TWO EXPLOSIONS in NYC--MSNBC

In front of British Consulate, bldg evacuated, fire department on scene. Will provide link once I find one.

No injuries as yet reported... only shattered windows, no structural damage.

eom

since bush*'s numbers started tanking...
just enough of a "boom" to get people nervous....
any bets the TERRA-TERRA-TERRA rhetoric gets turned up a few more notches and bush* gets a poll bounce?

timing is suspect -- the nuke option for filibusters is on the horizon, social security road show is not going well, attacks in Iraq have not declined (they've increased), economy is making a giant sucking sound, gas prices are hurting wallets..... nothing like TERRA-TERRA-TERRA for a distraction

meanwhile - I thought we were safer with the bushies?

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/polls.html
bush*'s average: President George W. Bush - Job Approval Ratings
Poll Date
RCP Average 4/18 - 4/27
Approve 47.8%
Disapprove 48.0%

The ex-CIA guy talking about getting bin Laden's head in a box...

The capture in Pakistan...

Bombs in NYC...

they suddenly found Margaret Hassan's ID etc. She just happens to be English right!

That's the first thing we thought of, too! I mean... how stupid do they think half of us are... come on!

In these trying times, I definitely exhale when I find out that it seems no lives are in danger.

were both explosions at the same place?

They freaked out over it a while back saying they had info it was a target.

This is 52nd and 3rd, versus Citicorp @53rd and Lex.

You are here:
http://www.mapquest.com/directions/main.adp?go=1&do=nw&rmm=1&2si=gdt&1gi=0&un=m&1da=-1.000000&1rc=I1AAA&1n=NEW+YORK+COUNTY&cl=EN&ct=NA&2n=NEW+YORK+COUNTY&1si=navt&2rc=Z1XAA&rsres=1&1ahXX=&1y=US&1a=E+54TH+ST+%26+LEXINGTON+AVE&1c=NEW+YORK&1s=NY&1z=10022&2ahXX=&2y=US&2a=845+3RD+AVE&2c=NEW+YORK&2s=NY&2z=10022-6601

("Start" is shittibank and "End" is the embassy)

...Hhhmmm. I guess this shows that Tony Blair and Bush are right, and that the World is dangerous. Maybe its best that the voters stay the course, with Tony...:eyes:

If terrorists were behind this, it seems that they would want to do it in the middle of the day to inflict the greatest amount of casualties....just a thought.

Considering Blair is still PM, I'm not holding my breath ...

...certainly came to mind. Bombings before elections in Spain. Bombings on the morning of elections in Britain. Move along, nothing to think about here...

magically appears days before the election here - to warn us NOT to re-elect *.

I wish the 'Murkin Peeple would catch on to this bullshit!!

:banghead:

... tune in! I'll transcribe as best I can...

A few windows have been shattered, there are no injuries and no structural damage to the building has been sustained.

The live video depicts a standard police scene; there is no sense of emergency about.

CNN International anchor emphasizes that details are "sketchy" at this time.

and I don't have cable right now because of a big fire a few blocks away :(

Some shattered windows, there are no injuries. That's all they know so far.

An explosion in front of the British consulate in New York shatters windows, no injuries reported. Details soon.

windows blown out, so far no injuries
police bomb squad are there, it was about 4 a.m.
two explosions, without confimation
explosive devise outside the consolate

It happened at 3:35 a.m.--took more than an hour to get it on TV? Bldg houses the Brit Consulate and other agencies, windows shattered, no apparent structural damage...

I am astounded. First, it takes more than an hour for information to trickle out, and the best information is coming from CNN International--they even had a little footage.

EDIT--CNN is interviewing a cop. Explosion occurred outside the bldg. The cop cannot confirm that an SUV was involved. Bomb squad investigating. Natural gas? Anything is possible, says the cop. Bldg, at 3rd Ave and 50th, is 22 stories tall. Now, the cop has run out of info and says he doesn't know jack. Explosion was responded to as a result of 911 call. Silver SUV is on TV right now, cops seem very interested in it....

The police sergeant being interviewed at this time says that it is a confirmed explosion, with an SUV involved. No injuries, and the type of explosion cannot be determined.

