Does anyone think that another 9/11 could happen in the U.S.?

[MiltonLeBerle]

I don't see how another round of "suicide hijackings" could occur-
and it's not just the security measures, because people could still get weapons on a plane if they wanted to- a shard of heavy glass with an electrical tape "handle" could work as well as the 9-11 boxcutters, and not set off a metal detector. Or plastic explosives could be smuggled on a plane in someone's ass, instead of their shoe...
But the cockpit doors have been strengthened considerably, and the pilots will not open those doors for any reason.
And the passengers are not about to let it go down either.

There are a lot of things they could do to/with planes-
Kill a lot of passengers, and/or bring a plane down with a bomb onboard-
Bring a plane down with a shoulder-filed missile
Crash into a passenger plane with a small private plane.
Crash a small private plane packed with explosives into a building, bridge, dam, nuke plant, oil refinery, school, etc...

Another type of "terrorist attack" that seems possible to me would be a variation on the Timothy McVeigh Oklahoma bombing- where Timmy&Co. used a large truck to house their bomb, why couldn't alQueada terrorists build a huge but simple bomb in a house or apartment in a crowded urban area or high-rise? a couple of those going off would put a huge scare in the general public, and probably cause an ugly backlash against honest, law-abiding Arab-Americans.

Suicide hijackings seem to be a very unlikely scenario, IMHO.
And it seems like a silly thing for The Regime to suggest- It's bound to have a negative impact on the already struggling airline/travel industry, and in turn the economy as a whole.

[SharonAnn]

1. Yes, we haven't done many of things we need to do to prevent it.

* is too busy with tax cuts on the domestic fornt and playing with his army on the international front.

Unfortunately, playing with his army has destabilized at least two countries so that may have increased the dangers.

[MiltonLeBerle]

6. What do you feel still needs to be done...?

To prevent suicide hijackings like the ones that happened on 9/11?

Most planes now have re-inforced cockpit doors, and do you honestly think that the passengers are going to sit idly by and allow it to happen again?
Prior to 9/11, nobody had ever hijacked a plane and crashed it into a building- so the passengers and crew pretty much went along with what the hijackers said- I doubt that it would ever happen again. I know that it sure wouldn't be that way on any flight that I'm on in the future.

[Name removed]

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[MiltonLeBerle]

3. By "another 9/11", I was referring specifically to suicide hijackings-

that was what they said was the latest threat- more 9/11 type suicide hijackings.

my point is that the next "attack" will be of a different nature.

[tomp]

4. we don't even know what happened on 9/11.

without an appropriate investigation we will never know. i assume, because of my political bias, that the u.s. govt was involved. but the one thing we do know is that the official story is a lie.

as for something happening, yeah, most assuredly, you better believe something could happen. my guess would be a portable nuke or chem/bio weapon. hell, they still don't have the anthrax killers.

i expect something to happen before elections 2004.

[tomp]

7. p.s.

another scenario that hs occurred to me is that the powers that be might assassinate bush and blame it on terrorists. that would be the end of democracy. tanks would be in the streets, civil rights and elections would be suspended. dissent would be mercilessly quashed. it would be all over. perfect.

[MiltonLeBerle]

10. "That would be the end of democracy"???

How so?

As a nation, we have lived thru Presidential assassinations before, you know. In many, if not most of our lifetimes, in fact.

You make a lot of assumptions not in evidence.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

16. Israel And The U K Have Vibrant Democracies

and they have been the targets of terrorists

[supernova]

5. Yes, it could

the arguments over the Patriot Act and civil liberties not withstanding, we are still a relatively open society.

Will they try hijacking planes again? Who knows. :shrug: The point is another terroist act resulting in mass casualties is very likely.

[MiltonLeBerle]

8. suicide hijackings like those on 9/11?

How would you see another 9/11-type suicide hijacking unfolding in today's environment?

I just don't see how...I would expect a totally diffferent type of attack.

[supernova]

12. Clarifying..

Another act resulting in mass casualties is likely. What's the difference if it's planes into buildings or some other event involving a lot of people? The resulting damage is still the same. That's my point.

