Washington gunman praised as 'a modern hero of our race!'

Holocaust museum attack triggers ugly posts in cyberspace.

By DOV LIEBER
James von brunn 248.88 (photo credit: AP)
James von brunn 248.88
(photo credit: AP)
News of James Von Brunn's shooting attack at the US Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington has prompted ugly responses from anti-Semitic, anti-Zionist and white supremacists groups. On Wednesday, Von Brunn entered the museum with a rifle, killing security guard Stephen T. Johns, before being shot and gravely wounded himself. Although many hate sites did condemn the attack for tactical reasons, they said there was nothing wrong with the hate that inspired it. One major hate Web site, Jewwatch.com, concentrates on presenting supposed Jewish/Zionist conspiracies. The site's manager, James Stenzel, condemned Von Brunn's violence: "The management of Jewwatch wishes to take this opportunity to publicly deplore the act of deadly senseless violence perpetrated by Jame von Brunn. "Von Brunn is claimed to be a 'white supremacist.' Such senseless and counterproductive acts of deadly violence do nothing to further the cause of any race, 'white' or otherwise. They advance nothing," Stenzel wrote. However, he also felt that this was a proper time to continue his anti-Zionist rhetoric. We "will refrain from using this tragic incident to promote any theories we might have... Too bad the Zionists aren't similarly disposed - from what was in my inbox it seems they intend to exploit this tragedy for everything it can be worth to them," wrote Stenzel. Echoing the opinion of Stenzel, many members of Stormfront.org, a leading white supremacist site, also felt that Von Brunn's violence should be condemned. However, they showed immense admiration for his character and views. On the thread, "Van Brunn is sick," site member Coldstar wrote: "This man sounds like a modern hero of our race!" Elena Haskins, writing in the thread, "White Racialist Treasure: James Von Brunn," wrote, "James endured jail and personal sorrows as a consequence of his refusal to submit to tyranny. My nomination for White Racialist Treasure: James Von Brunn." It is possible that the reason a majority of opinions on Stormfront's threads denounced the violence was because those that did not were censored. "The other thread just got locked because some idiots had the idea to support him doing this shooting, keep your mouth shut if you don't have anything intelligent to say," wrote member PAT88. Commenting on material heard on the Republic Broadcasting Network - a conservative radio outlet - forum member GreyGhost posted: "Not to belittle anyone or bring out the cloak and dagger theories. I've just been listening to Jack McLamb and Rick Adams at RBN. McLamb, always good for a story, says, this von Brunn fellow could possibly be a mind controlled 'blind assassin.' He uses the evidence of other instances and the DHS [US Department of Homeland Security] extremist documents. "Rick Adams thinks these events are sinister actions of a government that wants to disarm Americans and pass Hate Crimes legislation. "I don't know what to think of the timing of ALL of these incidents. As I recall. Nothing political happens by accident," GreyGhost wrote. Von Brunn is a longtime white supremacist and anti-Semite Yet, despite his biography, many are wondering what could have prompted such reckless violence from the 89-year-old man. Edgar J. Steele, a lawyer who is most famous for defending people accused of racism, and is listed by the Southern Poverty Law Center as an anti-Semite, attempted to explain Von Brunn's actions. "Why did Von Brunn choose to unload at the National Holocaust Museum? Because it is an edifice to one of the most stupendous lies of modern times, paid for and maintained with taxpayer dollars, that's why," Steele said. Steele finished his explanation, which was posted on many white supremacist Web sites, with a freighting prediction. "Make no mistake. Today's was no isolated incident. You will see more and more shootouts like what took place in Washington, DC, this morning, until America begins to listen to all her citizens and accords all of her children an equal voice in her affairs. Mark my words well, America," he wrote. Abraham H. Foxman, Anti-Defamation League national director, issued this statement: "Von Brunn's evil attack, at the very place that was created to remember and teach about evil in the world, is an immediate reminder that words of hate matter, that we can never afford to ignore hate, because words of hate can easily become acts of hate, no matter the place, no matter the age of the hatemonger."