Planes, trains and automobiles (revisited)

 

 

"Sorry - this has nothing to do with a movie..."

Okay, things are really getting interesting with the tragic Amtrak derailment outside of Philadelphia. First off, still no definite reason on why the train sped up from 70mph to 106mph right before of one of Amtrak's "dead man's curves". The train engineer has tested negative for drugs and alcohol and has a good record. He is not cooperating with the NTSB as he sustained a concussion and told investigators he does remember any part of the accident. On the news this morning, it was reported there is now evidence developing the train might have been hit by some kind of "projectile".

I have told this story a year or two ago. One of my two week active duties as a reservist was done at a base I was stationed at as a "white hat" back in the early 70's. When I checked in and met the base CO, he asked me if I would be up for a much different assignment. The command was getting ready for a tri-annual physical security audit, and the CO wanted to make sure they were trump tight. His request to me was simple - take off your Navy hat and put on a terrorist hat (back in the 80's, the big concern was Soviet moles). Without telling me anything about the station, the CO said it would be my job to figure out how to take it offline. In other words, sabotage by an outsider.

It was by far and away, one of the most interesting experiences I have ever had. I did figure out numerous ways to take the station down. It all went in my report. At the end of my tour when I presented my findings to the CO, all he could say was "I had no idea". I had done my homework. I worked with law enforcement both locally and on a state level. I knew response times, phone and electrical vulnerabilities and so on. I used my imagination tempered with reality. It was truly a "thinking outside the box" exercise.

Back to the train derailment. It was also disclosed that other trains in the area had been either shot at, or hit in the windshield with some kind of projectile. If it is true and there are anywhere from 71 to "over a thousand" Islamic terrorists on our soil, finding vulnerabilities to cause mayhem is not really that tough. In fact, it would be quite simple.

One of the problems is our nation is not on a "war footing". The naiveté demonstrated by many of our leaders will not allow us to think this way. The bad guys however, are in the battle of their lives. Many believe the upcoming battle has been predicted for centuries, maybe for millennia.

So what is vulnerable in our country? To start with, planes, trains and automobiles. Then shopping malls, sporting events, places of worship. Power plants, our electric grid, water treatment plants and so on. Shooting a high powered rifle at a train coming up to a tight curve in the railroad tracks would be easy as pie. Plenty of places to hide. Plus, if you can get a train to derail, it would have been an easy day for the terrorists. 

This one deserves to be watched. If might end up just being nothing. Or, it might end up being a whole new chapter in the terror war many refuse to acknowledge.