Simo Häyhä is often revered as the deadliest sniper in history. Using nothing more than a
Mosin-Nagant sniper rifle with stock iron sights, Häyhä is credited with felling 542 Soviet soldiers during the
Finnish Winter War (with as many as 150 more kills by SMG). Nicknamed
"The White Death", Häyhä spent weeks in snow-covered forests, enduring sub-zero temperatures while sniping Russian officers, weapons crews and snipers. The Soviets placed a bounty on Häyhä's head, utilizing counter-snipers and artillery fire in an attempt to kill him. Over the course of only three months, the 5'3" Häyhä (a farmer by trade) killed upwards of 800 of the Red Army soldiers deployed to Finland. Despite eventually being
shot in the face by a Russian sharpshooter, Häyhä recovered and passed away in 2002 at the age of 96.
posted by Tenacious.Me.Tokyo
on Jan 28, 2010 -
244 comments
Killing by the numbers. "In 2007 elite U.S. snipers executed an unarmed Iraqi prisoner in cold blood. Have the insidious tactics that led to atrocities in Vietnam reemerged in Iraq?"
posted by homunculus
on May 8, 2008 -
46 comments
Sgt. Wells's New Skull. In the epidemic of brain injuries coming out of the war, Army neurosurgeons had never seen someone survive such a devastating wound. But Brian Wells jokes that he just left part of his head in Iraq. Someday, he says, he'll have to go back and get it.
posted by srboisvert
on Mar 15, 2007 -
21 comments
I just watched the chilling video of a
sniper [Flash, NSFW] in Iraq on TV. It was given to Paul McGeough of the
Sydney Morning Herald and published on their site. As discussed on The ABC
Lateline programme (transcript not available at posting time but pretty much covered by the SMH). Please read the report to put the video in perspective. It's propaganda but...
posted by tellurian
on Feb 14, 2006 -
99 comments
What is the ID SNIPER(TM) rifle? "It is used to implant a GPS-microchip in the body of a human being, using a high powered sniper rifle as the long distance injector. [...] At the same time a digital camcorder with a zoom-lense fitted within the scope will take a high-resolution picture of the target. This picture will be stored on a memory card for later image-analysis."
Other popular products by Empire North include
JUJU the Citizen Eye. Empire North is run by
Jakob Boeskov.
posted by sour cream
on Mar 24, 2005 -
22 comments
Chief Moose won't postpone book. Montgomery County Police Chief Charles A. Moose will not delay the release of his book despite concerns of tainting jury pools and the fact that county rules bar disclosure of confidential info and prohibit employees from using the "prestige of office" for private gain. Chief Moose said his book will not disclose information that would hurt the prosecution of Malvo and Muhammad.
posted by Ron
on May 14, 2003 -
6 comments
Surviving a Sniper A great article about saving one of the D.C. sniper victims:
The doors to the Bowie Health Center had just been unlocked, and Tom Lyons was catching up on paperwork before the usual parade of cut fingers, sore throats and headaches began. [...] He was savoring one last cup of coffee when he heard someone shout for him in the hallway. We've got a gunshot wound!
posted by tommyspoon
on Oct 17, 2002 -
27 comments
Military may take part in DC Sniper Hunt The Pentagon is making some noise about possibly using military personnel and equipment in the hunt for the DC area sniper. I am normally not a paranoid conspiracy type but...
Would it be unthinkable that the government could be behind the whole thing. First they put out trained snipers to kill random victims and scare the hell out of the public. Then the military come in and save the day. At the same time they set a precedent for using the military to "fight crime" in the country. While I don't think this is the case, would you put it past the current administration?
posted by Blubble
on Oct 15, 2002 -
76 comments
"Dear policeman, I am God" found inscribed on a Tarot card. This latest clue in the Maryland sniper case will no doubt be tested and thoroughly investigated, although it was reported that it could be the work of prankster. If you have read the interesting post below by stevis ("I am who I am") of a Florida man who was legally denied the right to call himself "God", doesn't it make you wonder if the human desire to personify or impersonate God is a manifestation of the desperation for control over others, but not for the better? God, after all, wants you to surrender your life to the almighty. Or (mental illnesses aside) is it much more complex than that?
posted by taratan
on Oct 9, 2002 -
69 comments
Lon Horiuchi is a murderer (or at least a potential manslaughterer), says 9th circuit appeals court. His immunity from prosecution for killing Vicki Weaver while acting as a sniper for the FBI has been denied.
posted by OneBallJay
on Jun 5, 2001 -
14 comments
