Consequences of Shoddy and Feckless State Dept. Work

Gerard Posner, whose book on the JFK assassination convinced me that there was no conspiracy, takes aim at the Nigerian jihadist who attempted to bring down the plane by igniting the explosive.

Apparently, his sources say the failure is not systemic; rather, it's the result of intelligence officials at the Lagos, Nigeria, US embassy to precisely describe the threat rather than use vague expressions that didn't cause any action. As a result,

all international fliers to the U.S. will instead be inconvenienced by this communications snafu. Airline rules announced Saturday instituted extra baggage screening, additional personal inspections, and a stricter enforcement of an existing rule that permits passengers to only bring one carry-on bag. In addition, all passengers on U.S.-bound international flights will not be able to move about the cabin during the last hour of the flight.

My younger brother is a wet-behind-the-ears diplomat for the State Dept in South America. I hope he never makes a mistake like this.

The terrorists win even when they lose. So how can they lose? Richard Reid has caused much trouble. I hate having to take off my shoes because of him.

HT: Classical Values