Posted on 10/04/2007 9:25:37 AM PDT by The_Tick_01
It boggles the mind to think of how many Homer Simpson quotes can be applied to Democrats during this election season. Objective evidence would suggest the unofficial slogan for the Hillary Clinton campaign is the Homerism; “It takes two to lie; one to lie and one to listen.” We are in uncharted waters, however, when we find President Bush intellectually aligned with the Simpson family patriarch.
When it comes to border enforcement, President Bush seems to be in lock step with Homer Simpson when the cartoon icon made the following observation; "The word unblowupable has been thrown around a lot these days”. Perhaps if he took a closer look at a disturbing incident involving a Mexican truck that happened just south of our border, he would see the spontaneous combustion of vehicles entering our country as the national security issue it really is.
On September 9th a tractor trailer collided with a pickup truck in the northern Mexican state of Coahuila. Under normal circumstances an altercation that involves a big rig trying to occupy the same space as a light pickup truck results in something that resembles the aftermath of a fist fight between Calista Flockhart and Andrea the Giant. This was not business as usual, though. In this case the traffic accident resulted in the explosion of the tractor trailer, the death of 28 people, and proof of terrorism at our southern border.
This story was a blip on the American news radar. The explosion was covered with the appropriate amount of sorrow for the victims and quickly brushed off the television screen so the time could be devoted to the latest Britney Spears meltdown and news about Kanye West’s ongoing feud with MTV and “fiddy cent”. Had most of these “journalists” actually done their job, we may be discussing border security in tones that are more mature than calling folks who insist on tighter security “protectionist bigots”.
To start off with, the truck in question was hauling a load ammonium nitrate. For those who are unfamiliar with this substance, ammonium nitrate is the explosive material that Timothy McVeigh used to blow up the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City and cement his infamy into American history. It also resulted in Mr. McVeigh having his own, federally approved timeout, and new perspective on what dogs go through when facing a syringe full of blue juice.
The truck had picked up 25 tons of ammonium nitrate from an Orica Ltd. explosives plant in Monclova and was presumably heading off to a mine in the southwestern Mexican state of Colima. Initial reports talked about how this was an everyday sort of transaction, and that there was nothing suspicious about the matter. Upon further investigation by Enrique Luna, the chief of police detectives for central Coahuila, the truck was not equipped to handle explosive materials, didn’t have the requisite permit to transport hazardous material, was lacking the necessary escort vehicles required when moving such a powerful explosive, and didn’t belong to Orica Ltd. This alone should be enough to get the conspiracy theory enthusiasts sprinting for their tin foil hats, but it gets better.
According to witness reports, the driver sprinted from the truck after the accident yelling about how he was carrying explosives. Oddly enough this exclamation was not immediately followed by a big boom, and the unidentified driver just disappeared.
Following the collision, people did what people do and gathered to view the carnage. Along with the crowd, the first responders had appeared to douse the flames and clean up the mess. It was at this point, when there was an appreciable number of people surrounding the vehicle that it exploded; killing 28 and wounding hundreds of bystanders.
Ammonium nitrate does not go off on contact like nitro glycerin or Paris Hilton. Fire alone is also unlikely to cause it to explode. According to noted chemist, Gerald L. Hurst, ammonium nitrate generally requires a detonator plus an HE booster to cause a detonation. This was confirmed by an anonymous source available to the New Media Journal who happens to be certified by both the US Air Force and FEMA in hazardous materials and WMD's.
Add these facts to the evidence that the incident was consistent with a two stage attack that is popular among many terrorist groups (create a disturbance and trigger the main attack when the first responders and gawkers are within striking distance) and we have some compelling data that hints to a terrorist attack on our southern border.
There is no evidence that this was Al Qaeda, or even that the attack was directed against the United States in any way. There are plenty of bitter little terrorist groups operating in Mexico who would look upon blowing up their fellow Mexicans with the same casual regard that guys in the Midwest approach deer hunting season. This is best evidenced by the terrorist attack in the state of Veracruz the day after the truck explosion. On September 10th a Marxist terrorist group, the EPR (Popular Revolutionary Army) proudly claimed responsibility for the bombing of a dozen natural gas pipelines. Whether this is related to the truck bombing is unclear.
