timothy McVeigh, according to his commander in the Gulf War, was a "soldier's soldier." Other ex-Army buddies testifying for the defense in the sentencing phase of his trial for the bombing of the Oklahoma City federal building called him "professional" and "the best gunner in the platoon." "He took everything serious," said one of his buddies, Dave Dilly.
McVeigh took Waco especially seriously, his attorneys have argued. It was that single event, they told jurors, that propelled him into an anti-government rage. Before that, he was an average American young man who believed in God, the flag and the Constitution. Except that as early as 1990, cross-examination revealed, McVeigh was reading "The Turner Diaries," a repellently racist novel that calls for the elimination of Jews and blacks, not to mention blowing up federal institutions.
Despite being disowned by militias and other far-right groups, McVeigh is part of a burgeoning and deadly social movement that could strike again, according to Frederick Clarkson, author of "Eternal Hostility: The Struggle between Theocracy and Democracy" (Common Courage Press). The book is a survey of far-right activity, including what Clarkson calls the "theology of vigilantism" being directed against abortion clinics and against gays.