Ridge to raise Terror Alert, news conf. 1:30 pm Eastern

Fox News-TV

[oceanview]

that show was very good. but the really good guest was the middle eastern fellow who was on in the segment with Steve Emerson. He made two really good observations:

- he said AQ was short on weapons, but long on people. He said the same things we have said here: that they have to hijack or steal their weapons, if they had WMDs, they would have used them. But then he also added that AQ had many cells here in the US, that the arrests in Buffalo and Portland were of little significance. He said that AQ could conduct the same kind of suicide operations that Hamas does in Israel at any time with the people they have here, and that his read on the intel was that AQ was deciding whether they wanted to play this hand with the people they have now to discredit the recent US successes, or continue to hold those people in reserve until larger operations like 9/11 could be put into effect. Scary stuff listening to him, but it does makes me once again wonder why it is that we haven't been able to arrest and breakup more cells right here in the US.

- his second point was that the terrorists would rather hide inside the US where the legal system protects them, rather then fighting it out in areas where US forces are operating. A sad but true comment, our courts protect them when they are here, while at the same time our soldiers and intel agents are trying to kill them overseas. At some point, I think Bush is going to have to have some kind of "flash point" against the judiciary if we are going to be able to combat this domestically. The judicial branch is not going to protect us. Let's see what happens when Padilla is set to be released in a few weeks.

[mindspy]

After 8 years of the dimwits I remember thinking, God I hope they ground all aircraft and then I remembered we were no longer under the idiot siege.

[DollyCali]

After 8 years of the dimwits I remember thinking, God I hope they ground all aircraft and then I remembered we were no longer under the idiot siege.

yes, I was thinking the same thing as I was traveling on Interstate on long trip via car & following all on Radio... My initial thoughts were thank God Pres Bush will be handling this

[sakic]

In other words, calling her terrorist-friendly is garbage. Sometimes people toss around these phrases like they mean nothing.

[gitmo]

Done.

[LayoutGuru2]

In other words, calling her terrorist-friendly is garbage. Sometimes people toss around these phrases like they mean nothing.

Garbage? Ouch!

Agreed, an over-the-top comment. My ire for her Kumbaya-approach the WOT and her limousine liberalism really shows, doesn't it? Oh well, live and learn.

[biffalobull]

Please get a grip, the terrorists are winning their psychological war on you, not the rest

Wacky; I already have a grip on whatever I need to.

But I really do believe after watching all the reports that I am not the only one afraid. Have a great Holiday.

[aquawrench]

I feel this way to a point. Hi-ever, Id be really pissed at Ridge if terroists were to hit anything. We need patriot missle batteries deployed. I dont want to hear about a flight from the Philippines being hijacked into a nuclear power plant on the CalIfornia coast.

"any attack at this time would simply empower President Bush like never before!!!"

[relee]

Thanks, I did not know that.

[SierraWasp]

I don't believe a plane can penetrate the reactor of a nuclear plant, if it got lucky enough to hit it at it's weakest point! I don't understand what makes you think one could.

Maybe you can explain it too me since they've already tried to do it with a plane and a facsimile of a reactor housing with the plane making a direct hit at high speed in a dive!

[goodnesswins]

I think it will take 3 hits on the U.S. (2 more) before the sheeple wake up.....I hope I am wrong.

[goodnesswins]

Maybe she isn't terrorist friendly....but she did have an alleged one working in her office, didn't she?

[Oorang]

I would have to agree with LayoutGuru2 on this one. Having lived in Oregon/Washington for the last 28 years and worked in politics for about 20 of those years I came in contact with Vera off and on since she started in the state legislature. She is a socialist from the get-go.

Obviously that does not mean she is terrorist friendly, but, her behavior since 9/11 makes me believe she is terrorist friendly. And, knowing her what little I did, it doesn't surprise me. She frequently, through the years, sided with what she viewed as the PC popular view. In socialist, far left Portland,OR viewing any poor downtrodden Muslim in anything but a loving light is so anti-PC. Vera refused to cooperate with the FBI shortly after 9/11 when they asked for help on local levels. Vera forbid her police force, or anyone under her jurisdiction to cooperate with them. She was very vocal on this point. It wouldn't surprise me at all if she still believes the the notorious "Portland 6" are totally innocent (found guilty of terrorist ties). It was one of these Portland 6 that worked for Vera.

[goodnesswins]

What kind of politics did/do you work in? I lived in Portland 1983-1995.....and dabbled in politics, so to speak.

[Oorang]

I mainly did political management work in the health care fields. Worked with lobbyists (not real high on the food chain, IMO) and political consulting analysis for health care related groups (state medical type associations, etc.).
Esentially adult-day care for doctors, etc., interpreting legislative bills dealing with health care issues. Doc's just can't read/comprehend political mumbo-jumbo. Spent a lot of time at the state legislature. Was more than glad to get out of it. Way too many inflated egos and way too much adult-daycare.

[relee]

This could simply mean they were arguing about it. That not everyone felt the terror alert needed to be raised.

OR

Unlike past elevations of the terror threat level, the decision to raise the alert to orange this time was unanimous and decisive, because it was based on what senior Bush administration officials described as the most alarming, credible and specific information they had ever seen.

Linked on Drudge

[LizardQueen]

Does the material in a suitcase nuke have a "shelf life"?

I'm trying to remember exactly where I read this (can't, though: The fissionable material itself doesn't have a half-life but I think I read that the trigger does. I think the triggers are also radioactive (tritium?) and take a certain amount of care and maintenance to keep them useable. You can't just plop them in a bunker, then haul them out in 10 years and expect them to work as designed.

LQ

[Axenolith]

Your point being? I'm just pointing out that terrorist weapons are not going to have megaton yields and that the little cryptic doodad is meaningless (unless of course they've managed to buy or steal SS-18 et. al., warheads...

You're right about it being small, if something 1 Mt goes off in the US there is going to be some silo doors kicking open and disgorging contents...

[eno_]

My sweetie and I are pretty sure we saw this plane (or one of these planes) taking off from Tampa on the 12th or 13th of September. We were driving on the Interstate and saw a plain white, not military-looking, medium-sized jet taking off. It was the only thing in the skies (except for military planes) for days. We remarked on it at the time, because it wasn't coming from MacDill - it was definitely taking off from the Tampa airport and we thought that all planes were supposed to be grounded. We didn't know until much later about the Bin Laden family plane(s), though.

You might have seen it, but the military flys a LOT of small jets that don't look obviously military. I'd bet lots of senior officers were on the move following 9/11.

[endthematrix]

Appears accidental. Good eye! There are others though and this is the type IMO that might go unreported.