution?
thuja on July 22, 2008 at 1:16 PM
Once again a movement mired in the medieval past shows they are only capable of using our technology, low, middle and high, against us, their enemies.
Whether it be airplanes, cars, or construction equipment it’s painfully clear that absence any “Islamic reformation” these kinds of attacks, on buildings in Manhattan or a street is Israel, will remain the norm. And with a President Obama moving the problems back in to the already failed policies of law enforcement; expect to see more of this.
We’re already experiencing these kinds of attacks in the U.S. but the media refuses to recognize them as such, preferring to call them the actions of deranged or depressed persons whose religion, by the way, is irrelevant.
I use to believe once the tempo of these attacks increase in frequency and body count the MSM would be forced to call them what they are, attacks against our society by radical Islam.
I’m not so confident now, especially with a smitten press covering for Obama’s reputation and “legacy.” I’m dreading the next 8 years.
E9RET on July 22, 2008 at 1:20 PM
As it should be…
pseudonominus on July 22, 2008 at 1:29 PM
I agree. I’m living near Jerusalem right now (and just drove through that intersection yesterday) and admit to feeling slightly nervous around all the construction vehicles that are all over the city these days. I shouldn’t, but I do.
tikvah on July 22, 2008 at 1:33 PM
Why hasn’t Bush secured all the construction equipment? Does he just not care about Americans?
Kafir on July 22, 2008 at 1:56 PM
These are Arabs of East Jerusalem with citizen IDs, or the equivalent of a national ID card here in Israel, they receive free access, social benefits etc just like every other Joe. But if these geniuses keep this up we should strip ALL East Jerusalem Arabs of these benefits, let them go work in Jordan if they can’t control themselves.. Can’t get there? Probably should have thought about that before intentionally trying to murder fellow civilians with a Backhoe I guess.
saus on July 22, 2008 at 1:58 PM
This may sound harsh, but some day, Israel will come to the conclusion, that they MUST purge their country of ALL Arabs.
byteshredder on July 22, 2008 at 1:59 PM
Israel needs to be a gun free zone, or these terrorists will never have a chance!
Kevin M on July 22, 2008 at 2:08 PM
Ed, Don’t be a clueless coastal (the title). John Deere is green an yellow.
dm60462 on July 22, 2008 at 2:19 PM
Pretty much. I’d be satisfied, at this point, if the Israeli government would get some sense and explain that the Pals can have Gaza but must leave the West Bank – Chetzi Transfer. It’s clear that Israel will never have any security if there is an autonomous Palestinian state in the West Bank. No matter how much funding they get they will overpopulate themselves into poverty and will never stop fighting. If they have the West Bank then they’ll build an international airport (only a few minutes’ flight from Tel Aviv or Jerusalem), instruct their air traffic controllers to direct their approaching planes to slightly violate Israeli airspace (as if Israel would even think of shooting down a commercial jet) and will move further and further into Israeli airspace until they are ready to attack. Israel will have to just wait for the day that the planes all come down to the ground … in Israel, some with bombs, some just planes, some with chemical weapons … No country can operate in that situation and Israel needs to recognize this now.
They can go to Gaza and will be allowed to stay there until they prove to be too much of a threat from there, too, at which time they will have to be flushed into Sinai.
As to the Israeli arabs, they need to be warned that they are treading very dangerous ground. Some of this is happening, though very slowly and with tiny steps.
progressoverpeace on July 22, 2008 at 2:22 PM
From the collective mind of Islam. Anything can be used as a weapon for terror. Sounds like something Satan would say, but it was his towel boy Mohammad that gets all the credit.
Giving these psychos Gaza was a big mistake.
Hening on July 22, 2008 at 2:46 PM
Pals/Arabs do construction in Israel the way Mexicans do construction in the US, so it would be hard to ground them all from heavy equipment.
