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Prosecutors: Engineer deliberately ran train off tracks in attempt to smash the USNS Mercy

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Posted by BaltACD on Friday, April 3, 2020 7:35 PM

Convicted One
But then I believe there is intelligent life elsewhere in the universe. Whether it's coming here to visit remains to be proven.  Which I guess is part of the reason I am skeptical whenever I see individuals dismissed as "lone nutters". They may very well be just that, but I would prefer to draw that conclusion myself, as opposed to having it made for me.

When one uses a tool the is not capable of accomplishing the stated goal of the terrorist - he becomes a nutter.

The Universe is much too large with way too many galaxy's that contain way too many solar systems with way too many planets for us to be the only 'intelligent' beings to inhabit the Universe.  With that being the case, we have only developed radio waves that are able to leave the Earth's atmosphere in the past 100 years or so - and we know the nearest star to us is 4.5 Lightyears distant.  In view of the foregoing - where are we on the intelligent 'timeline' vs. other intelligent beings timeline - are we ahead of them - where they are hunter gathers living in caves on their planets - or were we in the hunter gatherer phase when the found our planet and concluded there was not intelligent life here?  Questions, Questions Questions.  Timing is everything.

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Posted by Murphy Siding on Friday, April 3, 2020 7:37 PM

Backshop

 

 
Convicted One

Would it really harm the republic to hear what this person's reasoning was?  

 

 

 

"Reasoning" is a stretch, itself...

 

 

I agree, and ironically ConvictedOne seems to agree as well. The engineer was not in his or her right mind when this happened.

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Posted by 243129 on Friday, April 3, 2020 7:38 PM

Murphy Siding
ConvictedOne suggests it's possible the guy just snapped.

That is entirely possible.

Murphy Siding
How can anyone foresee that in the present

By observation. There are a couple on the NEC (still) who bear watching and it would not surprise me should they be involved in workplace violence. I am not alone in that observation.

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Posted by Flintlock76 on Friday, April 3, 2020 7:42 PM

Look on the bright side.

At least the voices in his head didn't tell him to stand on a highway overpass with a .30-06.

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Posted by BaltACD on Friday, April 3, 2020 7:49 PM

243129
 
Murphy Siding
ConvictedOne suggests it's possible the guy just snapped. 

That is entirely possible. 

Murphy Siding
How can anyone foresee that in the present

By observation. There are a couple on the NEC (still) who bear watching and it would not surprise me should they be involved in workplace violence. I am not alone in that observation.

I would venture that in our employment careers we have all come across individuals we did not feel 'totally comfortable' around for any of a variety of reasons.  One cannot predict how life's slings and arrows will affect any individual over time.

Locally we just had a former Army Ranger kill his ex-wife (of seveal years) and her current partner as well as a neighbor kid throwing a lacrosse ball around in his own yard across the street before killing himself.  I have to presume the Army does a relatively high level of vetting to individuals accepted into and passing through Ranger training.  Somewhere along the line the vetting no longer applied to the situations he was faced with in civilian life. 

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Posted by tree68 on Friday, April 3, 2020 8:12 PM

Even if someone is open about being interested in conspiracy theories (or supernatural phenomena, or any number of other things), it's hard to tell when the stars are going to line up just right and they'll go off the deep end.  And they may never line up.  For this guy, they did.  Is believing in ghosts a disqualifying character trait for engineers?

 

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Posted by Murphy Siding on Friday, April 3, 2020 8:14 PM

243129

 

 
Murphy Siding
ConvictedOne suggests it's possible the guy just snapped.

 

That is entirely possible.

 

 
Murphy Siding
How can anyone foresee that in the present

 

By observation. There are a couple on the NEC (still) who bear watching and it would not surprise me should they be involved in workplace violence. I am not alone in that observation.

 

And one of those you mention on the NEC could be normal as can be in the morning and chasing a navy ship with a locomotive in the afternoon. You would be able to say "I told you so" but you wouldn't be able to predict it.

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Posted by Backshop on Friday, April 3, 2020 8:20 PM

BaltACD

 

Locally we just had a former Army Ranger kill his ex-wife (of seveal years) and her current partner.  I have to presume the Army does a relatively high level of vetting to individuals accepted into and passing through Ranger training.    

Sometimes, the needs of the military are different than those of the civilian world.  Very rarely, people in the military get used to doing stuff that would be illegal if it wasn't being done in the interests of the government.

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Posted by NDG on Friday, April 3, 2020 8:45 PM
It's just Hollywood. Or is it?? 
 
 
 
Thank You.
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Posted by 243129 on Friday, April 3, 2020 9:15 PM

BaltACD
Army does a relatively high level of vetting to individuals accepted into and passing through Ranger training.

Yes they do and he was probably an excellent candidate for Ranger 'duties'.

