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Ismail Ax
April 17, 2007(Updates within updates now in Orange.)
Apparently that's what Virginia Tech killer Cho Seung-Hui had written on one of his arms in red ink, according to this story. There's no mention in the article of what this might mean.
A Google search of "Ismail Ax" isn't very helpful. A search of the term on Wikipedia resulted in this page, which notes that Ismail is the Romanian/Turkish term for Izmail, a "historic town near the Danube river in the Odessa Oblast (province) of south-western Ukraine."
The NY Post has some thoughts on "Ismail" here. In the Islamic account of Abraham Ismail (Hebrew: Ishmael) is the son of Abraham and the ancestor of the Arab people.
I wonder if we'll know what the phrase was intended to mean, and why he painted his arm with it?
*As an aside: How long before those words become some sort of bizarre cultural icon, with t-shirts, websites** and more? Ugh.
**Too late! ismailax.com was actually registered by someone on 17-Apr-07. C'mon, people. Maybe someone out there with more nerve than I can ask Mr. Patterson what in the world he was thinking. (If he's trying to prevent someone from using it, I think I can understand that. In that case make the registration info anonymous.)
And here's another forward-thinking individual: ChoSeung-Hui.com. Sigh.
• The pdf file was titled "axishmiel". This would represent the fifth reported spelling of this word: Ismail, Ismale, Ismael, Ishmael and Ishmiel.
• The pdf was last modified at 7:24am. Assuming a properly set computer, that would be minutes after killing his first two victims. If his computer has an earlier version of this pdf it may be telling to discover what was changed at that time.
• One word file was last modified April 13 at 3:45pm. An avi file was last modified April 10 at 9:40am. This would have been six days before the shooting, clearing establishing some sort of premeditation.
• The names of the video clips are particularly strange, including one that is apparently called "am al qaeda".
Finally, I've seen a number of the photos of Cho and haven't seen any visible writing or tattoos. This isn't conclusive (a tattoo could be under a sleeve, for example) but supports a scenario where he wrote something on his arm near the end of his rampage.
We don't have the entire record of what Cho sent; there have been allusions to President Bush, the Columbine killers, Jesus and other things that don't make much sense (and maybe never will.) I'm not sure it's useful to speculate what this all may mean without seeing the entire body of work. Even little details like the modification/creation times and dates on the files Cho sent may shed light on the chronology of events. (For that matter, his computer should be a wealth of information: sites visited, files created but not used, writing, IMs, etc.)
But really - at this point all I'd like to know: is it writing or a tattoo? Is it on the arm or the hand? Is it on the left or the right? These seem like pretty basic details to report (and report accurately.)
UPDATE SOMEWHERE IN THE DOUBLE DIGITS: NBC received a package today from Cho, mailed between killings (how horrible is that?). Here's an image of the package via MSNBC's site, and I've enlarged the signature twice. Can you make out how he signed it? It looks like "A. Ishmael" to me.
UPDATE LOSING COUNT: An interesting typographic issue came up today; many articles are referring to the writing on Cho as saying "Ismale Ax." I have no idea why there would be a serious discrepancy like this, or why no one would notice it. A search of Google News for both terms showed zero results, which I take to mean that no one has written about the discrepancy.
Here's a link to a Charleston Daily Mail article that uses the alternate spelling. Here's a Google News search for the terms "Ismale Ax." UPDATE IN AN UPDATE: This MSNBC article has yet another spelling: "Investigators said Cho’s body was found Monday with the words “Ismael Ax” scrawled on his arm."
There is also some question as to whether this was written or tattoed. This Miami Herald article says "adding that he had the cryptic words, ''Ismale Ax,'' tattooed on one arm." A minor point, perhaps, but a tattoo would have been done by a Tattoo-er (I can't believe I just wrote that) who might know more about the whole issue. Tattooing (I'm talking about Body Art now, not the Fantasy Island fellow) also would require more thought and planning than just writing it on the day of the shootings.
UDPATE 10: ABCNews.com picks up this odd story, to their credit, here: 'Ismail-Ax': Breaking the Riddle. Amongst their explanations is that the term appears in a poem called "The Goat Ranchers" which reads:
Went where they'd herded goats when they were kids,
Went where they were lovers,
Went where they were married here, those fifty years ago.
Traces of Ishmael's ax on the scarred trunks of the cedar trees,
Crossing the canyons and winding arroyos.
UPDATE 9: As mentioned elsewhere on this blog, EldaRossell has posted a clarification on her blog about her photo and friend. Check it out
UPDATE 8: EldaRossell has apparently deleted her two blog posts and the Flickr picture mentioned above, and I can't say that I blame her. Her blog can be found at http://eldarossell.wordpress.com/ where it's possible she will post some sort of message or explanation. I've looked around the web for any explanation of the phrase "Ismail Ax" and there's not much out there. I wonder why? Perhaps we'll learn more in the coming days.
