On the Dock, Holes in the Security Net Are Gaping

The New York Times ^ | November 7, 2001 | PETER T. KILBORN

[Travis McGee]

The Customs Service says it can inspect only 2 percent of the 600,000 cargo containers that enter seaports each a day on more than 500 ships. Of the 2 percent, many are not inspected until they reach their final destination, sometimes on the opposite coast, where they travel unguarded by rail, barge and truck.

Just fill the 40' containers up with tons and tons of ANFO, and put a GPS detonator on it. Or make 100 container bombs, put them on 50 ships, and set them to all detonate the same minute, sinking many large container ships at sea, and wrecking many container ports or railyards, depending on where the boxes were when they went off. If the intent is to wreck our trade and econoomy.....

[pcl]

Hey Mr. Terrorist, in case you have not thought about it, here is another really good way you can do a lot of damage with relatively little work. The New York Times has done most of the research for you. What are you waiting for?

[exmoor]

Speaking of GAPING, how is Mrs. Clinton ?

[patent]

More fun. Thanks for the bump.

[dennisw]

and set them to all detonate the same minute,

Al Queda likes multiple strikes done simultaneously. United States embassy bombings in Kenya and Tanzania (1997) done at the same minute. Same plan for the 911-2001 attacks.

[wienerdog.com]

I don't know that it's possible, but I've been looking for some way to hate the NYT more than I did before 9/11. Any suggestions?

[rebdov]

I don't fault anyone for giving terrorists new ideas. I believe that they have planning session where they try out every scenario they can imagine. Terror is their business. They eat and sleep terror 24/7. If annything, I think they could reveal to us plenty of methods we haven't thought about.

There are literally thousands of fiction books with terror plots as the central theme. Should we fault every author? Is Tom Clancy a traitor? Hardly. Did you ever read Keating's- The Final Jihad? Plenty of very workable terror scenarios there (even though the story line is ridiculous, the terror incidents weren't).

Terrorists so far have shown a penchant for as much fear as possible on the cheap. We just have to hope that our law enforcement is also thinking up scenarios and planning protection. In Israel, if a person sees an unattended package he calls the police who bring the bomb squad. Are we ready for that here? My son, when he was studying there, saw an unattended backpack on the sidewalk along the busiest street in Jerusalem. Despite causing a massive traffic jam, the cops didn't hesitate a minute blocking the street and all access roads, and bringing in the bomb squad. Fortunately, Israel has the system down pat, with many people trained in bomb removal with ample equipment, and can handle the situation quickly. We will have to get used to that too.

To the original point, while I hate the terrorist scumbags, I recognize that they are clever enough to conjure up every type of drama from hell with or without help from our media.

[backhoe]

Gee, if it's this bad here, just imagine how bad it is is a place like..... Panama! Wonder what is "slipping by" there?

[Jeff Head]

We haven't gotten serious yet.

I am afraid we're going to have to lose a lot more before we do ... and I pray I am wrong.

As you know, in Dragon's Fury - Breath of Fire container ships are one of the chief means that we suffer so badly at the outset of that fictional war.

Mind your knot.

[harpseal]

An even simpler means of causing massive devastation is merely put an incendiary device aboard a freighter or bulk carrier hauling amonium nitrate (even without the fuel oil) and you have a Texas City type blast. This article did not even mention the security in the Port of New York which being busier has even less effective security. As far as the security of the docks in Portland, Me. or any other Northeast Port it is non existant. There is no way that any ship in these ports can be protected from underwater attack. There is no way a USS Cole type attack could be twarted. There is no way a an auto piloted 20 footer loaded with HE could be stopped in these harbors. In short the terrorists do not even need to become martyrs to accomplish their tasks in such a scenario.

Clearly until and unless we become very serious about protecting our nation from attack we are very vulnerable.

Stay well - Stay safe - Stay armed - Yorktown

[packrat01]

Federalize port security!

SLAP!

Whew. Where am I, again?

< sarcasm >

[Travis McGee]

I hope we don't get the "big wake up call" that way.

If we had a CIA, we might find out about it in time to abort the plan.

LOL....

[Travis McGee]

The only way to protect ourselves at this point is to segregate out the pool of likely terrorists.

We'll do this after we lose a city, and our transportation is paralyzed.

Can you imagine if we had 10,000 German "students" who were actually SS officers running loose in the USA in 1942? That's where we are.

[The_Media_never_lie]

Hey Mr. Terrorist, in case you have not thought about it, here is another really good way you can do a lot of damage with relatively little work. The New York Times has done most of the research for you. What are you waiting for?

This is only the latest instance which I've wondered whose side the NY Times are on.

[Don Myers]

We are a nation at peace in our homeland and engaged in a war overseas. We do not have warlike procedures set up for our home front. There are gaping holes in our security. It will take time to plug up those gaps. It will also take a nation of people who are dedicated to the war.

[Don Myers]

It seems to me that anything can be smuggled into this country, even nukes. We may be in trouble. The enemy is dedicated to our destruction. We are not as dedicated to our survival.

[Travis McGee]

We'll probably have to lose a city before we get serious about this war.

[Don Myers]

I suspect that you are right. That might get the attention of We, the people.