Heh. Just like Israeli border guards started stopping/searching ambulances, because the terrorists thought it was a great way to smuggle people/weapons through the checkpoints. Nice going. What’s that old saying about not building the bathroom next to the kitchen?
Heh again re: Jordan. Remember Black September? Money quote for those who don’t want to read the whole thing:
“Hussein continued the attack,” in other words, he abrogated a treaty he had just signed. And I thought it was the Israelis who were the source of all the Palestinians’ problems.
smellthecoffee on July 22, 2008 at 2:49 PM
Oof!
NoDonkey on July 22, 2008 at 3:00 PM
Pals/Arabs do construction in Israel the way Mexicans do construction in the US, so it would be hard to ground them all from heavy equipment.
smellthecoffee on July 22, 2008 at 2:49 PM
1. No it wouldn’t be difficult to gorond them. Just tell every so called Israeli foreman that any Arab caught driving a bulldozer will cost him (the employer) 2 years in jail.
2. Why, are there no unemployed Jews or are Jews too good to be doing construction work.
3. I am tired of people telling Israel what it ‘can’t do.” Geniuses told Israel that they could not build a security fence ‘because it wouldn’t work’ – guess what? The geniuses were wrong.
Just asking.
Hilts on July 22, 2008 at 3:29 PM
Sure they could do it. Just like we could do it here (but don’t for some reason, although it’s getting better). I’m that so far the risk-benefit analysis is still on the side of not grounding every Arab driving heavy equipment. If that changes, they’ll take action.
I hear you Hilts. Betting against Israel isn’t usually a smart bet–the Pals have been doing it for years, only managing to degrade themselves into this. On the other hand, they do put their pants on one leg at a time over there, and they have their vocal left wingers, and a lefty Supreme Court to contend with as well. So some things that make sense aren’t always easy to achieve quickly.
smellthecoffee on July 22, 2008 at 4:04 PM
smellthecoffee on July 22, 2008 at 4:04 PM
My point is that Israel has become a frightened , politically correct, ‘no can do’ nation which is exemplified by its wretched leaders – pieces of animal excrement such as Ehud Olmert, Ehud Barack, Shimon Peres, Tzipi Livni, Moshe Katsav, et al. A nation and its military reflect the society it comes from and Israel as witnessed by the insane trade of live terrorists for dead bodies- is a nation that is increasingly reminding me as a historian of the latter days of France during the Third Republic. The vaunted “Jewish genius” that I keep hearing about is obviously restricted to the research lab and not to common sense. Cut the Arabs off, it is simple as that.
Hilts on July 22, 2008 at 4:16 PM
You let Sharon off the hook. He was the one with the idiotic idea of giving them Gaza without getting anything in return and left Israel with Olmert and the rest of the retards in power.
I loved Sharon. The man was a tactical and strategic genius for decades, but his last conscious years were spent destroying many things he had worked so hard to help build and to leave Israel in the worst position it’s been in since ‘48. It was a sad end to a great career.
progressoverpeace on July 22, 2008 at 4:43 PM
A huge mistake in taking the IDF out of Gaza. The State of Israel has not had a confrontation with the idiots who gave them Oslo.
Hilts on July 22, 2008 at 4:57 PM
Sounds like now you’re betting against the Israelis. In a parlimentary system, things can change much more quickly than in this country. They’ve still got great intelligence, a stinking good army, when the strategy and tactics make sense, and some fine, tested commanders. They’ll be back kickin’ tuchus–you watch.
smellthecoffee on July 22, 2008 at 8:30 PM
Better: The Deere Hunter.
Dr. Charles G. Waugh on July 22, 2008 at 8:41 PM
Can’t Arabs make their own tractors to murder people with?
Mojave Mark on July 22, 2008 at 11:47 PM
No because the arabs don’t actually make anything at all.
The poverty of ideas is extant when you look at these idiots. They are beneath contempt.
Ares on July 23, 2008 at 9:23 AM
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