Judging by the video onscreen right now, they're looking at a silver SUV, with the NYC bomb squad hovering nearby.

The CNN anchor is speculating a natural gas explosion (WTF?!!!??).

A little too, um, timely to be a coincidence.

Of course it was just a coincidence that all those "errors" and "glitches" in the '04 Election went to **'s favor.

Perhaps we need some Baghdad car bomb experts flown in. Though I suppose if the SUV looks okay that is out.

It was done to effect the British election.

...they may not get this story until tomorrow!!! The minister of propaganda may quarantine the info!

Our country is so fucking arrogant, so self-centered, that we have to flip to CNN International to get any news at all...the poor gal on MSNBC looked like she was dragged from makeup and had to go on without full war paint and in her own clothes...they HAVE NO NEWSREADERS at night, it seems...hell, grab the janitor, have him put down his broom and read the wires!!! America, America....

they were waiting for the "script" from the bushies...

tick...tock...tick...tock...

past mistakes - allowing video of 9/11 is coming back to bite them in the ass - so now they have to make sure of what gets out there.

No footage of the consulate, at all. Bomb squad guy has his arm stuck into broken window of the SUV, poking around. (What type of bomb was it? A thermos filled with vinegar & baking soda?)

No damage, save the SUV window, was really apparent on that car. Maybe they cracked the window because they thought there was something suspicious in the back?

That might have been a LARGE thermos, I guess windows were broken in the consulate, of course, if they have any brains, they have some bulletproof glass in the "important" offices.

Am I the only one who thinks this is pretty pathetic, that there is NO NEWS on this? This happened almost two hours ago, and nada, zip, nuthin'...is this the new American standard? Better late than never? Or am I too demanding?

All I saw were a bunch of emergency vehicles with lights flashing, blocking the street and then that SUV. They just now updated on CNN, saying minor damage from two explosions. Isn't it odd that the press wouldn't show the damaged building? Not only pathetic but raising my suspicions that they're reluctant to divulge anything. CNN did break in with a banner ticking at about twenty til, advising us to go to our local channels for emergency information, but what the hell took them so long to say why?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4516119.stm

Nothing new yet, though.

Last Updated: Thursday, 5 May, 2005, 09:06 GMT 10:06 UK

So that's at least two hours of early voters who haven't heard the news yet.

(...)
"It was detonated in one of the cement flower boxes used as a barrier outside the building.

"There was some damage to the front window but there are no reports of any injuries at this stage."
(...)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4516119.stm

And the picture of the 'damage'


And that's all...

Edit: picture added

http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/05/05/uk.consulate/

Excerpt:

Small blast at UK consulate in NYC

Thursday, May 5, 2005 Posted: 5:13 AM EDT (0913 GMT)

The explosion happened in the early morning hours Thursday in midtown Manhattan.

NEW YORK (CNN) -- An explosion in front of the British consulate in New York City has shattered windows but did not appear to cause significant damage or injuries, police said.

The blast happened at 3:35 a.m. EDT Thursday (0735 GMT), a New York City police spokesman said.

"It was detonated in one of the cement flower boxes used as a barrier outside the building," a spokesman told the UK Press Association.

"There was some damage to the front window but there are no reports of any injuries at this stage."

Witnesses described hearing two loud blasts just seconds apart.

Now all we need to know is if it was Col. Mustard or Prof. Plum!

I guess despite all of the cable news agencies, the news is dead. I remember when it was ABC, CBS, and NBC--and they'd "...interrupt this broadcast for a special report/breaking news"--good gravy.

Now, MSNBC is saying it was ONE EXPLOSION and a HAND GRENADE!!!!

... about a natural gas explosion.

The news is lame, ain't it? Where's a Mike Wallace or a Dan Rather, standing there in pajamas, interviewing officials, passersby and gawkers? Where are the intrepid cameramen, getting the good shots?

We are so lame, it's like living in North Korea. We may as well all sign up for gymnastics classes, and learn how to wave streamers and march about with colored balls!

We are so lame, it's like living in North Korea. We may as well all sign up for gymnastics classes, and learn how to wave streamers and march about with colored balls!

Okay, this is the line of the month! I love it!

Which idiot terrorist would blow up a couple of bombs in the middle of the night, causing minimal damage.

