After a 'Dirty Bomb' Explodes he age of terrorism is forcing all of us to learn a whole new vocabulary that describes potential threats and their consequences, if for no other reason than to calibrate how terrified we should be as each new menace emerges. The latest worry came yesterday with the revelation by Attorney General John Ashcroft that an American terrorist associated with Al Qaeda has been planning to explode a radiation-laced "dirty bomb" in the United States. We can fervently hope that no such weapon is ever exploded here. But should one ever be detonated, it is important...
