Frankly stopping the next terrorist attack in the United
States is highly unlikely. It’s not a
function of if there will be an attack, but rather it’s a function of when will
the next attack occur. With the more
recent attack in Nice, France, it’s apparent that even due diligence may not be
enough to stop or even hinder the next incident of Radical Islamic terror.
In some respects, we have been fortunate. The World Trade Center attacks are nearly a
faded memory for some, and the attacks in California and Florida often seem far
away. But who’s to say when the next
attack will occur?
Certainly our current approach is not very effective. In all three of the attacks mentioned, people
knew or had an inkling of suspicion concerning the “operatives.” In every case, either the people who knew
failed to contact anyone of the people who were contacted failed to move on the
information.
At this point in the conversation, I think we all have to admit
that the current state of the world is here to stay. It seems like things like the incident at
Nice, France, can just as easily happen here, or in Richmond, or in Washington
D.C.
Don’t think that will happen? Then you may be among those who have pushed
the 9-11 attacks out of mind. Alas, it
happened a long time ago, so we have learned from our mistakes.
That’s the problem with not identifying the enemy. The enemy who shall not be named; like some
sort of spin off from Harry Potter; but Harry Potter is fiction and this is
not.
With the latest attack, does anyone truly believe that such
a thing won’t cross the ocean? Already, the people who would attack are
here. What is of concern is how they are
triggered, and why those who are aware of them aren’t being listened to.
It’s a simple matter, really. In the Orlando episode, the FBI had
interviewed the killer twice and still gave him a pass. Why?
Because it wasn’t deemed to be politically correct?
Should all of this scare us?
You bet. And it’s not fear mongering, or hate mongering, or any
of that. It’s a matter of fact.
We as a country need to start paying more attention to what
is going on around us. In World War II
they had a saying “Loose Lips Sink Ships” which served as a warning about
accidentally giving out secure information. Now, it’s more about letting people
know if you hear or see something suspicious.
And it doesn’t have to be obvious. Sometimes it can be a
little thing that uncovers a much bigger thing.
American citizens often opt not to get involved, but we need to be
involved. After all, it’s everyone’s security we are talking about.
Terrorism works because it evokes fear in the
people who are being attacked. We need
to bring it out in the open. If you see something that doesn’t look right,
report it. Let some officials group check, perhaps it’s nothing. But then
again, perhaps it’s everything. If you
see something suspicious and don’t say something about it, you could end up on
the receiving end of the next Radical Islamic Terror attack.