One explosion, the second was the NYC "canyon echo" you get late at night!

have been big on setting off crappy bombs in the middle of the night lately.

Hopefully this isn't a couple that went off a little too early

Shrub's numbers are waaaay down. Blair is in deep shit with the Iraq war report.

This is just what they need. Scare the hell out of everyone and then "All Hail to the Chiefs".

I hate these fucking bastards whether this was one of theirs or not!

They say there is no correlation, necessarily, but that he is polled to be the winner of the contest.

Ah, finally, a local reporter is on scene and will be on MSNBC shortly.

No casualties, no structural damage, WNBC pictures are the usual gaggle of cops, fire dept, bomb dogs...

...I think we, on the DU, are a better news source than them. We've already covered that point....

...two that were set off, now, to set the scene for more to come, later.

Seriously.

It's times like these, I'm embarrassed to call myself American.

Hate this place more and more all the time!

NOT!

... them over here.

Not so fast!

diverted resources into Iraq and failed to upgrade the security of our borders... except for creating another level of bureacracy to use as a money funnel to his cronies.

2001 anthrax attacks (No! no! no!, not Terra - only targeted DemonRAT Senators and the LIEbril Press)

2001 Shoe Bomber (No! no! no!, not on 'Merican soil!!!!!!)

DC Sniper (No! no! no! - not the right kind of "Mooslums!!!!)

2003 White House mail-in ricin attack (they kept that one a secret).

2004 Senate Office building mail-in ricin attack (Cat Killer Frist's office - nothing to see here folks).

now this...

a swarthy, one-legged man was seen hopping away from the scene, dropping items like his PC and wads of money, as he pogoed down Third Avenue...

:sarcasm:

by a blind guy on a moped and a 7-foot tall guy draggging a dialysis machine?

Best laugh today--thanks!

no sarcasm intended, and welcome to DU!:)

Two IED's were found.. one shaped like a pineapple, one like a lemom (wtf??), with black powder and fuses inside the two devices, both contained within a security barricade-planter.

Police describe the devices as "small explosions," according to Jason Carroll of CNN, reporting live on the scene.

that they were two novelty hand grenades like you can buy in candy shops (????).

The sleepy commentator says now they are going to live footage of the scene...switch to view from above, flipping from one block to another, LOOKING for the crime scene! LOL, then back to CNN, who is showing a bomb squad guy laying flat on his stomach, shining flashlight under the very same SUV they showed the first time. And it's obviously being edited for our viewing pleasure, cause they haven't broken out the one back window on that SUV yet in this "new" footage...just letting the dog smell it and peering into its windows.

The device exploded as Britons are voting in a national election in which Prime Minister Tony Blair hopes for an unprecedented third term.

http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/traffic/wabc_050505_explosion.html

.......

Why the hell does he get an "unprecedented third term"? Or does he?

:wtf:

for British Prime Ministers, however it's never happened before that a Labour Prime Minister has been elected three times in a row AFAIK.

has a very scary sound to it! "unprecedented third term"

http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/05/05/uk.consulate/index.html

Example of shoddy reporting:

"Video from the scene showed New York City bomb squad personnel examining a car with shattered windows parked on the street in front of the consulate."

Wrong, early video showed SUV with ONE window shattered and bomb squad guy searching thru stuff inside. Later video shows same car, with NO broken windows, as bomb squad searches underneath and dog sniffs around the car, with a big happy grin, wondering what all the fuss is about!

Guess it's not too big a deal, eh?

This coincides with an increase in the number of bomb squad vehicles in the City since Monday.

The CNN coverage is ridiculous. More damage is done in a Friday night Yuppie/Gen X/Gen Z "bar fight" around the corner at the Black Finn than was created by these "bombs."

No one is on Third Avenue at 3:30 a.m. so they were not designed to kill, even though CNN and Faux were sniffing around, hoping for death to justify their existence. I think Carol Costello gets an orgasm this way.

Let's see - who can we blame? The Provos? Al Qaeda? The Society for the Destruction of Hideous Architecture?

Go back to sleep. Be afraid. The evildoers are out there.

Heh, heh.....obviously, then, the trail leads back to Prince Charles!!!!!

