Time: "Beware “Underwear 2″: TSA Chief Offers Rare al Qaeda Bomb Details"
Jul 20, 2013, 4:40 pm
#1
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Time: "Beware “Underwear 2″: TSA Chief Offers Rare al Qaeda Bomb Details"
A "next generation" device that could have slipped past airport security, and the evil genius behind it
For many Americans, airline security is an onerous and even excessive burden. But in remarks at a national security forum on Friday, Transportation Security Administration chief John Pistole illustrated why the federal government is still on high alert. Speaking in unusual detail, Pistole offered specifics about an underwear bomb devised by a master al Qaeda bomb-maker in Yemen meant to be exploded in an airliner over the United States last year.
For many Americans, airline security is an onerous and even excessive burden. But in remarks at a national security forum on Friday, Transportation Security Administration chief John Pistole illustrated why the federal government is still on high alert. Speaking in unusual detail, Pistole offered specifics about an underwear bomb devised by a master al Qaeda bomb-maker in Yemen meant to be exploded in an airliner over the United States last year.
Most of the comments below could have been posted by cynical FTers.
Jul 21, 2013, 7:58 am
#3
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More BS justification for using NoS as primary screening methodology.
Of course, it could also be laying the groundwork for bringing back BSX, with some claim that the MMW can't see this twisted genius' work but BSX can. Or, perhaps it's the groundwork for a new secret program where the perv in a box will be re-installed, because ATR can's see this "twisted genius's" work. Or maybe it's even the groundwork for justifying a massive program of strip searches.
I am really surprised that after all this time nobody in TSA has proposed body cavity searches to look for cavity bombs. Well, maybe next year...
Of course, it could also be laying the groundwork for bringing back BSX, with some claim that the MMW can't see this twisted genius' work but BSX can. Or, perhaps it's the groundwork for a new secret program where the perv in a box will be re-installed, because ATR can's see this "twisted genius's" work. Or maybe it's even the groundwork for justifying a massive program of strip searches.
I am really surprised that after all this time nobody in TSA has proposed body cavity searches to look for cavity bombs. Well, maybe next year...
Jul 21, 2013, 12:58 pm
#4
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Jul 21, 2013, 1:24 pm
#6
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“They want to show that we can spend billions and billions of dollars,” Pistole told Ross, “and we still can’t stop them.”
Jul 22, 2013, 1:20 pm
#8
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I'm not sure who I pity more---those of us that must deal with the TSA reactions, or those who don't see through an agency trying to justify itself at every turn.
Indeed, many people I talk to have consumed the koolaide.
Joel
Indeed, many people I talk to have consumed the koolaide.
Joel
Jul 23, 2013, 3:26 pm
#10
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I wonder if the "simple household caulk" was silicone or urethane.
It's pretty much an admission that vapor sniffing machines can be trivially bypassed.
No surprise to anyone with a lab or food storage background. People that ship pungent weed have known cheap, effective techniques for decades.
The bad guys can test how clean they need to be during handling, without carrying on the actual device. They can probe dozens of times without risk. 'False' positives can even be a bonus, as they establish a pattern of false alarms.
It's pretty much an admission that vapor sniffing machines can be trivially bypassed.
No surprise to anyone with a lab or food storage background. People that ship pungent weed have known cheap, effective techniques for decades.
The bad guys can test how clean they need to be during handling, without carrying on the actual device. They can probe dozens of times without risk. 'False' positives can even be a bonus, as they establish a pattern of false alarms.