LA Times: Al Qaeda To Attack Major Cities and Remote Areas (excerpted)

LA Times via azcentral.com ^ | 12-23-03

[My Favorite Headache]

WASHINGTON -- Al-Qaida operatives may be plotting several unrelated attacks in the United States, targeting not only major cities but also remote bulwarks of the

[singsong]

You mean like after 9/11 when a couple of Sikhs got murdered in retaliation by idiots who think that everyone who wears a turban is a Muslim?

Collateral damage is inevitable in every war. So please take your funny hats off.

[Brad’s Gramma]

THANK YOU!

[rwfromkansas]

True, but I don't see them trying to hype this up....usually they go "ho hum" when the alert is raised.

[js1138]

Next time there is a terrorist attack, there will be no chatters.

It's possible that we are being lied to about everything, but it's my understanding that hundreds of plots have been thwarted. It's pretty much true by definition that the one that gets through will be the one we don't expect.

I suspect that Iraq is phase two in the plan to explain to the Arab and Muslim nations how it is unprofitable to allow these goons to succeed. Any terrorist aircraft that gets through will be traced back to the nation of origin, and they will not be pleased with the consequenses.

[Finalapproach29er]

Nice catch. Had seen that one.

[Riverman94610]

The Hollywood crowd seems really schizo on the terror issue.On one hand their natural inclination is to make excuses for anti-American acts but,since many Hollywood moguls are of Jewish descent,they rightfully fear the rabid anti-semitism of the Jihadists.
Its like their relationships with liberals in general-they seem to advocate more taxes and government regulation UNLESS they are the ones taxed and their"art"is what is being regulated!

[semaj]

"...the Eagles claws are being warmed..."

"The metal creaks as the skins of those awesome talons of the Eagle wriggle and form into shape...

It has a familiar ring...Have you heard of the legendary tail of the Mer'cans? It was presented by someone on this board (can't remember who though). It told of the legendary story of the fierce and mighty Mer'cans, and how they rained death upon their enemies from their perchhigh above the clouds. In the future parents would use the tail of the Mer'cans to frighten disobedient children, by telling them that if they did not behave, the terrible Mer'cans would come for them.

It went something like that anyway. Anybody have a link?

[Dave S]

No it's not disgusting; it's war.

Yes it is disgusting and so are you.

[Dave S]

This is the horrific scenario I've been contemplating for quite some time. What if, God forbid, Al Queda were to explode a suitcase nuke in New York and/or D.C. How will President Bush respond

I bet a lot of Al Queda sympathesizers and low level people in Europe and the Middle East will disappear like some of the PLA leadership did following the Munic Olympics where the Mossad killed off those involved in the massacre. Unleashing our CIA and other counter terrorist folks to take out rather than monitor suspected Al Queda in friendly nations.

[oceanview]

we hit Pakistan. Pakistan is the source of all of these nuclear programs: Iran, Libya, North Korea, Iraq. The root of all of these is Pakistan.

[RightWhale]

while other pieces of intelligence cite such obscure locales as Rappahannock, a county in Virginia, and Valdez, Alaska,

Valdez is not a new target. It was of great concern following WTC911. In fact, all the terrorists in the world could converge on Alaska and we'll have a big party once and for all and be done with it.

[larlaw]

While that it would be helpful to unleash the C.I.A. on some of these sympathizers, will there not be a huge clamoring from the American public to avenge a nuke attack by responding in kind?

[singsong]

Geez, whose side are you on?br>

Um, I DO know. But occasionally someone makes a mistake. Compare to the numerous "just damn" stories. Life is life. Besides it hasn't started yet. Pray it never does.

[larlaw]

While you may be right that Pakistan may be the source of all these programs, I am worried that the genie is already out of the bottle, so to speak. Do we just hit their nuclear facilities, or hit civilian targets? The problem is that the current government is at least a nominal ally, and by hitting them with nukes we very possibly assure Musharraf's fall and replacement by a more radical Islamic government that may try to launch or disseminate their nukes to terrorists or terrorist states even more.

The bigger question regarding retaliation for a suitcase nuke in the U.S. is whether we respond in kind with nukes, and if so where do we target them???

[cpst12]

>>IF a WMD attack were to ever happen here (God forbid), the American response would be MASSIVE & COMPLETE.

Yea right...massive and complete against who? We are going to nuke some city where 99.9% of the people are innocent? I doubt it. We did it in WWII, but we were trying to get a nation to surrender. Terrorists have no nation to surrender. Nuking a civlian population would accomplish nothing.

[BlueNgold]

Al-Qaida operatives may be plotting several unrelated attacks in the United States, targeting not only major cities but also remote bulwarks of the “critical infrastructure” in an effort to cause mass casualties and major economic damage throughout the nation, U.S. officials said Monday.

Senior U.S. counter-terrorism officials said they have been unable to nail down specifics about a time or place for any potential attacks, despite a mad scramble to do so since receiving an alarming cache of corroborated intelligence beginning last Thursday and Friday.

But the officials say the intelligence they have received -- much of it from intercepted communications among known terrorist operatives overseas -- clearly refers to at least one series of coordinated, simultaneous strikes, like the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, as well as isolated plots of varying degrees of sophistication.

OK, silly me, but unrelated attacks wouldn't include simultaneous coordinated strikes. Those to me might seem, oh, maybe ... related. I guess journalism 101 wasn't that clear on basic English...

But I digress ... if it's AQ .. it related, relevant, and dangerous. And I am soooo sick of the media treating intel officials like they are the danged Keystone Cops when they 'scramble' to put together real time intel. Real time intelligence is nothing BUT a 24/7/365 scramble. These dedicated people appear to be acting as though their lives depend on this information, and that always means that OUR LIVES do....

[Dave S]

will there not be a huge clamoring from the American public to avenge a nuke attack by responding in kind?

Probably, but at least Bush will understand you have to have a good target to aim nukes.

[backtothestreets]

They are here! The initial ramp-up to this threat began prior to last weeks warning. It occurred a couple weeks back.

It's time for citizens to set aside all the conservative or liberal, democrat or republican lables and if not come to the aid of the government, COME TO THE AID OF YOUR COUNTRY!

If this attack is to happen, let it come, but let us not hold our hand in retaliation. If these terrorists take life indescriminately, let us answer their country of origin in like kind. If their country of origin will not address their own citizens plotting to take the lives of innocent civilians, let those countries feel our rath so they too can feel our pain.

[cmsgop]

bttt