Al-Qaeda had planned attacks on US on Feb 12: Report

The US has credible intelligence that al Qaeda had an attack or multiple attacks set to begin at some point last week and that members of the Congress could have been the terrorist outfit's likely target, a media report said today.

Counter-terrorism officials were today quoted as saying that they had received a phone tip that members of the United States Congress could have beene targets of assassination attempts by Islamic fundamentalists.

Intelligence reports gathered from human and electronic sources around the world suggested what intelligence officials had suspected for weeks- al Qaeda operatives "Are in the execution phase of some of their operations," a senior US offficial was quoted by 'Time' magazine as saying.

Officials said the intelligence specifically mentioned that the likely targets were New York City and Washington on February 12.

Even though the feared attacks failed to materialise, the anxieties did not subside and inside the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) fears of a devastating attack are as high as they had been in months, particularly because of the possibility that "other tools" or biological and chemical weapons could be used, it said.

Telephone calls and e-mails exchanged between several suspected terrorists and intercepted by the US and foreign intelligence agencies pointed to a plot inside the US using nerve gas, poisons or radiological devices.

"It was'nt just chatter," said Republican Senator Pat Roberts, chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee. "It was a pattern." (more)

A senior Administration official tells the magazine that domestic law-enforcement agencies are investigating a report that Islamic fundamentalists in this country are trying to acquire parts to build an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) abroad-the kind of machine that terrorism experts believe could be deployed to spray chemical agents over populated areas.

The fear is that a UAV assembled overseas could be used against U.S. Assets there, Time says.

Counter-terrorism officials were today quoted as saying that they had received a phone tip that members of the United States Congress could have been targets of assassination attempts by Islamic fundamentalists.

Officials said the intelligence specifically mentioned that the likely targets were New York City and Washington on February 12.

"It wasn't just chatter," said Republican Senator Pat Roberts, chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee. "It was a pattern."

The fear is that a UAV assembled overseas could be used against U.S. Assets there, Time says.

At a closed-door briefing Thursday a group of Senators grilled Secretary of Homeland Security Tom Ridge about whether they should clear their families out of the capital in anticipation of an attack.

Ridge counseled them against it, but when pressed by the Senators for the odds of an attack on U.S. Targets at home or abroad in the next several weeks, Ridge, according to one source familiar with the meeting, put the probability at "50 per cent or greater."

In private, Time says White House officials sounded almost resigned to the inevitability of catastrophe. "All we can do," Vice President Dick Cheney told a gathering of top administration officials to discuss bioterrorism, "is ask ourselves, Have we done everything we can to prevent an attack?.."

The U.S. Still doesn't have a "credible and comprehensive system" in place to cope with such attacks, the magazine said.

Faith? Blind in one hand, and clear in the other. I hope the clear hand treats us well...God.

As for free trade, the link blow tells me I have something in my corner...

The world's largest retailer, with a staggering average of $670 million in sales per day last year... This money sure would be nice here at home. And this is just one store chain...

See ya around...

SR, think about something. This winter, despite "slow sales" (it really wasn't bad) on-line sales went up 240%. And most people I talk to in the industry say that they don't BEGIN to capture all the on-line retail that goes on. Likely it is double that. We are talking American companies like Lands End, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, 1800-Flowers, and so on.

Don't buy the notion that the jobs are "going away" because of NAFTA. Not herein the southern Ohio valley, which has been a manufacturing spot for years.

On the surface, things are well. most people are working, though construction, my occupation, is a little slow. I am not talking about Today with Nafta and Gatt. I'm talking about tomorrow. In construction, it is normal to be 1 of 4 or 5, maybe 6 or 7 other bids. Of late, one is 1 out of 16 or 17 bids, including out of state companies. This tells me we are not in the shape some say we are.

I'll make you a deal. I will be optimistic on what you say. But, daily I shop for tools, fasteners, building products etc.. Every day I see "Made somewhere else". Now, what will come first in your opinion? These thrid world country's populations making enough to buy our domestice products, or the thrid world country's technology advances to the point where they can make and meet their own populations needs?

On a second note...

Retail sales on the net, or off, is a fine job. The company makes 5 to 25 percent, they have a few employees, and a lot of people need to buy things so there is a definate job security. What about the floks who hold the other side of the scale? It is my understanding that manufacturing is what made this country. Don't we need the other end of the spectrum to be complete? To be self sufficient? Or because we are now a global community, self sufficient is not a necessity?

Yeah....can't you see it's a massive government conspiracy...or have they gotten to you too?

I'll take your mockery as a sign that you don't have much faith in the evidence either. No conspiracy necessary, because the government couldn't act with that much coordination. It is simple human frailty and incompetence behind these alerts, that's all. Try to trace these threats back to a source and they will always disappear like mist. Someone said that he said that an informer said that New York was in trouble....oh yeah, and Washington too...sometime....someplace...what a bunch a crap. In the meantime the public gets jerked around while Tom Ridge covers his ass.

It is our patriotic duty to completely ignore these alerts and the bureaucrat who put them out. Don't change a single thing in your routine because if you do, not only do the terrorists win, but stupid bureaurcrats win too.

And I'm sure you think the aliens being held at Hangar 18 are supplying our advanced technology, too.

Huh? What the hell are you talking about?

I've gone back and reread my posting and I can't see how you could come to the conclusion that I would believe in any nonsensical conspiracy.

