I was listening to an MSNBC podcast and the reporter said:
“As much as airline security has been tightened since 9/11, this attempt to bomb a plane bound for the US demonstrates this: that determined terrorists are constantly looking for gaps to exploit.”
Clearly, this is ridiculous. This incident has shown us many things, but that is not one of them. Among the things it shows us:
1) The government is as incompetent at performing basic security as it is at providing anything else of value.
2) In light of 1), Al Qaeda and its allies are not terribly interested in launching attacks on US soil. It would not, apparently be terribly difficult to do so if they actually had much desire.
3) Considering the attacks seen overseas, Islamic militants are mostly interested in attacking soldiers in Muslim areas and civilians who are living in occupied areas.
4) It is difficult to get someone who is both competent and smart to sign up for a suicide bombing mission.
Slightly less Random Ramblings 
[…] From Robert Wicks: […]
Pingback by Pro-state Reporting As Usual « LewRockwell.com Blog — December 30, 2009 @ 8:34 am
Maybe you meant to say it is difficult to find someone who is both *willing* and competent…
Comment by Paul Gossard — December 30, 2009 @ 10:42 am
I meant that a person who is both smart and competent is unlikely to want to blow himself up. An ignorant person might well be persuaded by someone who sounds like a religious authority, and even in the case where a smart guy is willing to do something like this, he is unlikely to actually be capable of successfully doing anything, especially with passengers being attentive.
Comment by robwicks — December 30, 2009 @ 10:46 am
[…] other news, Robert Wicks has a great post (CHT Manuel Lora) on the lessons to be drawn from the Case of the Underpants […]
Pingback by Fugitive and Cloistered | Austro-Athenian Empire — January 5, 2010 @ 4:29 pm