They're back

An interesting morning so far, by any definition.

As you are no doubt aware, the Brits arrested a whole passel of guys last night on what appears to be pretty solid evidence they were planning to simultaneously blow up a large number of commericial airliners over the Atlantic. Apparently, the 21 "young British men of Pakistani descent" were going to smuggle some sort of liquid explosive onto the planes in their hand luggage.

There's coverage of the facts in all the usual spots (and some not-so-usual ones as well). I won't bore you with any other details.

I do want to express my thanks to the fine folks in the Brit and US intelligence and law-enforcement services. It sounds like they have averted what could have been another multi-thousand-dead, "spectacular" terrorist attack. Good show, boys and girls. Please keep up the good work.

I have two items to address in relation to this story:

1. My whiny, self-absorbed rant about how this will affect my flight from Hartford to DFW tomorrow.

The Brits have essentially banned all hand luggage, and that actually might be the way to go - just check everything. As always at DFW, it will take an hour to get my bags, but I can live with that. The alternative sounds like no liquids of any sort in hand luggage. Clearly, that would include the bottle of mouthwash, but what about the can of shaving cream and the tube of toothpaste?

Security at Bradley International (the Hartford/Springfield airport), is taciturn, surly, and inefficient under the best of circumstances. It is the only airport I've ever been thru where a line of three people in front of me at Security means a 15 minute wait. On a Friday, with more stringent controls, I'm preparing for a three hour wait. No kidding.

I am not excited about any part of this trip.

2. Why has the UK turned into a jihadist factory?

This is a puzzler to me. The Brits have absorbed the brunt of the AQ assault for the past while, or it at least seems that way to the casual observer. This seems VERY strange to me, as the Brits have more counter-terrorism experience and expertise than anyone this side of the Israelis.

Is the radical Muslim community more concentrated there than it is in the US? Are young Muslim men more radicalized by their interaction w/ British society than they are w/ American society?

I just don't know enough about this to render any sort of opinion, but it sure has me wondering.

You know what scares me the most about being on the receiving end of another AQ Lollapalooza? Not the risk of my own harm, as the odds of that are nearly nonexistent.

No, what keeps me up at night are these two thoughts:

a. Another three thousand or so husbands, wives, sons, and daughters meeting their Maker ahead of schedule.

b. You think the Federal govt is in your business now? Worried about your phone calls being tapped and your email being read? Concerned about the erosion of your civil rights? Brother (or Sister), you ain't seen nothing yet. If AQ manages to score another doozy, all bets are off.

There are so many reasons to pray for the continued good work of those who protect us. You can choose any one of them for yourself.