Sikh Temple Terrorist was Neo-Nazi

From [OPP] and [HERE] The shooter in the shooting at a Sikh Temple in suburban Milwaukee that killed six people before police gunned him down has been identified as Wade Michael Page, a member of the Hammerskin Nation HSN, the oldest and most violent neo-Nazi bonehead organization in the United States.

According to the Anti-Defamation League website, Hammerskin Nation was formed in Dallas, Texas in the late 80s, adopting the crossed hammers - the symbol used by the fascists in Pink Floyd's the Wall - as their organization's logo. At its peak. HSN was able to boast dozens of chapters across the United States and worldwide. They are best known for holding concerts around the country known as Hammerfest, but also for the murders and other violent acts that have been committed by HSN members over the past 20 years. As of late the organization has lost the strength it once had, and other organizations like Volksfront and the Vinlander Social Club - an organization founded from the remnants of the Outlaw Hammerskins, which were former Hammerskin members that were ousted - came into being.

Wade Michael Page strode into the temple carrying a 9mm handgun and multiple magazines of ammunition and opened fire without saying a word, authorities said. When the shooting at the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin in suburban Milwaukee ended, six victims ranging in age from 39 to 84 years old lay dead. Three others were critically wounded. One of three patients fighting for their life is Oak Creek Police Officer Lt. Brian Murphy.

Page, who joined the Army in 1992 and was discharged in 1998, was described by the Southern Poverty Law Center as a "frustrated neo-Nazi" who was active in the obscure underworld of white supremacist music. In a 2010 interview, Page told a white supremacist website that he became active in white-power music in 2000, when he left his native Colorado and started the band End Apathy in 2005.

He told the website his "inspiration was based on frustration that we have the potential to accomplish so much more as individuals and a society in whole," according to the law center. He did not mention violence.

End Apathy's MySpace page said the group was based in Nashville, N.C.

Joseph Rackley of Nashville, N.C., said Monday that Page lived with his son for about six months last year in a house on Rackley's property. Wade was bald and had tattoos all over his arms, Rackley said, but he doesn't remember what they depicted. He said he wasn't aware of any ties Page had to white supremacists.

"I'm not a nosy kind of guy," Rackley said. "When he stayed with my son, I don't even know if Wade played music. But my son plays alternative music, and periodically I'd have to call them because I could hear more than I wanted to hear."

Page joined the military in Milwaukee in 1992 and was a repairman for the Hawk missile system before switching jobs to become one of the Army's psychological operations specialists assigned to a battalion at Fort Bragg, N.C.

As a psyops specialist, Page would have trained to host public meetings between locals and American forces, use leaflet campaigns in a conflict zone or use loudspeakers to communicate with enemy soldiers. 

He never deployed overseas while serving in that role, Pentagon spokesman George Wright said.

Page was demoted in June 1998 for getting drunk while on duty and going AWOL, two defense officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to release information about the gunman. 

Page also received extra duty and was fined. The defense officials said they had no other details about the incident, such as how long Page was gone or whether he turned himself in.

Online records show Page had a brief criminal history in other states, including pleading guilty to misdemeanor criminal mischief after a 1994 arrest in El Paso. He received six months' probation. Page also pleaded guilty to driving under the influence in Colorado in 1999 but never completed a sentence that included alcohol treatment, records show.

Suburban Milwaukee police had no contact with Page before Sunday's shooting, and his record gave no indication he was capable of such violence, authorities said.

The FBI was leading the investigation because the shooting was considered domestic terrorism, or an attack that originated inside the U.S. The agency said it had no reason to believe anyone other than Page was involved.

Other sources tell CBS News correspondent Bob Orr it may be more accurate to refer to "an investigation into a possible hate crime." 

Page began shooting as several dozen people prepared for Sunday services.