[MiltonLeBerle]

13. they put out a warning yesterday about more possible suicide hijackings

That's why I was specifically asking about that type of attack- I was making the point that some other type of attack is more likely.

[StandWatie]

9. Airplanes will come again..

I don't think it would be the brightest thing in the world to discuss but there are a number of ways I can think of to still fly planes into buildings and even one that could be aided by racial profiling.

[gratuitous]

11. It probably won't be suicide hijackings, I agree

But a committed group of folks who don't mind dying for their cause will always be able to inflict heavy casualties, if they so desire. There's really nothing that can be done to stop completely a properly motivated group.

With that in mind, should we be pouring our resources into defenses against the things we can think of, or the things that happened in the past? Well, surely the public awareness level is higher, and that's good. Air marshals, reinforced cockpit doors, more training for airplance crews are similarly good things to do.

But just as the opposition forces in Iraq aren't foolish enough to make a frontal attack on the incredibly well-armed coalition forces, they can make do quite well with guerilla attacks and ambushes. We as a society can likewise prepare for many contingencies, but we can't possibly prevent every attack imaginable.

So what should we do? Perhaps we should investigate ways to decrease the motivation of individuals to join fanatical groups bent on destroying us. The groups may never entirely go away, but without fresh members, they will certainly be less of a force to reckon with.

[davsand]

14. Mass casualties could happen any day.

Especially if they use suicide bombers. I remember a movie many years ago that had a plotline where terrorists planned to blow up the Super Bowl. I can't imagine that I'm the only one that saw it...

It's not that hard to imagine that some guy with a baggy shirt and a few lbs of plastique around his waist could conceivably result in a horrible loss of life and a lot of good press for a (p)Resident who is watching his polling nubmers drop.

Laura

[redwitch]

15. i think many people would be pissed at *

and I think they would be angry that he didn't take care of homeland security but instead gave tax cuts to his buddies and got us in an unwinnable war on terrorism overseas.

[MiltonLeBerle]

19. Black Sunday.

with Bruce Dern as a Goodyear Blimp pilot and part-time terrorist hobbyist. He makes a bomb that's loaded with "rifle darts", planning to attach it to the blimp and detonate it over the stadium at the Super Bowl, killing up to 80,000.
Robert Shaw has different ideas.

[shirlden]

17. I fly often

and play mind games with myself while waiting for flights. I devise ways of highjacking the plane or I should say I look for security holes that could be slipped through. Try it sometime. The whole airline security scam is a hugh block of swiss cheese. I really do have a non-violent nature and am normally not devious, but this is too easy.

In short....there is really no way to totally protect anything in our country. The "evil ones" will get us at their choosing.
We get it from both sides.....the terrorist and the repugs. I'm beginning to feel like no one likes me.
:crazy:

[Booberdawg]

18. Of course it could

Airline security is a joke

[MiltonLeBerle]

21. How would it go down?

and remember, we're talking suicide hijackings.
between reinforced cockpit doors, and a much more aware and most likely less 'obedient' load of passengers, short of having some very heavy-duty and easily accessible weaponry pre-loaded on the plane for them.
As I said, I can see lots of ways that they could possibly do things to planes, or perpetrate other types of non-plane-related terrorism...but I think that 'suicide hijacking" has been relegated to nearly impossible and extremely unlikely,

[quinnox]

20. Yes

There are many things that could happen. Terrorists attack, giant asteroid hits earth, new plague, alien invasion, the dire possibilites are endless.

[MiltonLeBerle]

22. but the attack in question is suicide hijackings in particular-

since that was what they put out the warning of sorts about yesterday.

[quinnox]

23. Yes

My answer remains the same.

[MiltonLeBerle]

24. I just don't see it happening

There are so many ways for them to "attack" the U.S., I don't see why they would try the one that has been made pretty much the most dificult.

or how.

[LiberalLibra]

25. Oh yes, it could and probably will if Bush feels his grip on the.....

.....American people slipping.