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The long, rambling rant posted on a website eerily reflected the angry populist sentiments that have swept the country in the past year. In it, a Joe Stack inveighed against intrusive Big Brother government, corrupt corporate giants, irrational taxes, as well as the “puppet” George Bush. “I choose not to pretend that business as usual won’t continue,” he wrote. “I have just had enough. I can only hope that the numbers quickly get too big to be white washed and ignored that the American zombies wake up and revolt.” And then Stack apparently got in a Piper Cherokee PA-28 at about 9:40 a.m. at an airport in suburban Austin, Texas, and flew the plane into a commercial building housing an IRS office, killing himself, seriously injuring two people on the ground and starting a conflagration that lasted several hours.
The building houses regional offices of the IRS and other federal agencies. As one unidentified office worker from the building said, “If you have problems with the IRS, this is where you come in person to work them out.” According to news reports, 199 IRS employees work in the building, and all are accounted for. Toward the end of what appears to be his final note, Stack wrote, “Well, Mr. Big Brother IRS man, let’s try something different; take my pound of flesh and sleep well.”
These economic times are creating stress. This guy is being called a terrorist. Why are all these people named Joe?
Every deluge starts with a single drop of rain.
56 GF. C’mon… low wing.
RBG
Hey wait a minute! How come that concrete and steel building that houses gov’t offices caught on fire and didn’t collapse?
The IRS just carries out the laws, it doesn’t make them. Looks like another case of shooting the messenger.
I did some technical training for the IRS in Austin in the 90s, and they had armed guards at every IRS building. Every once in a while a nutcase gets it in his head to attack.
From the guy’s manifesto it seemed he had a tough life, but how much of it was self-serving BS? Who knows…
#56, As much as I hate the current tax code with all the loopholes and big government tomfoolery going on, I have to agree with you.
I like my airplane way too much to crash it into an IRS building.
IRS can suck my D. Nothing is ever easy with these blood sucking bastards. None of their paperwork is easy nor simple.
Need to change your address, oh hey….just fill these 20 pages and hire a consultant to interpret our garbage we use to purposely confused you.
Fck IRS. I have no sympathy for it, for Sharp hospital, for Humana, for British people, for…ah hell..for everyone including the devil and the gay incest loving God and Jesus.
Life just suck now for many. Surprised?
#68 “Start working seriously toward your country’s embetterment.”
Will do, as soon as “embetterment” is added to the dictionary.
FWIW, it appears he was right about the tax laws that he was complaining about…
http://salon.com/technology/how_the_world_works/2010/02/19/joe_stack_tax_problem_2/index.html
http://nytimes.com/1998/04/27/business/how-a-tax-law-helps-insure-a-scarcity-of-programmers.html
fromundacheese said,
Hey wait a minute! How come that concrete and steel building that houses gov’t offices caught on fire and didn’t collapse?
Come now, that’s an easy one:
-Because Larry Silverstein did not own it.. *rimshot*
Actually Phydeau, the IRS issues many regulations on its own, as part of implementing the tax laws. For example assuming that waiters make a certain percentage of sales in tips, based on the results of tips when people pay with credit cards.
#72 Hmmm, I guess so… but I’d still say most of what they do comes from Congress.
#13, 16,
He’s mad at the tax code and so decides to destroy other people’s property and cause physical harm to others? Definitely not a Libertarian.
John Dvorak – I see you changed your comment and I am glad. If Americans don’t start to recognize the importance of freedom fighters like Joe Stack they are doomed to be tax slaves forever. This is a sign the government will ignore but more and more people are talking about violent revolution and the government should not ignore this.
I for one believe there is not an elected official anywhere in the United States who has been offered a bribe and didn’t take it. Our government is nothing but a super-corrupt parasite that we would all be better off without.
If you love freedom and the Constitution you know we should cherish people who are still willing to fight and die for what they believe in. Even in this symbolic and ineffective case. These are rare people who live to a higher standard than the average TV viewer and America needs them now more than ever.
It was only a matter of time before one of these tea baggers did some terrorist act like this. Expect more.
Remember how people demanded that ALL Muslims apologize for 911?
Remember how they insisted that ALL Muslims where guilty because they didn’t actively protest against and condemn the guys who flew the airplanes into the buildings?
If it was true then, it would be true now.
… I’m still waiting for the anti-tax crowd to collectively apologize for this act of terrorism.
Greg Allen,
Are you pro-tax and wasteful spending? Most people do not like taxes, so are you expecting everyone in the world except you to apologize to… who exactly? You? And yeah, nobody but you remembers anyone asking for all Muslims to apologize for 911. Not so good at debating reality so you have to create your own?
You sir, are an idiot. Have you read nothing of what he believed? Do you not realize his beliefs are 90% in conflict with the TEA party agenda? Congratulations! You have proved you are the most clueless person on this blog, which is really saying something.
If he thinks that let’s him off paying the tax…
>> aslightlycrankygeek said, on February 19th, 2010 at 11:26 pm
>> like taxes, so are you expecting everyone in the world except you to apologize to… who exactly? You?
Thank you for illustrating my point. People demanding that Muslims apologize for 911 was silly. Clearly you understand this now that I ask YOU to apologize for this terrorist attack. People don’t apologize for things they don’t do.
>>And yeah, nobody but you remembers anyone asking for all Muslims to apologize for 911. Not so good at debating reality so you have to create your own?
If you don’t remember Americans demanding that Muslims show contrition for 911, you have a very selective memory, indeed.
>> You sir, are an idiot.
When people run out of facts and logic, they name call.
I think this is terrorist act….and nothing more.
I choose not to pretend that business as usual won’t continue.