Rachel is making my case that this was not an Al Queda plot, but 2 guys with access to arms...

[onehandle]

...and messed up lives, sensibilities. The brother was clearly the more problematic.

Just like Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold.

[hack89]

1. Common violent felons? Could be. nt

[flamingdem]

3. .. driven by "religious fervor"

well maybe religion should be illegal.. or the internet? They learned their bombmaking skills there.

Then again the suspect could be lying.

[JI7]

4. the older brother was already messed up when he decided to take up religion

[flamingdem]

9. The idea that he may have killed 3 men, slit their throats..

and sprinkled them with marijuana may be insightful as far as his disorder. Once he'd had a taste he wanted more or something, religion was as good an excuse as any.

His mother seemed to be pushing him to religion as well.

[uppityperson]

15. Or that he turned to religion after that happened to his friends.

[WhaTHellsgoingonhere]

2. She's not making any such case

You just believe him (suspect #2).

[flamingdem]

5. Younger brother may be intelligent enough to know that

conspiracy carries a bigger punishment, possibly, or he may not have been told about his brothers contacts when he was away.

[WhaTHellsgoingonhere]

10. but that flies in the face of OP who had this thing nailed!

[dems_rightnow]

12. How much bigger?

If guilty he's either going to get life in prison or the death penalty.

[onehandle]

14. And you believe the Cheney crowd.

Please proceed.

[Honeycombe8]

6. Well, yes, and no?

The didn't apparently have messed up lives. The younger one had good grades and a promising future ahead of him. The older one had been in college, studying engineering, when he dropped out to focus on his boxing for competition (but that was thwarted by the investigation of him, I think I read).

The "arms" they had were more like WMDs...bombs. IEDs.

The gun they later had, they used to kill someone. But it pales in comparison to the IEDs, which were homemade. I don't know all that they were made otu of, but apparently it's things that are commonly available?

I think trying to use this as a case for gun control won't wash with the public. This is way off the radar of guns, the use of bombs.

[onehandle]

13. They had multiple assault weapons. And many gun nuts pass around explosives instructions.

Clearly, they have ties to, and training by the NRA.

Just like Adam Lanza did.

[MoonchildCA]

16. The younger brother had good grades in high school,

But according to this article, he was failing most of his college courses:

[link:http://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2013/04/19/relatives-marathon-bombing-suspects-worried-that-older-brother-was-corrupting-sweet-younger-sibling/UCYHkiP9nfsjAtMjJPWJJL/story.html|

[nadinbrzezinski]

7. And few are making that point outside of two s Senators and on US Congressman

[pipoman]

8. ...and pressure cookers, peroxide, and backpacks, eh?

[JaneyVee]

11. Like guns to gun nuts, explosives give certain people hard-on's also.