|
|
| Readers Journal weblog/wEssays | home | |
|
The Fort Dix Terror Plot (Harun I., May 11, 2007) Editors note: As I know Harun is a veteran who served many years in the U.S. Armed Forces, I asked him to briefly describe his military service so readers would know that he is not the "armchair warrior" type who masters a few acronyms but who never served or trained. Here is his description of his service to the nation: "I spent 12 years in ballistic missile submarines and 5 years security and counter-terrorism. I have trained extensively in M.O.U.T. (Military Operations On Urban Terrain), and Close Quarter Battle (CQB)." In other words, he is the real deal, and we are fortunate to have his commentary on a story which has quickly disappeared from the mainstream media. 6 Fort Dix terror suspects due in court Cockroach theory anyone? Luckily these guys were rank amateurs and had no clue about OPSEC let alone how to run an operation like this. But even an idiot that is willing to die for a cause can be very dangerous. Now that most US bases are guarded by civilians with little to no training in light infantry tactics or M.O.U.T. , and since weapons and ammunition are kept in the armory and have to be issued, these morons could have caused terrible losses. Even if they killed one person they would have succeeded in throwing the nation into a panic. This debunks the theory that if we don't fight them over there we will fight them here. "They" are already here and waiting to strike; that is the way of terror. If anyone thinks that there are easy answers to the domestic terrorism riddle they had better look first at the Israelis and the Brits (London bombings and IRA). There are many more instances to study but these drive home the point that a determined, amorphous enemy on your home turf can make you miserable for a very long time. The unwillingness to secure our southern borders is leaving us vulnerable to infiltration of small, highly trained terrorist special ops groups (cells). When they figure out that we can’t stop the flow of drugs and use those tactics to smuggle weapons and explosives is when we will pay a very dear price due to an attack that “nobody could have imagined.” Everything goes back to first decisions. 11 years before 9/11 the Israelis briefed congress on how to prevent hijackings of the type we saw on that infamous day. The airlines baulked at the cost and congress rolled over. Close to 3000 people died on 9/11 and we are embroiled in a war on two fronts, both going badly and with no end in sight, all related to an attack enabled by the successful exploitation of flawed security procedures of which congress and the airlines were aware for more than a decade. Yet our borders remain porous due to the need for cheap labor (once again money is trumping the safety of citizens). This is and is not about illegal immigration. Most illegal immigrants want what we all want for ourselves and our families. But it is Pareto’s 4% exploiting our failed policies that we have to worry about because they will cause the greatest harm. There is also the home grown threat. I reiterate there are no easy answers. The ongoing low intensity conflict against radical Islamic extremists is, by it very nature, a conflict without borders. Hopefully base commanders will take this gift of a lesson to heart and always have a fast reaction force on hand. These guys chose a hard target and had they pulled it off (successfully attacked an Army base) it would have sent shockwaves of fear and anxiety throughout our society and would have emboldened others as well as made a mockery of us internationally. Smart terrorists will choose soft targets (malls, night clubs, Starbucks, Barnes and Noble, movie theatres, etc...), and there are plenty of smart radical Islamic terrorists. For more on a wide array of other topics, please visit the oftwominds.com weblog. 
HTML, format and art copyright © 2007 Charles Hugh Smith, copyright to text and all other content in the above work is held by the author of the essay as of the publication date listed above. All rights reserved in all media. The views of the contributor authors are their own, and do not reflect the views of Charles Hugh Smith. All errors and errors of omission in the above essay are the sole responsibility of the essay's author. The writer(s) would be honored if you linked this Readers Journal essay to your site, or printed a copy for your own use.
|
||
| Readers Journal weblog/wEssays | home |