<p>I got up about an hour ago and read through this thread. One lesson is that this person Michael Skolnick should probably be dropped from your twitter feed. He might eventually get something right.</p>
<p>The second lesson is that the FBI obviously knew an awful lot more than they let on yesterday and I find that very comforting, both that they knew more than they were letting on, and that they had well thought out reasons for releasing what they did and when they did.</p>
<p>1) I can’t believe I stayed up that late. 2) Faith in real journalism restored!!!</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Absolutely. What irresponsibility.</p>
<ul>
<li>political advisor to Russell Simmons. Our responsibility to filter, too.</li>
</ul>
<p>Twitter got a lot right though, hours before mainstream media. Of course repeating the info from the police scanner was very bad. I think you have to look at it all as allegedly and possibly as it unfolds. CNN had a woman on saying this was the expected police response when a cop was shot and didn’t mean it had anything to do with the bombers when there were many people tweeting about what was going on in Watertown.</p>
<p>I don’t think politics enters into this at all. We’ve seen that many people, human nature being what it is, want to be the first with news perhaps in some way to have the importance of the news convey importance to them as dispensers of the “news”. We saw that with the police even - after all, all that bad info that CNN was giving out didn’t spring from whole cloth. I’m confident that CNN reported things they got from inside police sources, sources who were wrong, and just didn’t wait for confirmation from a second source.</p>
<p>At least Skolnick (and I’m not even aware of who Russell Simmons is as I’ve never heard of him) was reporting what he thought he knew, just too eager to be careful. That’s a heck of a lot better than some others. I’ve heard everything from “this is obviously the Saudis and we should turn them into glass”, to “this is obviously the North Koreans and we should bomb them off the map”. Now THAT’S irresponsible.</p>
<p>My personal favorite facepalm moment was the expert on CNN who said she was sure the FBI would find the suspects because “The US isn’t all that big a place”. </p>
<p>Stay safe everyone</p>
<p>What will bother me though, for a long time, is how people took what Skolnik and others said and ran with it, without a few seconds of their own checking. As if just floating something, hearing something, seeing that there is a link attached is enough. The implications aren’t good for society, even if it’s human nature. It’s a hard task to live with, sure. But we can try.</p>
<p>Simmons is a hiphop star and businessman.</p>
<p>A THIRD & FOURTH person of interest in custody, not under arrest, just minutes ago. Location of suspect #2 now known per NBC live news.</p>
<p>All of Metro Boston on lock-down.</p>
<p>I read this thread when I woke up. I thought I was reading an episode of “24”. I called my mother who lives near Watertown and she got called at 6:00 AM. She checked with our relatives in the area (college students), my sister and brother-in-law and they’re trying to figure out what to do (one is at work and the other is deciding). Son’s apartment sent him an email - office is closed, they recommend staying inside.</p>
<p>I’m sure that there are a lot of college students from Boston to Route 128 calling home this morning.</p>
<p>It may sound awful, but I hope he’s killed. I know that if he’s taken alive he could theoretically give information about how he and his brother obtained all the weaponry and explosives, and who if anyone trained them, but it’s unlikely he’d be forthcoming in any event. And the last thing I want to see is a trial, for all sorts of reasons, including giving him a platform, and, more importantly, giving all sorts of people the opportunity to come to his defense with arguments about how he was justified in doing what he did. (Never mind the conspiracy theorists; they’ll be spouting their crackpot ideas no matter what happens.)</p>
<p>I had a weird feeling last night as DH and I looked at the photo romani posted on this thread. It was just a matter of time, we thought. </p>
<p>Can’t believe this is happening to Boston. Hoping there aren’t anymore casualties. It will be hard to break away from the TV and my iPad this morning!</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Totally disagree. These guys were found so quickly through excellent police work. Our criminal justice system is the finest in the world. Information is power. We have nothing to fear from the truth!</p>
<p>Here is a clear head shot of the suspect #2 Dzhokar Tsarnaev, age 19 </p>
<p>[FBI</a> ? Updates on Investigation Into Multiple Explosions in Boston](<a href=“http://www.fbi.gov/news/updates-on-investigation-into-multiple-explosions-in-boston/updates-on-investigation-into-multiple-explosions-in-boston]FBI”>FBI — Updates on Investigation Into Multiple Explosions in Boston)</p>
<p>Well the police finally told CNN to stop showing live feed as they were compromising their movements… Ugh…knuckleheads</p>
<p>CNN just interviewed a guy who said he was their ( the suspects)
uncle and it appeared he gave his brothers address in the interview on live tv… Good grief</p>
<p>In times like this, it’s so important to follow the lead of the police. Some poor twitterer just sent out a tweet with a picture of the police lying on top of his/her shed and two more behind a house. Interesting picture, yes,and obviously released by someone who does not have a criminal mentality. And I totally understand the impulse to share it. </p>
<p>However, this is immediately followed by a tweet from the official police site advising people not to release photos which tell the suspect(s) where the police are actually located. Well, duh.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I think it would be a very good thing to see who exactly would come to his defense, and what arguments they would try to use to justify his cold blooded killing and maiming of innocent people.</p>
<p>I understand intellectually that putting him on trial is the best thing. My reaction is purely emotional. I can’t stand this, and want it over with.</p>
<p>Well the dead brother had no friends, so perhaps the surviving brother felt that he was treated unkindly, too. </p>
<p>I have very mixed feelings. Part of me would like the police to blow him away. However, over time, we learn that there are many things we don’t know and we can’t get answers from a corpse. I always think that Timothy McVeigh actually won because he took so much to his grave. Yet another reason I don’t support the death penalty. Over time, maybe McVeigh would have given up information.</p>
<p>Understood Donna - there is no good, overall solution. Your emotions are heartfelt.</p>