Federal agents are investigating a bomb explosion at the home of 58-year-old Houston woman, Vennie Wolf, on July 9. Disguised as an innocuous box of candy, the exploding box shot nails and tacks, according to the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, injuring the woman’s hands and face. The bomb exploded so violently that pieces of shrapnel and nails were found on the roof of the woman’s home.
The package arrived days earlier, but Wolf was reluctant to open it because she was unsure of who sent it. WCTV reports that eventually curiosity prompted Wolf to open the package. “Neighbors say the woman often performed random acts of kindness for her neighbors. Perhaps that was one reason she thought this box of chocolates was a ‘thank you’ in return.”
Officials do not believe the package was delivered by the United States Postal Service, but are unwilling to report where it came from. HPD Lt. Colin Weatherly states, “Don’t know where it came from — postal service or whether it was dropped off. I don’t have that information yet.”
After being hospitalized and undergoing surgery at Memorial Hermann-Northwest Hospital, Wolf is recovering at home.
ATF Assistant Special Agent Robert Elder asserted that the woman was the target of the attack, but could not determine a motive. “It’s an ongoing investigation,” noted Elder.
Others have deemed the woman’s marriage to James Brock Moore III, an oil executive, as the inspiration for the attack, an intriguing tidbit ignored by most reporters, with the exception of those at Fox News, Glenn Beck, and Rush Limbaugh.
Usurping the leftist method of blaming conservative talk radio hosts for inciting violence, Rush Limbaugh facetiously blamed the Obama administration and the mainstream media for “whipping up all kinds of hatred against BP and the rest of Big Oil,” claiming that they have helped to incite anger and violence against oil executives.
“If the Democrats are gonna’ run around and try to blame rhetoric for the actions of people like Tim McVeigh or others, well, let’s be fair about this. Who is it that’s been ginning up all this hatred at BP and Big Oil in general; it’s Bill Clinton, it’s Barack Obama, it’s Harry Reid and Pelosi.”
Limbaugh appeared to use the incident to emphasize the absurdity of the argument that right-wing radio hosts provoke criminals like Timothy McVeigh to perform violent acts. “I want to know where Bill Clinton is or Eric Holder of Salazar…. Remember now, the reason I bring this up is because Clinton’s out there saying that all this hate talk on the radio is leading to crimes. And they always run around and try to accuse us of inspiring these kinds of things.”
On his radio show, Glenn Beck speculated that “radicals” were responsible for the bombing and noted the lack of media coverage the story has received, with the exception of local Houston media outlets. “Gosh, why doesn’t this story find its way into the media?”
Some conservative blogs, like oldhippie.com and thelasttradition.com, rather than merely using the incident to make a mockery of leftist propaganda methods, seem to view the incident as an attack against the oil industry, and blame the Obama administration for “demonizing” oil companies.
Art Thompson of the John Birch Society somewhat agrees. "For decades, the liberal news media have cooperated in the demonizing of all who supposedly pollute or exploit the environment to the point that militant and unbalanced people have engaged in acts of violence in ‘defense’ of the environment. These acts have targeted car dealers, lumbermen, and now, apparently oil executives’ families".
Addressing the lack of media coverage of the story, he adds, "It should come as no surprise that they would not want the American people to see the results of such propaganda manifesting itself in a violent manner."
However, criminals are solely to blame for the crimes that they commit, and unless that fact is recognized, unfortunate incidents such as these merely allow the regulation of free speech under the guise of protecting others from incited violence.
