Wow, just wow (The Underwear bomber)

[wsuffa]

Link to article

So we risked a flight, and we made travel worse for all international passengers because of this. Meanwhile the event is being used to justify multi-hundred-million dollar purchase of strip-search machines.

(I'm intentionally standing off my high horse to keep this out of spin zone).

 

[wbarnhill]

I don't think you're going to be able to stave off the political comments, but here goes.

Ok, so we don't revoke the visa, that way he's not tipped off that we're onto him. We know he's affiliated with Al Qaeda and could be dangerous. But we're onto him. Just not onto him enough to know that he's purchased a plane ticket for an airliner bound for the US with his non-revoked visa.

What exactly was the plan here?

 

[steingar]

Big time intelligence failure. I can understand letting a guy dangle to they can get to the bigger fish, but they should still keep tabs on the dude. Thankfully a civilian on the plane could do what all those intelligence guys couldn't, and prevented a bunch of deaths.

 

[mantakos]

Sure, sounds like a crazy plan when you say it out loud and, like, think about it and stuff, but how did it turn out? Nobody hurt and the guy's now in custody. Can't argue with the results! Mission accomplished!

(Ducking...)
-harry

 

[gismo]

Big time intelligence failure. I can understand letting a guy dangle to they can get to the bigger fish, but they should still keep tabs on the dude. Thankfully a civilian on the plane could do what all those intelligence guys couldn't, and prevented a bunch of deaths.

While I applaud the passengers' action in subduing the terrorist, I'm not so sure they prevented any explosions. I was under the impression that the explosive simply failed to detonate and the terrorist's clothing caught on fire instead. Does anyone know if the an explosion would have occurred had the passengers not intervened?

 

[steingar]

While I applaud the passengers' action in subduing the terrorist, I'm not so sure they prevented any explosions. I was under the impression that the explosive simply failed to detonate and the terrorist's clothing caught on fire instead. Does anyone know if the an explosion would have occurred had the passengers not intervened?

Bomb would've caught if the bomber wasn't put out eventually.

 

[ClimbnSink]

But the only thing that saved the plane was 'bomb failure' not screening, intelligence, although the TSA probably watched the guy getting arrested on the ground so they deserve kudos for a job sell done.

Sure, sounds like a crazy plan when you say it out loud and, like, think about it and stuff, but how did it turn out? Nobody hurt and the guy's now in custody. Can't argue with the results! Mission accomplished!

(Ducking...)
-harry

 

[gismo]

Bomb would've caught if the bomber wasn't put out eventually.

I'm not disagreeing but what's your source and/or evidence for that?

 

[JeffDG]

But the only thing that saved the plane was 'bomb failure' not screening, intelligence, although the TSA probably watched the guy getting arrested on the ground so they deserve kudos for a job sell done.

To play devil's advocate...

What if the bomb failure was attributable to screening...ie. that he left a critical component out because it would have been caught in the screening process?

 

[ClimbnSink]

To play devil's advocate...

What if the bomb failure was attributable to screening...ie. that he left a critical component out because it would have been caught in the screening process?

Why bring a bomb without a critical part? Unless he just didn't want to die.

 

[Pi1otguy]

To play devil's advocate...

What if the bomb failure was attributable to screening...ie. that he left a critical component out because it would have been caught in the screening process?

+1
Screening has forced the use of less reliable devices. I just have nightmares over what "body packing" (2 incidents so far) will do to the screening process.

 

[RMCN172RG]

Maybe he didn't really want to meet all those virgins minues a certain body part.

 

[mantakos]

Maybe he didn't really want to meet all those virgins minues a certain body part.

There's a rumor going around that he heard that Susan Boyle was a virgin, and now having learned what virgins look like, and considering the prospect of 72 such virgins as his reward, he lost his will to succeed.
-harry