Is It All Down To Islam Once Again?

[anotheoldgit]

http://www.express.co.uk/news/world/861390/Las-Vegas-shooting-ISIS-responsible-Amaq

Or is it just that ISIS who wants to take credit for this mass murder?

[mikey4444]

No evidence that the murderer did this in the name of Islam. Only unsubstantiated claims by a terrorist organisation, that has made false claims before.

[naomi24]

We'll have to wait and see. Details are scant at the moment.

[jackthehat]

ISIS does like to take 'credit' for any sort of outrage.

I rather doubt their claims but there will be those on both sides of the argument who will be happy for them to take the credit/blame....

[Gromit]

I have an inkling that they are fibbing. We'll have to wait and see.

[naomi24]

They claim responsibility for the actions of anyone who is influenced by them – and they’re right to claim that responsibility. Without that influence the perpetrator wouldn't have acted as he did. That said, in this case we don't know who he is of what his reasons were.

[mikey4444]

There is no evidence that this murderer did what he did in the name of Islam.

[naomi24]

Poor Mikey will be so disappointed if he did.

[Ellipsis]

I suppose there's a difference between inspiration and purpose. Paddock could have been "inspired" by the Bataclan attacks ... but I doubt the attack was Islamist in purpose.

[naomi24]

Ellipsis, Why do you doubt that?

[Gromit]

Daily Mail has a little interview with the shooter's brother

// ...and said that Stephen [Paddock] had no political or religious affiliation. //

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4940800/Las-Vegas-shooter-s-brother-says-family-dumbfounded.html

[Baldric]

Supposing, just supposing for a moment that he was a convert to Islam, as he was on the 32nd floor would anyone have heard him if he had shouted Allahu Akbar?

[Ellipsis]

> Ellipsis, Why do you doubt that?

There's a long history of mass shootings in the USA, very few of which are ISIS related, and Nevada is a state where it's very easy to get hold of automatic weapons. And his brother said he wasn't religious. So I'm considering the circumstantial evidence of his name, what his brother said, where he lives and what is sadly not uncommon in the USA, and weighing that up against what ISIS claims.

[naomi24]

I take your point. We'll have to wait and see.

[Gromit]

The MO of ISIS is to be shot in combat or Blow up as many enemy with a vest. That ensures martyrdom. Suicide doesn't.

[kvalidir]

America and their love of guns is one huge death cult- as ever whenever anything like this happens, shares in gun manufacturing companies have risen because all of the crazy rednecks are terrified they will bring in some form of gun control so are rushing out to stock up on yet more weapons to kill innocent animals, people, each other and themselves with. Not everything is Muslim related however much you might like it to be AOG.

[naomi24]

//Not everything is Muslim related//

But so often it is so we can hardly blame anyone for considering that possibility.

[-Talbot-]

Was this bloke a redneck?
Isn't Redneck the equivalent of Raghead?

[kvalidir]

Doesn;t quite have the same racial connotation now does it Talbot? It's more akin to saying 'Chav' or 'Ned'- nice try though.

[-Talbot-]

Nice try my backside.

[sp1814]

The FBI have announced that Stephen Paddock had no affiliation to ISIS.

I think we need to put this one to bed.

As a sidebar, we should also remember that ISIS isn’t a political organisation with a formal structure. They don’t have a PR department, or media liaison officers. Therefore we should treat with suspicion any claim a member might make that someone is acting on their behalf.

This is more Sandy Hook than Manchester.

One thing we can be sure of, even with 60 dead and five hundred wounded, American gun laws are unlikely to change any time soon.