UPDATE 7: An article from the Sydney Morning Herald site that discusses the registration of the domain name IsmailAx.com, including some comments by the savvy sick and twisted entrepreneurial registrar. No "blood money" is sought, in spite of the fact that the URL is now home to a page full of sponsored links. (You can find it here, although I'd encourage you not to click on anything.)
UPDATE 6: The Chicago Trib has an interesting article on the web searches for "Ismail Ax" and how it raced across the net today.
UPDATE 5: Here's another blog post, this one with the Flickr photo referenced above. However, I can't get to ToggleText.com. It's probably being hammered. I'll post a translation if it does ever load.
It loaded. Here it is, again FWIW:
The new friend from KorSel.
Now he and friends him was homestay (gw gak tau where) for a week.
He was younger a year from gw.
He said from his 13 friends, who were oldest had three people (26 years), one of them named Jian (that his Indonesian name, his Korean name gw gak tau).
It was youngest that around 20-21 years, his name of Indra (Kim Yun Ki).
Several weeks yg then, gw took Seung Hoo & Yun Ki to Giant Hypermarket.
They wanted to buy juice and milk.
Because in Indomaret close to WH did not sell milk, Mbak Rahma proposed that they went to Giant and he asked gw took the two children.
Seung Hoo asked how we went to Giant, whether walking or rising angkot.
Gw answered rose angkot because far.
Evidently Yun Ki just the first time that rose angkot.
Gw every was the same him, this as the exercise if later he will move to Surabaya (he was assigned there to be the Instructor Taekwondo) he gak again uneasy.
But he every will rise the taxi went straight.
Gw then commented if the taxi was expensive.
Yun Ki every it's alright.
Yes, not Yun Ki yg every like that but Seung Hoo.
Because Yun Ki still could not speak about Indonesian.
So, while chatting Sueng Hoo that translated.
When we descended in the three-way intersection to rise angkot the other route, Yun Ki commented “wah busy ya”.
In the heart gw thought “aduh here the child has a month live in wisma gak had gone out from wisma ok?
Gimana later in Surabaya?
Just As we arrived in Giant, Seung Hoo say that in fact they might not go very far.
What???
Now you’re telling me this??
Gw smiled foolishly then (in fact in the heart gw confused.
This the person's child sodara2!!
… not the village child here again … gimana if why-why trus ortu him yg in KorSel nuntut gw gitu).
Okay … relax
UPDATE 4: Unbelievable. The Smoking Gun has Cho Seung-Hui's writing already. Just amazing. Link Here. Note: I haven't read it, proceed at your own risk, as it were.
UPDATE 3: Interesting theories at Boing Boing here.
UPDATE 2: The person who took that Flickr photo (above) has a blog, and this post makes reference to "Ismail" and is titled "New Friend." Based on the comment in the Flickr post mentioning that it's hard for Indonesians to pronounce his name, I tried an Indonesian translation of this blog post. This is what I got (submitted only FWIW):
His name of Ismail.
Yep… you gak wrong read … his name of Ismail.
Sy surprised also by the name of him, trus sy tny he, is it true that that his name.
Evidently that his Indonesian name, the name in fact was Jo Sung Ho.
He and several of his colleagues from KorSel, was studying Indonesian for 2 months in WH. after that he will go to Palembang to teach the computer in the TECHNICAL COLLEGE OF MACHINERY for 2 years.
Ow, susye true chatted was the same Ismail/Sung Ho … because he was not yet fluent in Indonesian.
Bhs England then only a little (sami mawon sm sy).
But according to sy, he has been moderate could compared to his friends (sy sometimes still liked to laugh in view of the fact that his friend had difficulty really asked Indonesian).
Trus sy every was the same Ismail, he must often chat with Indonesians yg was in WH.
By the way the matter of the name, they were asked to choose the Indonesian name personally.
Sy asked why Sung Ho chose the Ismail name, he every because he wanted to be friends with the person Islam.
Trus he mentioned the veil, then mentioned the name of Ms Siam (one of the employees WH) that wore the veil.
Sy also asked whether the Indonesian name his friends.
Ismail mentioned Indra, the Torment … yep…ka you also were not wrong read … was yg his name the Torment, bayangin then!
Sy, Mbak Rus and yg other agreed if the name must be replaced.
Possibly sy tomorrow could speak first with Ismail ttg this because we janjian to chat again tomorrow night.
UPDATE 1: Well that clears that up. Not.
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