As the world’s attention is focused on London in the aftermath of this morning’s bombings, I can’t help but put myself into a terrorist’s head and think that now would be an ideal time for a second attack on a major target like NYC or Paris. The local news channels in NYC have been running non-stop live footage of the subway system, tunnel entrances and bridges. From a terrorist’s perspective, all of these media cameras trained on their potential prime targets can only be a good thing since it helps them spread their message of hatred through the powerful imagery of a terrorist attack. Stop a moment and think about it. Can you imagine the kinds of footage these media cameras would catch should the terrorists do a one-two kind of attack? First, a smaller attack like what happened this morning in London to get the media’s attention, and then following that, a larger attack on one of the prime targets that’s being monitored by hundreds of television cameras — thus guaranteeing some kind of sensational footage.
The thought of something like this scares me but I know there is little I can do as an individual to prevent terrorists from succeeding in their plots. I subscribe to the practices put forth by the MTA and NYPD: stay alert, be aware of those around you, and report anything that might be suspicious no matter how silly it may seem.
My thoughts and concerns go out to those families affected by today’s bombings in London.
Posted by Cameron Barrett at July 7, 2005 01:13 PM