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And why think it's all related to terrorizing children specifically?
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It may not, but looking at a specific type of target suggests that's what they are considering striking.

The Chechens have seized buses, hospitals(twice), a theater, a school. These were the big hostage situations.

The hostage situation targets will be soft. Lots of people, most if not all of whom are incapable of defending the building when it is attacked. What doctor or nurse carries a gun? God love the security people at the hospital I took my mother earlier this month, but they wouldn't last 20 seconds against just three men armed with automatic rifles. And an actual hostage-taking attack would probably use about 50.

Hard targets, like police stations, government buildings with more serious security and people inside who can defend themselves will be targets of homicide drivers. They might use school buses, but usually it would be conspicuous and suspicious if a school bus has no children in it, so their use is somewhat questionable. Delivery trucks with few windows would be better. A UPS-type delivery truck, for instance, or a cement truck. If you really need bigger, a tractor-trailer rig gives you more capacity, and is a lot less conspicuous, although harder to maneuver. There are a lot of them, and they are easier to buy because they are not specialized, like school buses.

Of course they might buy buses and get legitimate bus contracts in order to gain intelligence about schools for targeting. Do not kid yourself, they will do (and probably are doing now) a lot of research on targets to pick the one they feel is the best.

The problem I have with these views (not that they're illegitimate altogether!) is that the Moslem terrorists were SMART on 9/11.

They chose IMPORTANT targets, at least that they thought would not just kill people, but disrupt commerce and government.

All the BS about hitting the WTC because it was "symbolic" was just that, BS. They chose it because they knew it was a center of trade.

If they were interested in real symbolism: duh, they would've shifted just 1 mi or so and hit the very easy target of the Statue of Liberty.

These guys were smart to hit at things that might really hurt, not just be emotional.

So, I suspect they really want to hit more important targets. Schools and the like are only emotional.

Not that it can't happen. It very well could. I just wouldn't put such "soft targets" at the top of the list.