I think this little attack was done by the Bush-Friendlies themselves to once again scare people into voting for the Bush Empire.

To the People in England: Please, please do not fall for it.

Just because Blair went to Iraq doesn't mean he's part of the Bush Empire.

Blair has done things that even your beloved Dems would never consider - billions of pounds in national health for a start.

:eyes:

not one word on the nat'l news about Iraq...it's all runaway bride apologies needed, janet jackson sex scandal (clay aching checks in with his pov) and the like.

is NYC on lockdown yet?

dp

Suicide bombing targets US patrol in Baghdad

MIL-IRAQ-BLAST 2
Suicide bombing targets US patrol in Baghdad

BAGHDAD -- Eyewitnesses said the suicide bombing came after a number of insurgents attacked the patrol with rocket-propelled grenades (RPG) and machinegun fire.

No reports on casualties have been made available yet. (end) mhg.

mab
KUNA 051128 May 05NNNN

Smirk's poll numbers go in the tank, and KABOOM, a terraist alert/attack.

Imus just said 'someone put a firecracker in a planter and the place goes nuts!'
Oooh, we're in trouble now!

Edit to add: I know, Imus, but I can't help it!

Polls Open for British Election, but Iraq War Could Steal Votes From Prime Minister Tony Blair

http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=730428

LONDON May 5, 2005 — Voters cast ballots in village halls, schools and even pubs across Britain Thursday in a national election that is expected to give Prime Minister Tony Blair a third term in office despite widespread anger over the Iraq war.

Although most observers believed Blair's Labour Party would win the election thanks to the strength of the economy, anti-war sentiment and doubts about Blair's trustworthiness could deny him the landslide victories he won in 1997 and 2001.

Few expected Blair's main rival, Conservative Party leader Michael Howard, to become prime minister, but the Tories could pare back the number of seats Labour holds in the House of Commons. Blair's party had a huge 161-seat majority in the outgoing legislature; the new house will have 646 members.

If Labour's majority shrinks significantly, it could badly damage Blair, who would wield less power than in his first two terms and lose standing within his party...


Key issues in British national election
5/5/2005, 5:10 a.m. ET
The Associated Press

http://www.cleveland.com/newsflash/international/index.ssf?/base/international-12/1115283743166740.xml&storylist=international

(AP) — Key issues in the British election campaign:

IRAQ:

Prime Minister Tony Blair's Labour Party government stands by the decision to go to war in Iraq, even though no weapons of mass destruction being found. It says British troops should remain in the country to help the new government restore order.

The Conservative Party backed the U.S.-led invasion and agrees British troops should stay in Iraq. Leader Michael Howard has accused Blair of lying about intelligence on Iraqi weapons of mass destruction and the legal case for war.

The Liberal Democrats opposed the war, and leader Charles Kennedy advocates a phased withdrawal of British troops...


A look at Britain's general election
5/5/2005, 5:21 a.m. ET
The Associated Press

http://www.cleveland.com/newsflash/international/index.ssf?/base/international-12/1115284342168250.xml&storylist=international

LONDON (AP) — Facts and figures on the British election:

AT STAKE: All but one of the 646 seats in the House of Commons, with 324 needed for a majority; 529 constituencies in England, 59 in Scotland, 40 in Wales and 18 in Northern Ireland.

In last election for 659 seats, Labour received 40.7 percent of popular votes and 412 seats; Conservatives 31.7 percent and 166 seats; Liberal Democrats 18.3 percent and 52 seats.

One seat will be decided next month at an election postponed because of the death of a candidate...

...Yeah thats it!! who Hugo CHavez has wmd....I can see that one:crazy:

That's right near that Citibank center that has been "threatened" before.

Nobody knows history any more. In 1605 Guy Fawkes and some Catholic plotters tried to blow up the king and the Houses of Parliament . The gunpowder kegs were found before they could blow up. Guy Fawkes was hung, drawn and quartered for treason and the British celebrate the foiling of the plot every year on Nov 5th with bonfires and fireworks, where Guy is burned in effigy.

http://www.rhymes.org.uk/remember_remember_the_5th_november.htm

Think about it - the British election - some toy "hand grenades" with a little bit of gunpowder that could only break a window - it's pure British humor plain and simple.

