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2004-05-22 Home Front: WoT
Al Qaeda’s Next Strike
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Posted by tipper 2004-05-22 2:49:05 AM|| || Front Page|| [11140 views since 2007-05-07]  Top

#1 Austin?
Keep your eyes open Mucki.
Posted by Shipman 2004-05-22 6:39:11 AM||   2004-05-22 6:39:11 AM|| Front Page Top

#2 3 questions for the knowledgeable and/or pundits (that's meant as a compliment):
- Does anyone has the slightest idea of how the USA would/should respond to a non-conventionnal attack such as a dirty bomb?
- In case of an attack on Us soil, especially if major or non-conventionnal, how would that affect US political life? (ie would that be the deathblow to GWB, would that force Kerry to change his approcach on WOT, etc, etc...?)
- How would the international community (Tm) react to such an attack, especially EU, given the level of anti-americanism going on here? (And subsidiary question : would you care?) Just to indicate the level on hatred & resentment toward the US in genral and GWB in particular, it suffices to say that Moore's "Farenheit 911" is one of the favorites for la palme d'or at the Cannes film festival.
Posted by Anonymous4134 2004-05-22 7:47:53 AM||   2004-05-22 7:47:53 AM|| Front Page Top

#3 And has in fact won one.
Posted by Evert V. in NL  2004-05-22 7:51:34 AM|| [http://srv.fotopages.com/?o=935389&t=2]  2004-05-22 7:51:34 AM|| Front Page Top

#4 The lefties and Mike Moores of this earth would be so keen too see this happen they'd probably openly celebrate such an attack. I can see the headlines on the next days copy of Al Gaurdian now 'George Bush Caused this', watch them revell over the death totaliser.Its gonna be another one of those excuses too set up commisions and inquirys and all sorts of other crap after too to try and pin the blame on someone while all the time the media ignore those who actually carried out the attack,we will also of course see Arab media personalitys trying to explain to us westerners that we have to alter our ways if we want to stop this sort of thing happening again. Esentially its all our fault. :(
Posted by Shep UK 2004-05-22 7:59:39 AM||   2004-05-22 7:59:39 AM|| Front Page Top

#5 1) Off comes the gloves, here and in Iraq and elsewhere.

2) No idea.

3) As they always have -- The USA had it coming since it reacted to the first attack militarily and 'unilaterally.' No.
Posted by badanov  2004-05-22 8:03:17 AM|| [http://www.rkka.org]  2004-05-22 8:03:17 AM|| Front Page Top

#6 Not to suggest there's no risk of such an attack, but . . . has Stratfor ever been right about anything since 9/11?
Posted by Mike  2004-05-22 8:18:34 AM||   2004-05-22 8:18:34 AM|| Front Page Top

#7 1) I agree, the gloves are off at that point but the source of the material used in the attack would dictate the available responses. For example, if the source were a Russian criminal enterprise you might well see increased cooperation between the US and Russia as political showmanship is pushed to the back burner in favor of a more direct reseponse to Islamistfascist terrorism. On the other hand, if the source were Iranian you might well see a non-conventional response against portions of that nation's nuclear program. The options are simply too wide and varied to account for completely here.

2) We're split almost evenly as a nation right now. Any attack on US soil will push political dialogue and the electorate to the right. The Democrats lost the majority's confidence on national defense during the Viet Nam era and have never recovered. A hypothetical large pre-election attack puts Bush back in the White House in a landslide.

3) I don't care what the international community's opinion is today and I won't care in the future. The goal of the Islamofascists is the destruction of western civilization. They began the war, they are continuing the war, and they will escalate the war until either we, or they, perish. The international community seeks to maintain an unacceptable status quo in which the borders of nation states that sponsor ever-more-violent Islamofascist terrorism are sacrosanct, thus their opinion is irrelevant. If the international community wishes to become relevant to US opinion again, they need to stop mouthing platitudes and proceed with action against nation states that sponsor Islamoascist terrorism.
Posted by AzCat 2004-05-22 9:05:56 AM||   2004-05-22 9:05:56 AM|| Front Page Top

#8 AzCat saved me the trouble of writing out my thoughts.

One prediction: If/when there is another attack within the U.S., CAIR and the Arab community both here and abroad will immediately begin whining about their fears of retribution and their loss of freedom before the dust even settles AND before we even confirm who did it.
Posted by Barbara Skolaut  2004-05-22 10:20:24 AM||   2004-05-22 10:20:24 AM|| Front Page Top

#9  has Stratfor ever been right about anything since 9/11?

