An interesting analysis of the terrorism threat from a friend I respect for the quality of his thinking:
"With all the media attention on the supposed flood of terrorists pouring
across our borders, and now with the cancellation of the Seattle New Year
celebration, one almost has to believe that the terrorists have to strike
significantly somewhere, if only to retain credibility and uphold the
mighty reputation the media has so relentlessly built up.
I, for one, would stay away from Times Square and Las Vegas. The "missing
man" from Port Angeles, we now learn, purchased air passage to LV 3 days
after the arrest of his partner. And Times Square is set for 2M
revellers. Can't think of any targets with higher visibility. (Washington,
D.C. is out -- too many folks would just applaud.) And I don't think any
lawyers will be in the Square -- too busy preparing class action briefs
in case anything does happen.
We are also being told about the strange, holocaustic plan in Sacramento
that would have immolated a 40 sq. mi. area when militia exploded a
propane facility. Informants exposed this one, and nearly non-existent
site security was rapidly upgraded. But I recognize the type -- years ago
I used to run into these over-age adolescents who had read too many comic
books. But it looks like a good portion of Placer County has buried
shipping containers and stocked them with enough food and ammo to outlast
the immediate chaos the propane blow would, in their minds, unleash.
Then, of course, they emerge as victorious leaders by popular acclaim and
reshape America to their own image. It is just all so crystal clear to
these kooks. Golly, some folks just shouldn't watch Terminator flicks...
But it all makes me wonder: Have the terrorists accomplished their
mission without a single actual Y2K event? Have they sacrificed a load of
nitro and one or two soldiers (to cushy jail cells with the full legal
protection of the US justice system) and just won the war? Isn't
everthing we now fear just a possibility, not a probability? Has the
instant dissemination of information created a greater anxiety than bombs
ever could? That, to me, is the goal of terrorism -- provide a continuing
atmosphere of fear and disruption. Perhaps virtual terrorism has
triumphed." |
