More than 8 hours after London police shot and killed a man in the tube, there still is no indication of why.
There are some interesting facts known about the case, but they don't add up to the 'why?'
And as more time passes, and as more information dribbles out, this is starting to sound disturbingly like a case of police officers overreacting and gunning down an unarmed man who presented no threat to himself or to others -- in other words, like the kind of incidents black New Yorkers became sadly accustomed to during the Giuliani "cleaning up New York" years.
The police have had ample time to point out that the man was armed, or was seen carrying a suspicious package, or wearing a bomb belt, or whatever. As of 3:30pm EDT in the U.S., they have asserted no such thing.
We hear that the man appeared to be a South Asian, shorthand for 'Pakistani or some other kind of Muslim.' Hope that was not a major contributing factor in the decision to shoot him.
We hear that the man was wearing a "thick coat" that seemed out of place for mid-July. But the temperature at that time of day in London was about 72 degrees farenheit -- not like the steamy summer days we in the U.S. might have imagined. And if this guy was from South Asia, 72 is probably cold to him.
We hear that police have "linked" his shooting to the investigation of one or both of the terrorist attacks the city has faced in the past two weeks. But linked in what way? Are they saying he was a suspect? If so, why don't they just say that? Or maybe he just knew one of the suspects? What's the story?
He was shot multiple times while lying on the ground? What the hell is up with that?
Armed pursuit is not a normal part of police work in London. Admittedly, we don't have enough information yet to fully grasp what happened. But at the moment, this feels like a case of police officers on very high alert getting carried away while watching a suspect or potential witness, and shooting an unarmed, and maybe even innocent, man.
Let's hope the incidents of the last couple of weeks hasn't driven London over the edge.