 

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Posted by 243129 on Friday, April 3, 2020 9:19 PM

Murphy Siding
And one of those you mention on the NEC could be normal as can be in the morning and chasing a navy ship with a locomotive in the afternoon. You would be able to say "I told you so" but you wouldn't be able to predict it.

There is no fool-proof system but proper vetting can lessen the possibilities of workplace violence.

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Posted by 243129 on Friday, April 3, 2020 9:20 PM

tree68
Is believing in ghosts a disqualifying character trait for engineers?

If you asked a candidate if they believe in ghosts and they answered in the affirmative would you recommend they be hired?

 

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Posted by Euclid on Friday, April 3, 2020 9:30 PM

They should ask candidates what they think of PSR.

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Posted by GERALD L MCFARLANE JR on Friday, April 3, 2020 9:37 PM

zugmann
 
Convicted One
There could be pre-incident conditions that the RR might be relutant to own up to, and unable to disclose?

 

I mean, HIPPA is a thing.  

I found out from a legal professional that HIPPA only applies to medical personnel, it doesn't apply to anyone else or to facilities(if I remember correctly, it's been over a week already and it wasn't that important to me, I only remembered to most important part about it applying to medical personnel), but that people now believe that is the case so use that as an excuse to not release information to the general public.

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Posted by MidlandMike on Friday, April 3, 2020 10:02 PM

zugmann

 

 
Convicted One
There could be pre-incident conditions that the RR might be relutant to own up to, and unable to disclose?

 

I mean, HIPPA is a thing. 

 

So is HIPAA

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Posted by zugmann on Friday, April 3, 2020 10:23 PM

MidlandMike
So is HIPAA

But they're so hungry...

It's been fun.  But it isn't much fun anymore.   Signing off for now. 


  

The opinions expressed here represent my own and not those of my employer, any other railroad, company, or person.t fun any

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Posted by BaltACD on Friday, April 3, 2020 11:34 PM

243129
 
Murphy Siding
And one of those you mention on the NEC could be normal as can be in the morning and chasing a navy ship with a locomotive in the afternoon. You would be able to say "I told you so" but you wouldn't be able to predict it. 

There is no fool-proof system

but proper vetting can lessen the possibilities of workplace violence.

Ding!  Ding!  Ding!  Lessen, not eliminate.

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Posted by Erik_Mag on Saturday, April 4, 2020 12:35 AM

SALfan

Don't forget the colander to wear on your head to keep the CIA from controlling your brain (like the woman in the park near Union Station in DC, when we were there). 

Colander? Are you she wasn't a pastafarian waiting for her diety to touch her with his noodly appendages?

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Posted by Overmod on Saturday, April 4, 2020 6:12 AM

zugmann
MidlandMike
So is HIPAA 

But they're so hungry...

... so hungry they had to name it twice.

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Posted by tree68 on Saturday, April 4, 2020 7:01 AM

243129
 
tree68
Is believing in ghosts a disqualifying character trait for engineers?

 

If you asked a candidate if they believe in ghosts and they answered in the affirmative would you recommend they be hired?

 

Sure.  There's people who engage in rituals on a weekly basis paying homage to plaster statues, and people who believe the Cowboys can win a Superbowl, why not ghosts?  Smile, Wink & Grin

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Posted by Euclid on Saturday, April 4, 2020 7:05 AM

 

I think he was in his right mind.  I am guessing that this guy has a very high level of unearned self-esteem.  He is also addicted to the idea of fame as the promise of social media.  He indicates that his decision to attack the ship was to let the world know.  He says that was on his mind and he just decided to go for it.  When he was arrested he told the cops that he only had one chance so he knew he had to go for it.  What is missing are the details of what he wanted to tell the world.  The only thing he knew about the ship is that it looked strange.  I would have to agree with him on that point.

So the strange looking ship made him suspicious, and he wanted the fame of warning the world about the suspicious ship.  Throwing his locomotive at the ship was his plan for the fame.  But he let his exaggerated self-esteem and thirst for fame get away with him before he knew the facts about the ship.

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Posted by Convicted One on Saturday, April 4, 2020 9:01 AM

Murphy Siding
And that's exactly what he was hoping for. If you condone giving a soapbox to every "lone nut" who does something terrible to get attention, where do you stop? What about Theodore Kaczynski, Mark David Chapman, Timothy McVeigh, Travis Bickle, or The Monkees?

Well, I think that you are veering into the area of suppressing subversion, which I don't believe has a whole lot of relevance with  a locomotive ramming a hospital ship, but who knows? Since the central authority has decided for us that we don't deserve to know.....we likely never will. Alien

There is, IMO,  a great potential for abuse in any decision to suppress news solely for  the purpose of denying those involved their "moment of fame". I'm more comfortable being given the opportunity to  evaluate for myself if 'The Monsters are Due on Maple Street' has relevance.......or not.

