Oklahoma City

At 9:02 a.m. on April 19, 1995, a van packed with explosives detonated in front of the Murrah Federal building in Oklahoma City, shearing off the front of the structure and killing 168 people, including 19 children in a daycare facility in what remains the worst homegrown domestic terror attack on record. Directed by Barak Goodman, this PBS-aired American Experience documentary serves up a graphic cautionary tale of how hate can quickly escalate into tragedy. The story begins in the 1980s, with an anti-Semitic white separatist militia known as "the Order," who financed their activities—including the killing of a controversial liberal radio talk show host—with a series of bank robberies. After the leaders were killed or captured, a sympathizer named Randy Weaver found himself besieged at Ruby Ridge, ID, which resulted in the deaths of Weaver's wife and son. Shortly after, in 1992, David Koresh and his Branch Davidian cult faced off with agents of the federal bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms in Waco, TX, in a botched raid that left dead four agents and several Davidians. Watching from a distance at Waco was Timothy McVeigh, a Gulf War veteran who left the army with no job prospects, a passion for guns and gun rights, and a growing obsession that the federal government was the enemy. Although not a militia member, McVeigh fed his resentments by reading William Luther Pierce's 1978 novel The Turner Diaries, centering on a right-wing bomb plot against FBI headquarters. After the bloody conclusion of the Waco siege on April 19, 1993, McVeigh set his plan into action, slowly acquiring bomb-making materials, converting automatic weapons, and casing possible attack sites. Viewing this as an act of self-defense, McVeigh visited gun shows, bought into anti-government conspiracy theories, and hoped to achieve a massive casualty body count as revenge for Waco. The documentary interviews survivors, first responders, and government officials, while McVeigh (who was executed in 2001) is heard in recordings explaining his plan, and expressing no remorse for the innocent lives taken. Highly recommended. Aud: H, C, P. (S. Rees)