Yes. They correctly assessed idiot market in the US.
Posted by Shipman 2004-05-22 10:21:38 AM||   2004-05-22 10:21:38 AM|| Front Page Top

#10 Austin? Now that would be weird!
Posted by Jack is Back!  2004-05-22 10:31:19 AM||   2004-05-22 10:31:19 AM|| Front Page Top

#11 I hate to say this but maybe an attack is what is going to save the country. America has a very large Muslim-American fifth (americans by birth and naturalized ones) column that, if it is not taken care of soon, it will destroy the country from within. Here in Saudi Arabia, we have hundreds of muslims who carry american passports who will like nothing better than to see the US destroyed, even if it means their own destruction. These people stupidity is bottomless!
Posted by Anonymous4617 2004-05-22 12:25:06 PM||   2004-05-22 12:25:06 PM|| Front Page Top

#12 In the case of a dirty bomb, it's possible not many people would die, depending on the size of the conventional explosive used, you would just have lots of people evacuating the affected area. The initial shock wouldn't be as great as 9/11, and the realization of what had happened would only set in slowly as people realized that no one was going to be allowed back to the evacuated area, as happened in Chernobyl area. It is unlikely that anyone other than Al Qaeda or its affiliates would do something like this, and we are already pursuing those folks at a high tempo, so I am not sure what more could be done by way of retaliation. There would probably be increased pressure on the Prez to step up the tempo in the WoT. I think it would affect Kerry's campaign negatively more than Bush's. Nothing would change in the Europeans' generally negative view of us. I was in Europe shortly after 9/11, and heard lots of whining about Bush even then, long before the Iraq war. The European attitude is a longstanding psychosis, going back decades, as I observed first hand over there in the early 60's.
Posted by virginian 2004-05-22 12:27:47 PM||   2004-05-22 12:27:47 PM|| Front Page Top

#13 If the Oleolympics gets seriously attacked this summer, and the EU does not hit the problem head on, then Madrid-sytle capitulation will accellerate and Europe is lost. It will be an interesting summer and fall. The civilized world better watch its collective six.
Posted by Alaska Paul 2004-05-22 1:34:59 PM||   2004-05-22 1:34:59 PM|| Front Page Top

#14 One measley bomb at a chemical plant ain't shit. There was a huge explosion down there a few months ago & nobody blinked an eye.
Posted by Anonymous4972 2004-05-22 1:49:47 PM||   2004-05-22 1:49:47 PM|| Front Page Top

#15 And p.s., no matter what happens or where, it'll be George's fault. The Greeks will blame him if the Olympics get bombed.
Posted by Anonymous4972 2004-05-22 1:51:27 PM||   2004-05-22 1:51:27 PM|| Front Page Top

#16 My gut instinct is that if Al Queda could have attacked the US they would have long ago. They've made big noises about attacks and then nothing happens. I think what they have managed to do is determine how to up the chatter levels and lay false clues to spread terror where they cannot.
Posted by ruprecht 2004-05-22 3:05:41 PM|| [http://politicaljunky.blogspot.com]  2004-05-22 3:05:41 PM|| Front Page Top

#17 - Does anyone has the slightest idea of how the USA would/should respond to a non-conventionnal attack such as a dirty bomb?
The US would attack to a non-conventional attack the same as we would to a conventional attack. We wouldn't go nuclear but we would see a sudden stop to the harrassment of the President as he tries to fight the war. You might see war bonds appearing to help pay for the war and you might see some serious pressure applied by the American street upon Bush to do something about Saudis, and immigration, and oil in general. I would also expect formal declarations of war against Syria and Iran.
- In case of an attack on Us soil, especially if major or non-conventionnal, how would that affect US political life? (ie would that be the deathblow to GWB, would that force Kerry to change his approcach on WOT, etc, etc...?)
GWB would win in a landslide after an attack on US soil and most blame would be placed on those that have tried to hamper the war effort in one way or another.
- How would the international community (Tm) react to such an attack, especially EU, given the level of anti-americanism going on here? (And subsidiary question : would you care?) Just to indicate the level on hatred & resentment toward the US in genral and GWB in particular, it suffices to say that Moore's "Farenheit 911" is one of the favorites for la palme d'or at the Cannes film festival.
Those in charge of Europe have helped America's war on terror from an intel and police point of view, that would continue. Europe wouldn't help us militarily but they would help us politically in the UN, and by sanctions on anyone that was found to be supporting whomever planned the attack which is really all we ask. They may help out in Iraq with peacekeepers if things are quiet there by then.
Posted by ruprecht 2004-05-22 3:13:31 PM|| [http://politicaljunky.blogspot.com]  2004-05-22 3:13:31 PM|| Front Page Top

#18 [Off-topic or abusive comments deleted]
Posted by Victory Now Please TROLL 2004-05-22 3:27:19 PM||   2004-05-22 3:27:19 PM|| Front Page Top

#19 If they really want to cause serious trouble, the attack will come on West Coast harbors. You can count the number of good harbors on the Pacific coast on one hand and have fingers left over. Blow up a tanker and shut down shipping in LA or the Bay for a month or two and watch the economy tank.
Posted by RWV 2004-05-22 4:11:05 PM||   2004-05-22 4:11:05 PM|| Front Page Top

#20 Off-topic or abusive comments deleted]
Posted by Victory Now Please 2004-05-22 3:27:19 PM||   2004-05-22 3:27:19 PM|| Front Page Top

16:03 M. Murcek
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