And no, I don't buy that vicious rumor at all that the Monkees tune "Mr Webster" was what set the Unabomber against the system.

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Posted by Convicted One on Saturday, April 4, 2020 9:25 AM

BaltACD
When one uses a tool the is not capable of accomplishing the stated goal of the terrorist - he becomes a nutter.

Yanno it's  humorous....just a month ago this forum was rife with  backslapping enthusiasts who would have reveled in the idea that a locomotive  might ram a barricade. But  now that one has done exactly that,  where's the love?

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Posted by BaltACD on Saturday, April 4, 2020 9:35 AM

Convicted One
 
BaltACD
When one uses a tool the is not capable of accomplishing the stated goal of the terrorist - he becomes a nutter. 

Yanno it's  humorous....just a month ago this forum was rife with  backslapping enthusiasts who would have reveled in the idea that a locomotive  might ram a barricade. But  now that one has done exactly that,  where's the love?

A barricade across existing tracks and 250 yards of land without tracks are very different obstacles.

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Posted by Murphy Siding on Saturday, April 4, 2020 9:36 AM

Euclid

 

I think he was in his right mind.  I am guessing that this guy has a very high level of unearned self-esteem.  He is also addicted to the idea of fame as the promise of social media.  He indicates that his decision to attack the ship was to let the world know.  He says that was on his mind and he just decided to go for it.  When he was arrested he told the cops that he only had one chance so he knew he had to go for it.  What is missing are the details of what he wanted to tell the world.  The only thing he knew about the ship is that it looked strange.  I would have to agree with him on that point.

So the strange looking ship made him suspicious, and he wanted the fame of warning the world about the suspicious ship.  Throwing his locomotive at the ship was his plan for the fame.  But he let his exaggerated self-esteem and thirst for fame get away with him before he knew the facts about the ship.

 

Did you want me to refute the first sentence where you say he was in his right mind, or the whole rest of the post where you refute it?

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Posted by Murphy Siding on Saturday, April 4, 2020 9:45 AM

Euclid

 

I think he was in his right mind.  I am guessing that this guy has a very

high level of unearned self-esteemHe is also addicted to the idea of fame

as the promise of social media.  He indicates that his decision to attack the

ship was to let the world know.  He says that was on his mind and he just

decided to go for it.  When he was arrested he told the cops that he only

had one chance so he knew he had to go for it.  What is missing are the

details of what he wanted to tell the world.  The only thing he knew about

the ship is that it looked strange.  I would have to agree with him on that point.

So the strange looking ship made him suspicious, and he wanted the fame of

warning the world about the suspicious ship.  Throwing his locomotive at the ship

was his plan for the fameBut he let his exaggerated self-esteem and thirst for

fame get away with him before he knew the facts about the ship.

 

If I'm scoring that correctly, the score is euclid 1 verses euclid 9. euclid is ahead at this point and is expected to win the debate over euclid.

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Posted by Murphy Siding on Saturday, April 4, 2020 9:50 AM

Convicted One

 

 
Murphy Siding
And that's exactly what he was hoping for. If you condone giving a soapbox to every "lone nut" who does something terrible to get attention, where do you stop? What about Theodore Kaczynski, Mark David Chapman, Timothy McVeigh, Travis Bickle, or The Monkees?

 

Well, I think that you are veering into the area of suppressing subversion, which I don't believe has a whole lot of relevance with  a locomotive ramming a hospital ship, but who knows? Since the central authority has decided for us that we don't deserve to know.....we likely never will. Alien

There is, IMO,  a great potential for abuse in any decision to suppress news solely for  the purpose of denying those involved their "moment of fame". I'm more comfortable being given the opportunity to  evaluate for myself if 'The Monsters are Due on Maple Street' has relevance.......or not.

And no, I don't buy that vicious rumor at all that the Monkees tune "Mr Webster" was what set the Unabomber against the system.

 

Hey hey, they were Monkees. People said they monkeyed around, but they were too busy singin' to put anybody down. They were just tryin' to be friendly, 'cause they wanted to sing and play. They were the young generation and they had something to say. 

     And they managed to do that through a cheesy TV show and a bunch of real crappy music. Never once did they feel the need to try and run a locomotive 750 feet off the ends of a railroad track in hopes of hitting a ship in the harbor and making the 5 o'clock news.

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Posted by Convicted One on Saturday, April 4, 2020 9:50 AM

Yeah, I guess that even Patrick Henry was only one cruel twist of fate away from being dismissed as  a "lone nutter"?  Whistling

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Posted by Euclid on Saturday, April 4, 2020 10:14 AM

Coffee

 

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Posted by 54light15 on Saturday, April 4, 2020 10:40 AM

The Monkees? Say what? Whiskey tango foxtrot! 

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