The following is an excerpt from OpinionJournal’s “Best of the Web” at WSJ written by the editor, James Taranto.

Bottom Stories of the Day

  • “Rosie O’Donnell Makes Controversial Remarks on Ottawa Shooting on ‘The View’ ”—headline, Canadian Press, Oct. 24
  • “North Korea Bans All Tourism Over Ebola Concerns”—headline, TheDiplomat .com, Oct. 23

Don’t Jump to Conclusions
“The Canadian police acknowledged on Thursday that the gunman who traumatized the capital in a deadly shooting rampage had not been identified as a security threat despite his criminal record in three cities, embrace of extremist ideas and intent to travel to Syria,” the New York Times reports from Ottawa:

The police also conceded that they did not even know that the gunman, Michael Zehaf-Bibeau, had been in the capital for nearly three weeks.

The revelations at a news conference came a day after the gunman paralyzed the heart of the capital, killing a soldier at a war memorial before he was shot dead in the halls of Parliament.

Here’s an excerpt from last night’s news roundup by Vox.com’s Dylan Matthews:

The shooter, Michael Zehaf-Bibeau, had been at a homeless shelter for about ten days before the shooting, where he “would talk about being anti-Canadian and tell others how his relatives had been fighters in Libya,” according to witnesses. [Ottawa Citizen / Peter Henderson]

Zehaf-Bibeau was planning on going to Syria at the time of his death. [ABC News / Meghan Keneally and Randy Kreider] . . .

Zehaf-Bibeau was Muslim, but we don’t know how, if at all, that influenced his actions. And jumping to conclusions is dangerous. [Vox / Amanda Taub]

We await a follow-up from Taub in which she explains why it’s a good thing the Mounties didn’t jump to conclusions.

For more “Best of the Web” click here and look for the “Best of the Web Today” link in the middle column below “Today’s Columnists.”