Wolf cry noted (not OUR wolf)

[Undertoad]

US News: Suspicions about a new terrorist attack have U.S. spies scrambling

The chatter was persistent--and alarming. In the weeks after the deadly March bombings of four commuter trains in Madrid by al Qaeda operatives, the supersecret U.S. surveillance network, Echelon, intercepted a number of messages from suspected terrorists suggesting planning for a massive, multipronged assault on the United States. When? Between this summer's political conventions and October, one month before the presidential election. The intelligence appeared to confirm information obtained from some seized al Qaeda computers and from several human sources, government officials say. Officials at the CIA and the National Security Agency, which runs the Echelon program, believe the information is credible but worry that the human sources were on the periphery of the now widely dispersed al Qaeda network. Nevertheless, the information pointed to two, perhaps three, targets, the sources say: New York, Washington, and Las Vegas. The objective of the suspected attack, the officials continued, would be not only to cause mass casualties and devastation of U.S. infrastructure but to roil the presidential race. The Madrid bombings, which killed 191 people and wounded 1,800, also toppled the Spanish government and triggered the withdrawal of Spanish troops from Iraq. "Since Spain," says a Bush administration official, "al Qaeda has had the feeling of 'We can do this. We can affect an election.' "

[Beestie]

Funny how the threat of an attack has the same effect as the attack itself - just diluted.

Every time I read a story like that, it reminds me not to take the subway and to only go to the Mall on off hours and to update the survival kits in the cars.

And since Al Queda basically determined the outcome of the elections in Spain, I'm wondering which candidate they would like to see in the White House next January and what means they will use to accomplish their goal. Seems if they were to lay low and "let the US win" for a while then people would feel safer which, I think, would tip the scales in Kerry's favor. If they attack us on our own soil again (before the election), Bush wins easily. I think Al Queda's Spain strategy would backfire in the US but wonder if they won't try it anyway.

[Happy Monkey]

Since November 2002, Al Qaida has known they can effect an election. Like Spain, the real question is how the government reacts to Al Qaida.

[Kitsune]

Funny how the threat of an attack has the same effect as the attack itself - just diluted.

This would be why I don't listen to the alerts, anymore. Useless, non-specific alerts do nothing more than disrupt normal, daily life -- just like terrorism. I also won't hesistate for a moment to say that I think there is a strong possibility that the government issues these alerts to keep the public scared.

Every time I read a story like that, it reminds me not to take the subway and to only go to the Mall on off hours and to update the survival kits in the cars.

Remember the alert about driving over bridges? Malls over the halloween holiday? Stolen UPS uniforms? Stolen emergency vehicles used as bombs? Suicide bombers on busses? I'm curious to know what precautions you took during those alerts.

Alerting the public doesn't do one ounce of good other than to cover the fed's ass when something does happen. These alerts do absolutely nothing for public safety.

he information pointed to two, perhaps three, targets, the sources say: New York, Washington, and Las Vegas.

Planned on going to Vegas next month, still going to Vegas next month. And I'm going to have a kick-ass time out there, too.

[tw]

The overwhelming majority in Spain opposed their governments participation in Iraq. But International issues rarely contribute to how voters vote. But when an international issue created a domestic one - Madrid train bombing that resulted in a blundered attempted government coverup - then Spanish public suddenly discovered good reason to eliminate the current administration.

Bombing alone was not so much an influence. The government tried to get Basque separatists blamed for the attack when basic evidence clearly pointed to an Islamic terrorist organization. A government blunder that put the final straw on an angry public's back. Within 48 hours, obvious the Madrid train attack was Islamic terrorists. But the administration still tried to claim that Basque terrrorist *might* have done it. That lie was too much even for the man in the street who never reads news. Primary blame should mostly be applied to a government that screwed themselves out of office. They so feared a public backlash against the government for that bombing, that they instead created a public backlash by lying.

[Kitsune]

"Since Spain," says a Bush administration official, "al Qaeda has had the feeling of 'We can do this. We can affect an election.' "

So, what is Bush implying with this line? That Al Qaeda wants to terrorize the US so that people will vote for Kerry?

[Clodfobble]

That's what I understood him to say, yes.

[Kitsune]

That's what I understood him to say, yes.

Nice. I love the underlying message in this terror alert: "A vote for Kerry means you are giving into the terrorists' demands!"

"It's not just the official [terrorist] websites but also the chat rooms and Web forums," says Gabriel Weimann, a scholar in residence at the U.S. Institute for Peace.

Can someone please point me to one of these "official terrorist websites"? I've been looking all over, including for the one that originally distributed the beheading video and I haven't had any luck at all...

[Undertoad]

It doesn't really matter what the Spanish voters thought. It only matters what the terrorists thought the Spanish voters thought. If they were convinced they made a difference, and one can't imagine it would convince them otherwise -- then they will believe they can influence an election, which makes it more likely they will try.

[jinx]

Originally posted by Kitsune


Can someone please point me to one of these "official terrorist websites"? I've been looking all over, including for the one that originally distributed the beheading video and I haven't had any luck at all...

If you google "official terrorist website" this comes up first.

[Kitsune]

then they will believe they can influence an election, which makes it more likely they will try.

If they influence the election, what good does it do? The implied message is that the terrorists are planning to swing the election out of favor for Bush. If Kerry gets elected, how are the terrorists going to be treated any differently? How will the middle east change? We already know that Kerry isn't going to treat Iraq much differently than the plans Bush has for it.

[warch]

I believe a successful or attempted or perhaps even a threatened terrorist attack on the US would/will work to raise Bush's numbers. Perhaps the "administration official" does too. That's what happened before. The fear factor would squelch the change factor.

hOMELAND SECURITY;
FIGHTING FOREIGN TERRORISM SINCE 1492

[tw]

Originally posted by Undertoad
It doesn't really matter what the Spanish voters thought. It only matters what the terrorists thought the Spanish voters thought. If they were convinced they made a difference, and one can't imagine it would convince them otherwise -- then they will believe they can influence an election, which makes it more likely they will try.

You are looking at it too myopically. It really does not matter what the terrorist thought. After all, Allah wanted the electios of his man - not George Jr's. So he told those terrorists that god is great. Therefore terrorists understood to go after the non-believer in one of god's nations to show god how great he is. And so the great nation of god in Spain voted just as god wanted.

IOW, UT, I too can manipulate facts just like Rush Limbaugh. Irrelevant. The only relevant factor in Spain is what the Spanish people thought. And lets not forget that George Jr, god's choosen president, was also told by god to manipulate Spanish elections by invading Iraq .......

Or we could suddenly be logical and say the only thing that mattered in the Spanish presidental elections were the voters.

[Clodfobble]

I was talking about this with my husband last night, and he brought up an interesting point--perhaps Al Qaeda might actually WANT Bush to get re-elected.

Stay with me here: if Kerry is elected, he will make some quick apologies to the world for what's been going on for the last four years, and begin "cleaning things up." Reality is, like Kitsune said, things won't progress much differently than they would have under Bush, but with a new face and a promise of change, I suspect forgiveness will be broad and a lot of anti-US sentiment will settle down in the non-Middle-Eastern parts of the world.

I think an ideal situation for Al Qaeda would be Bush still in the White House, but opposing leaders in every other country. Then, any further attacks on the US would be met with much more of the "you brought it on yourselves" attitude worldwide, and with another attack or two, where America has no international support AT ALL in fighting back, US policy towards Israel, etc. might actually begin to change (Al Qaeda hopes anyway.) More likely than Israeli policy changing under Kerry, I think.