IT'S NOT TERRORISM - GET A GRIP.

wake up to a full-blown news conference w/Bloomberg, et. al, about a potential bomb in NYC, my initial reaction is to wonder what the heck is up. Orchestrated by BushCo? Would not surprise me...

This will be the talk of the office when I get there. I can let them all know they are being PLAYED by the fear machine, and I'll slip in a little somethin about the leaked memo and 'predict' for them that Blair will step down in a few months.

I've got these people thinking I'm brilliant. All I do is read DU and then go tell what you guys said! LOL this is fun!

would have come forward and made the same point. I firmly believe it was a stunt.

....I can put a face on that!!!


I agree...not terrorism. Real Terrorists would have waited until 9:AM to maximize the impact.

On the other hand, bush*/republican terrorists might prefer 3:AM.

I will wait before I make a judgement that this is "just a joke", thank you. Besides, terrorists know history too, and they also have been known to use small explosions to test levels of security and the response. If I were a terrorist and I wanted to "test the system", I just might put a small IED in a flower pot outside the British Consulate on the morning of a British general election.

The polls are open in Northern Ireland, as well...

Election fever was taking hold slowly in North Belfast this morning with voters turning out first thing.

Party workers handing out leaflets outnumbered the voters at many of the polling stations in the north of the city on a bitterly cold morning.

At the Edmund Rice Christian Brothers Primary School a number of nationalist voters were casting their preferences for Sinn Fein's Gerry Kelly or Alban Maginness of the SDLP.

John O'Rice said he was voting Sinn Fein for the first time. He said: "Usually I would vote SDLP but Sinn Fein is now the main voice for nationalists.

www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/story.jsp?story=635822

would never shit in the own backyard like that. never.

But those who want to make them look bad might!

this morning. Yeah right. I have never heard of a cherry bomb that could cause damage to a building - minor or otherwise. I suppose if you parked one on a window sill it could crack the window. Apparently this was 2 improvised grenades and they contained shrapnel, in other words, an IED. If there had been anyone within spitting distance they could have been injured or killed. Hardly a cherry bomb. Besides, it might have just been a "dry run" testing the security response. Hume is such an apologist for the shrub that he would find a way to put a positive spin on a full scale nuclear attack on the U.S. "You know they only hit two cities. Credit the administration for their preparations preventing a wider scale attack."

On the little bushturd's watch.

On his watch is the expression that ABC's Terry Moran re-introduced at the last press conference we should repeat it as often as possible.

New York police are looking for clues as to who set off two explosive devices outside the UK consulate in Manhattan.

The blast in the early hours of the morning shattered windows but did not cause any injuries.

The two devices, described by police as novelty hand-grenades packed with gunpowder, were put in a concrete flower tub in front of the building.

There were no witnesses, but New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg said evidence from CCTV cameras was being checked.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/4516119.stm

Currenttly in the slammer on terrorism related charges, Sean Gerard Hoey is about to be charged with the murder of 29 victims in the August 98 Omagh bombing. See:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/4515697.stm

Police Service of Northern Ireland chief Commander Hugh Orde previously linked Hoey with US-national Paul Freeman, saying he was a seminal figure in US fundraising for the Provos during the 1970s and early 80s.

point of information emad. Even Hugh Orde doesn't say the IRA carried out the Omagh bombing! But yet the story manages to link the two inextricably.

Strange that he (Hoey) should be charged at this time. I mean why wait till friday when you could get all the tv stations to play footage of the bad old days....

I wonder how many voters are actually swayed by this rubbish.


edited to compensate for woeful typing.

DNA links have all established the mesh that joins all these Global Peace Process luminaries.

Most recent evidence came from the UK showing the extent of their involvement in moneylaundering proceeds of proerty theft/fraud. And related larcenies.

"Police Service of Northern Ireland chief Commander Hugh Orde previously linked Hoey with US-national Paul Freeman, saying he was a seminal figure in US fundraising for the Provos during the 1970s and early 80s."

Blair has personally protected all these scumbags.

He has been head of IRA Military Coincil since 1974.