There are more questions than answers regarding this incident. Did the driver flee the scene and wait for a crowd to gather before detonating the load? Who is responsible? Why wasn’t this incident given the same journalistic scrutiny as John Edwards’s hair care regiment? Perhaps the biggest question of all is why, after this incident, would anybody be willing to give Mexican trucks free access to our highways?.
I have mentioned in the past that George Bush has security blind spot when it comes to Mexico. In September both the House and Senate have had an unusual moment of bipartisan clarity (or perhaps they were feeling the heat of an 11% approval rating) and passed, by overwhelming margins, legislation that would kill a Transportation Department trial program that granted open access to up to 100 Mexican trucking companies. This puts the Congress on a collision course with President Bush who seems to be okay with the idea of Mexican trucks spontaneously combusting within our borders.
Regardless of what the truck bombing in Mexico was actually all about, I am going to risk the wrath of La Raza by saying that these people should never be granted open, unfettered access to our roads. If this ever becomes the case, not only will our highway system become a conduit for terror and drugs in the same manner that the human circulatory system moves cancer from one organ to another, but we will eventually answer the age old question of how many illegal aliens can be fit into the back of a semi.
US Constitution
Article 4, Clause 2: Protection from invasion and domestic violence
... and [The United States] shall protect each of them [the States] against Invasion; and on Application of the Legislature, or of the Executive (when the Legislature cannot be convened) against domestic Violence.
Dear Gubbamint:
Do what you should do, instead of what you want to do.
Sincerely,
The USA
This article is alarmist and inaccurate.
Ammonium nitrate is a COMPONENT of the explosive called ANFO, which is stable and requires a shock to set it off, otherwise it will just burn, like plastique.
Unless there was some diesel poured into that tanker, the explosion was by a separate and independent device. That much ANFO would likely have knocked over folks half a mile away.
Oh, and since when does John Edwards have his own regimenT devoted to his hair? He, like everyone else has a regimen of morning ablutions, but I doubt the army has devoted any personnel to looking after Mr. Edwards’ blessed tresses.
Har!!! Good one.
According to websters Regiment = to organize rigidly especially for the sake of regulation or control
ping
AN is an explosive by itself. Adding fuel oil makes it better but is not NEEDED. However, I do believe you are correct (as was the author): a trigger is needed to set it off... which was the point of his article.
I don't think that's correct. In fact, it's flat out wrong.
The Texas City explosion of 1947 resulted from a fire onboard a ship that caused ammonium nitrate fertilizer to explode.
So file this crapheaded article under "Bullsh!t"
Do a few Google queries on this to find out for sure and let us know how it goes.
The trigger in 1947 MAY have been as simple as fire contacting powder in the air, not unlike a grain elevator explosion. However, AN is, by itself a stable substance. Otherwise it would hardly be used as a fertilizer as well as an explosive. But since you made the claim otherwise, perhaps a cite would be in order.
Sheesh. Are you really that lazy? OK, here is the Google search on Texas City Disaster. At the Handbook of Texas Online site, we find the following:
TEXAS CITY DISASTER. One of the worst disasters in Texas history occurred on April 16, 1947, when the ship SS Grandcamp exploded at 9:12 A.M. at the docks in Texas City. The French-owned vessel, carrying explosive ammonium nitrate produced during wartime for explosives and later recycled as fertilizer, caught fire early in the morning, and while attempts were being made to extinguish the fire, the ship exploded.
That search took 10 seconds -- mostly choosing which site to open.
Now, you may wonder about the mechanism of such explosions. Another (5 second) search revealed the following from the
Heat, fire and combustion hazardsAmmonium nitrate does not burn. However, it will support and increase the rate of combustion in the presence of flammable or combustible materials even in the absence of oxygen.
When heated it will melt, decompose and release toxic gases including nitrogen oxides (NOx) and ammonia gas (NH3). When heated excessively (e.g. as in a fire) it can cause an explosion in an enclosed space and closed containers or vessels may rupture violently.
Just to finish the point: the ammonium nitrate in this particular case was confined to a burning trailer. Perfect conditions for an explosion.
It took me about 20 times longer to respond to you, than it did to find the basic information corroborating my claim. The author, apparently, couldn't be bothered to do basic research. And apparently neither could you.
Some folks are such dullards. Don’t you agree?
I thought it would be fun to set someone up to start querying on particulars of ammonium nitrate and explosions.
Thanks for participating.
Huh ... am I correct in perceiving your response as being pissy because I was correct?
No. You did just fine. Expected nothing less.
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