Carina Saunders' Autopsy and a Swift Boat By Any Other Name: An Ugly Thursday

Grotesque things are going down.

In today's Oklahoman, Andrew Knittle writes that the Carina Saunders autopsy report has been made public. His story, which was contributed to by Tim Willert, sheds little new light on the brutal killing, although it fills in some of the gruesome details. The medical examiner feels there was some attempt, obviously not successful, to conceal Saunders' identity after her death. Her hands and feet were missing, she was, as we know, decapitated, and apparently there was an attempt to either remove a tell tale tattoo on her back, or at least disfigure it to the point of being unrecognizable. According to the story dental records were used to confirm it was Saunders.

Knittle's story quotes the report as saying, "The body parts were wrapped with plastic wrap, in a laundry bag and a duffel bag." It is believed she was alive when this barbarity began. The speculation remains that she was murdered simply so others would see what would happen to them if they didn't cooperate with the perpetrator's drug and prostitution business. There has been, however, a hint that Saunders was more than just a random selection for this ghastly crime. A July 24th story by The Oklahoman's Tim Willert, cites a woman named Stephanie Howard as saying one of the accused killers, Luis Ruiz had told her that Saunders was going to be "dealt with." Why Ruiz felt that way is a matter of pure speculation, although bets are the police know and just aren't saying at this time.

The issue of whether or not a video of the murder exists either on a cell phone, or other media is still dangling in the suddenly foul breeze. It is reported that a woman named Tia Downour, who was sharing a motel room with Ruiz at one point, snuck a look at his cell phone while he was in the bathroom. According to her someone had recorded Ruiz starting to dismember Saunders. Shaken, she turned it off as Saunders began to scream. So far there has been no word as to whether anyone else has seen the video, or if it still exists, or frankly, if it ever did.

What we do know right now is that Ruiz and Jimmy Massey have been charged with the murder and are currently awaiting trial. As repulsive as this saga is at the moment, it can only get worse as more details trickle out over the next few months. Jury members are going to need strong stomachs just to get through each day of the coming proceedings. This horror isn't for the faint of heart.

Meanwhile, on the national scene, the New York Times is reporting that a group calling itself OPSEC has established a web site. The site is currently running a 22 minute video heavily criticizing Barak Obama for a number of security leaks. The leaks have to do with the raid that killed Osama bin Laden and other security matters. According to the Times the video tries to portray Obama as a braggart who is shamelessly using national security issues for political gain.

The group is peopled with former CIA and special operations personnel and claims to be non-partisan. Well that would be non-partisan so long as you're are a screaming, bug eyed, right wing troll. A guy named Chad Kolton is the mouthpiece for this bunch. He was a former spokesperson for the Director of National Intelligence during the Bush administration. Other members include Benjamin Smith a former Navy special ops guy who also happened to be, for a while, a spokesman for the Tea Party Express. Also there is Scott Taylor who is the president of the group. Taylor was an unsuccessful republican congressional candidate in Virginia. In addition the Times points out the organization shares an office suite in Virginia with a republican consulting firm know as the "Trailblazer Group."

Kolton says that because the outfit is classified as an educational group they are under no requirement to list donors or the amounts given. The video reportedly carefully edits Obama's remarks to the nation after the bin Laden raid, deftly removing his reference to the "ten years of tireless and heroic work of our military and counter terrorism professionals."

Can you say swift boat?

On CNN, Admiral William H. McRaven, the man who oversaw the raid, was quoted as saying, "The president and his national security team--I'm not a political guy, but will tell you as an interested party--they were magnificent in how they handled it (the raid) from start to finish." He went on to say, "At the end of the day, make no mistake about it, it was the president of the United States who shouldered the burden for the operation, that made the hard decisions, that was instrumental in the planning process, because I pitched every plan to him."

In addition the Times reports that the Obama administration has "overseen an unprecedented number of prosecutions for press disclosures". In fact two months ago, Attorney General Eric Holder ordered two different U.S. attorneys to investigate the leaks these mutant clowns are just now complaining about.

I suppose I shouldn't be surprised at such a naked attempt to discredit Obama for an operation that, if it had failed, would have probably cost him the oval office. It is typical republican misinformation and deviant propaganda. Herr Goebbels would have been proud.

Yes, this has indeed been an ugly Thursday on two different fronts. Large doses of Dramamine and a Louisville Slugger will be required to deal with all those involved. Sometimes, in the end, they are the only things that work.

8-16-12