I'm suggesting that an accumulation of individual incompetence all the way from Tom Ridge to the FBI, to the lcoal police, to story editors at AP and Reuters, to the editor of your local newspaper, combine to make these alerts useless and pointless, even destructive. Each person the chain has to embellish the story only a little until it turns into "definitly, and attack on Feb 12th...Definitly in New York...And Washington...and better get duct tape."

So how to do you get a conspiracy out of that? Maybe you can tell me how a rational person should respond to an "Orange Alert" that is based on BS and wishful thinking on the part of Johnny G Men? I say ignore it.

Don't buy the notion that the jobs are "going away" because of NAFTA. Not herein the southern Ohio valley, which has been a manufacturing spot for years.

Well that's encouraging to hear that you are seeing some positive outcomes from NAFTA.

Here in silicon valley the larger question of globalization has put a scare into those of us that work writing software. The threat (perhaps 'possibility' would be a better word) of our software jobs moving overseas has become a lot more concrete in the last couple of years. No big surprise there, but I didn't think it would happen so soon. I naively thought my field might be immune to such migration of jobs. But we've been hiring very compentent indian engineers for years and there are a lot more of them in ....India! And they work a lot cheaper there too. My company already has an office in Bangalore and they are moving more projects there every year.

There was no, repeat, no report ever that I am aware of prior to last week of AQ having any kind of UAVs.

Right, but LS, think about how that report of UAV's came about. It likely came out of some speculative report on a "possibility" that filtered its way through the adminstration. Maybe the report said "al queda may try to obtain information on UAVs".

Someone else quotes from the report in their report and turns it into "al queda tried to obtain UAVs". Eventually that is fed back as confirmation of the original report!

My point is al queda may be trying to use UAV technology, but it is purely speculation, and pretty unlikely too. Noone has found such a thing, noone has been attacked with one, it is all BS. They've got everybody jumping at shadows. Why the hell would AQ care about remotely piloted vehicles when they have proven they are perfectly willing to sacrifice very live pilots for the sake of a mission.

Yes, I am aware that contrary to popular belief, India has a growing and thriving software sector. Still, I guess I just have faith. I have faith that Americans can outproduce anyone, anytime, anywhere. Now WHAT we choose to produce is a matter of comparative advantage, and I see no reason for us to make textiles when we can make tech, or bananas when we can make fiber-optics.

Certainly, though, you know that your sector is hit for reasons that have nothing to do with foreign competition and everything to do with a) regulation that is holding up "last mile" wiring; b) venture capital shortages caused by 9/11; the TEMPORARY dot.com bust; and 3) basic uncertainty related to world politics. I think your sector will revive, strongly.

Incompetence, I can agree with. I read into your post a Waco/OK City scenario. My mistake, and I apologize. Let me clarify again. I don't have faith in government. I have faith in God to guide us to put the right people IN government---remember, God used all sorts of evil/unholy people to protect Israel, so certainly He can use a Godly man like Bush and some of the others in his administration.

But perhaps incompetence is too nasty a term. We are dealing with intel challenges unseen since the Soviet era, but much different. So I do cut people a break as they get it together. Do I like the color coded alerts? No, but you saw what happened by the Dems when we didn't have any alerts. Some things must be done for political cover.

It is one of the myths of the 1990s that we lost manufacturing. In fact, there is an excellent article, in the latest American Enterprise, I think, on how manufacturing ROSE as a % of US GNP in the 1990s. The example you give is a good one. It is American software designers who are developing and producing the key software that allows these on-line businesses to thrive (micro-businesses, or those with fewer than 5 employees, is the fastest-growing sector of the economy!)

Now, are we "at risk" because we do not actually produce the plastic CD or its "jewel box?" I think not.

I agree you will see many of these tools "made somewhere else." And guess who designs and makes the software and the tool machines that are sold to the "somewhere else" that makes them?

I know a local small machine guy. His business was off for some time, but is picking up again.

But clarify for me your terminology ("1 of 4," "1 of 17.") What does that mean?

You raised another good point----why exactly WON'T the "third world's technology" advance to meet its "own population's needs?" You know the answer: because they might adopt SOME of our technology, but most of them refuse to embrace our Judeo-Christian ethic, our private property rights, and our sanctity of contracts that makes everything else possible.

It may not seem relevant to our discussion, but read Victor Hanson's "Carnage and Culture" about wars between the west and non-west. It is illuminating how in war, these countries can use our weapons, but still not be successful because they don't have our WAYS.

Ha! If you were here, and we were drinking a few beers over this conversation, I'd get the next round...

If you checked my profile, you'da seen I am a programmer wanna be. I went to school for programming, ten month excellerated course, full time. The graduating class one month before, 90% of the class was hired before they graduated. Between that date and my class' grad, the bottom fell out ot the IT industry. I gave up on getting in a year ago. I wanted to get off my knees(Union Tile Layer), and behind a desk. I tried hard to get a job in the field. I ended up scraping the money together to pay my back dues and resumed.(BTW, I am a fish out of water with the unions).

So, tis` a sore spot with me babe... lol...

Catch the other two in the morning...

Ha! If you were here, and we were drinking a few beers over this conversation, I'd get the next round...

So, tis` a sore spot with me babe... lol...

Catch the other two in the morning...

Well, I am impressed. I always like to see people "movin' on up." Funny, my brother-in-law is almost the exact opposite: a college grad who never was at home in a white-collar world and is returning to . . . TRADE SCHOOL to work on robots!

I don't drink, at all, but I'd sure quaff a few root beers with ya.

This is what I am trying to get out of...

More...

Just finished this one up, and movin on to the next...

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