But the "Real IRA" left the IRA because they did not sunscribe to the peace process and I'm sure given your knowledgable background that you are all too aware of this.

"Police Service of Northern Ireland chief Commander Hugh Orde previously linked Hoey with US-national Paul Freeman, saying he was a seminal figure in US fundraising for the Provos during the 1970s and early 80s." ie considerably before the peace process.

Don't forget by the way that the guy hasn't had a trial yet.

As for Blair... the Northern Ireland peace process was the best thing he ever did. But it didn't half piss off MI5

Hoey is Paul Freeman's son.

there are other agencies in the building as well. This seems to be a case of the media trying to find bigger news than it really is.

Sounds like a couple of m-80s were blown up and some debris happened to hit the window of the consulate.

From the BBC story cited above:

The two devices, described by police as novelty hand-grenades packed with gunpowder, were put in a concrete flower tub in front of the building . . . .

Police studying the remains of the grenades say there is no evidence of a timing device and that they were probably detonated by hand.

This doesn't sound like a big terrorist operation. It was done in the middle of the night with the intent of causing damage to property but not taking any human life. Even then, the devices used were extremely crude and not very deadly. All they did was shatter some windows. The consulate will not be closed for an extended length of time.

The BBC report suggests that the vandals (I think the word vandalism fits this act better than terrorism) used materials that are cheap and easy to obtain. I have a website open in another window selling smoke grenades for prices ranging from 99¢ to $25.

It's easy to get nervous about terrorists nowadays and understandably so. However, this sounds more like some kids with a warped idea of what's fun.

while he was addressing parliament. When that happened, I think MPs, who had been very reluctant before (probably because they didn't buy into the threat in the first place) had to agree to introducing more stringent security measures.


To me it looks like British intelligence trying to get the embassy to beef up their security in a "Look guys, this wasn't serious, but see how easy it is to plant a bomb in your flowerpots!"

Intelligence agencies aren't likely to make a point by doing property damage to their own consulates.

Some posts above suggest some sort of IRA connection. However, the IRA usually claims responsibility. On the other hand, that theory at least answers the question: Why the British consulate? Perhaps I could revise my own theory to: This was done by some kids who think the IRA is cool and have a warped sense of what's fun.

has exposed some serious shortcomings in the British embassy security arrangements.

There is next to no coverage of this over here, but the bbc do say "early morning blast".

If that means at a time when no-one was about... then either they wanted to make a point, but not hurt anyone.... or it was done by some idiot pranksters.

terror in the U.S. since 9/11 (how conveniently they forget the anthrax killer and the shooting at LAX)?

some pissed up Irish boys rather than Qaeda.

Apparently the person was caught on tape....they are also saying there was no timing device on the IED's.

Oh brother :shrug:

the building is a large high-rise in mid-town with many other companies and offices in it. the British Consulate is on the 10th floor. other than the coincidence of the elections being today, there is nothing to indicate the "target" was the consulate - so let's not automatically accept the media's interpretation of the event.

.....I hope Blair wins so he can help the eagle soar

I forgot... NYC funds were given to Alaska ANWAR oil drilling!:crazy:

A plastic thing a kid might play with? A metal casing that looks identical to a real grenade? If the latter, it might be rather dangerous, if the former, a lot less so. And the black powder, is this essentially what one might extract from firecrackers, or something more powerful? Maybe something you can get at a gun shop that supplies old style (muskets, etc) gun enthusiasts?

It would be nice to know these details to get a feel for just how serious the event was.

...that one was shaped like a pineapple and the other like a lemon.

I recall reading old WWII comic books where grenades were referred to as pineapples and potato mashers, but a lemon is a new one on me. Maybe fruit bowls throughout NYC should be searched for missing plastic fruit.

The WWII-era "Pineapple" was replaced by
the US M26, aka "Lemon", which was replaced by the M61 "Baseball".



It's easy to see how they got their nicknames. Obviously, our BRILLIANT media folks didn't understand what they were being told by the experts at the scene.

These are often sold as 'paperweights' and novelties (without explosives and internal mechanisms).

Sounds like someone packed two of these with black powder(musket fuel), stuck some fuse in, and ran like hell.

Thanks for the info. I think I have seen one of these paperweight types somewhere along the line.

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