As I write this, the drama is still unfolding… but it has been a crazy night in Boston.

In a nutshell: Yesterday at 5;15 pm, the FBI released photos of 2 men, believed to be responsible for the Boston Marathon bombing.  Last night, these two men — who we now know to be brothers — robbed a 7-11 near MIT in Cambridge, and shot and killed an MIT police officer.  They then hijacked a car, and drove it to Watertown (also a Boston suburb), where they let the driver go.  The police caught up with them, there was an intense shootout involving grrenades, and one of the two men was killed (it was unclear whether he was shot, or whether he detonated a bomb that was strapped to him, or whether he was run over — all of which could be true). 

There is now an intense manhunt for the remaining brother.

His name is Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, age 19.  Both he and his (now dead) brother were born in Russia, and are permanent residents of the United States, having moved here in 2001 or 2002 (when Dzhokhar would have been 9 or 10).  Friends from high school say he was nice, friendly and funny — not at all the type to engage in these bomnbings.

The motive for the bombing is still unknown.

Meanwhile, Boston is locked down in a historical way.  ALL the colleges are closed.  ALL the schools are closed.  Businsesses are closed.  No public transit.  No cab rides.  In the Watertown/Cambridge area, there is a police and military presence that can only be seen to be described.  SWAT teams are going house-to-house.

Both the national and local news are following every little piece of information, but it is hard to get solid information.  But the focus seems to be on Watertown.

UPDATE – 11:00 a.m.: The older (now dead) brother's Russian Facebook page showed an interest in Islam.  The younger still-at-large brother, some speculate, may not have been so enamored of Islam so much as he may have been enamored of his older brother.