The Bush doctrine of "they'll follow up home" is proving to be unmitigated BS. "They" are already here and have been for decades. As I pointed out quite some time ago, the "terror threat" that is being uncovered is home grown. The only thing that is being done in Iraq is to give those who that have an ax to grind with the government more reason to lash out. Also, military action is not the proper response and only exacerbates the problem. This is a policing and intelligence operation. Kudos to the agencies that exposed the plot, but Iwonder if they were pushed into making arrests. I have to wonder how close to reality this conspiracy was to becoming a reality. All too often these big splashy announcements that make so much news turn out to be overblown, sensationalistic, "stories" that don't hold up in court and are never heard from again. The whole Ft. Dix thing sounded real nasty when it broke, and got lots of play in the media, but turned out to be a bunch of guys talking smack and having neither the resources nor the brains to execute a damn thing. Nothing could stick, even with the Patriot Act in place.
On to this "plot", smells like more BS to me. Anyone with a brain in their head would know that blowing up a pipeline or fuel depot would not cause the damage suggested. Too bad the media has very few brains and does not think this stuff through. They are too much of a rush to get the sensationalistic story out and cause un-needed panic. This plot is a no go from the start. For the damage to be sustained as suggested, the whole pipeline would have to be ruptured at one time, along with the storage facilities. That would take an incredible number of synchronized explosives. It would take an incredible amount of digging to access the pipeline. It would require an incredible breach of security at multiple points that share different security systems. It would also require a complete and total failure of the control systems in place that safeguard against ruptures. In other words, this is an impossibility, especially for four poorly funded men. I suspect this one will end up being nothing more than a splashy announcement with no significant changes sticking.
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