THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE, USA
An Online Journal of Political Commentary & Analysis
Volume IX, Issue # 119, June 24, 2007
Dr. Almon Leroy Way, Jr., Editor
Government Committed to & Acting in Accord with Conservative Principles
Ensures a Nation's Strength, Progress, & Prosperity
THE WORST CASE SCENARIO
By Alan Caruba
THE FOURTH WORLD WAR: THE WORLDWIDE JIHAD THAT THE ISLAMISTS ARE WAGING AGAINST AMERICA & THE
WEST -- THE JIHAD & WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION -- THE ABSOLUTE CERTAINTY THAT AL-QA'IDA CAN & WILL
ACQUIRE A SUFFICIENT NUMBER OF NUCLEAR DEVICES & SMUGGLE THEM INTO THE U.S.A. IN ORDER TO DESTROY
AMERICA'S KEY CITIES -- THE DIRE NEED FOR AMERICANS TO BECOME FULLY ALERT TO THE VERY REAL DANGER FACING
OUR NATION IN THE ISLAMIST TERROR WAR & FOCUS OUR EFFORTS ON DESTROYING AL-QA'IDA & ALL OF ITS AFFILIATES
& OTHER COLLABORATING ENTITIES
FULL STORY:
On May 9, 2007, President George W. Bush signed the “National Security and Homeland Security Presidential Directive”
that establishes a new federal office, that of National Continuity Coordinator, the job of which is to make plans for
“National Essential Functions” of all federal, state, local, territorial and tribal governments, as well as private sector
organizations that would, in a national emergency, continue to function under directives from the President’s Office.
Since paranoia is now the established frame of reference for all political discussions, the Conservative media focused on
whether President Bush was planning to become a dictator in the event of a national emergency. All modern presidents,
however, have issued comparable directives or executive orders. Bush is not the first to stare the physical destruction of
America in the eye on a daily basis.
To my way of thinking, the entire debate over the immigration law reforms misses the real and most immediate threat.
Without secure borders and, most importantly, an aggressive program to identify those who are among us for the
purpose of destroying the nation, no reform is of any value.
Recently, a reporter challenged the President, asking if he was still a credible messenger of the threat posed by al-Qa'ida.
Bush replied he is because he reads the intelligence reports every day. Maybe he needs to tell us a lot more about what
they are saying and what they predict.
Maybe what all Americans need is a lot more paranoia? Or have we already forgotten those New Jersey jihadists planning
mass murder at Fort Dix? Or the jihadists who planned to blow up jet fuel tanks at JFK airport?
Paul L. Williams has written The Day of Islam: The Annihilation of America and the Western World ($25.00,
Prometheus Books), in which he documents the near certainty that Osama bin Laden’s al-Qa'ida has acquired the capacity
to destroy American cities with nuclear devices. After reading it, one is inclined to believe that it is not a question of if this
will occur, but when.
Right now, Americans may be unhappy with events in Iraq and eager to leave, but I think the shock and horror have 9/11
has long since worn off. We may be edgy over why bin Laden has not been captured and why the focus of our efforts
have not been on destroying al-Qa'ida, but this is not a burning issue in the midst of the national debate about Iraq.
The United States of America, despite many attacks orchestrated by al-Qa'ida, remained largely indifferent to it in the
decade leading up to 9/11. As Michael Scheurer, a former CIA operative in charge of the bin Laden file and author of
Imperial Hubris, has written, “We found that he (bin Laden) and al-Qa'ida were involved in an extraordinary
sophisticated and professional effort to acquire weapons of mass destruction — in this case, nuclear weapons, so by the
end of 1996, it was clear that this was an organization unlike any other one we had ever seen.”
In page after page of his book, Williams documents the events and the personalities involved in the process by which
al-Qa'ida likely has acquired nuclear weapons. The difference between our former adversary, the Soviet Union, and
al-Qa'ida was that the Soviets were not driven by any religious belief that demanded our destruction. Al-Qa'ida’s
mission is to establish a global Islamic Caliphate and to do that, the destruction of America, Israel, and the West is an
essential element.
Indeed, bin Laden hasn’t even made an effort to deny al-Qa'lda has nuclear capabilities. Two months after 9-11, he gave
an interview in which he said, “If America uses chemical or nuclear weapons, then we may respond with chemical or
nuclear weapons.” When the Pakistani journalist asked how he obtained such weapons, bin Laden replied:
“It is not difficult, not if you have contacts in Russia with
other militant groups. They are available for $10 million and
$20 million.”
This was not just an idle threat, but the reality of how easily off-the-shelf nuclear weapons could be purchased from
Russian sources. As for the money, the poppy fields of Afghanistan in 1997 produced enough raw opium to sweeten
the coffers of al-Qa'ida and its affiliates to the tune of upwards of $16 billion a year. They are reputed to be the source
of eighty percent of the heroin sold annually these days. Al-Qa'ida has long been established in South America,
working closely with the drug cartels. The United States and Europe are major markets.
Just how easy would it be to smuggle small nuclear devices into the United States? Stephen Flynn, a senior fellow for
national security studies at the US Council of Foreign Relations, has noted:
“The United States has 16,000 ships entering its ports every
day. Adding in shipments by truck, train or air freight, the
total number of import shipments to the U.S. is 21.4 million
tons a year.”
Less than three percent of ship containers are ever inspected and that includes those from the Middle East.
The U.S.A is concerned that Iran is moving toward the acquisition of nuclear weapons capabilities, but Pakistan already
has nukes of its own, and those nukes in the Russian arsenal that we haven’t already spent billions to decommission are
still said to be extraordinarily vulnerable to the black market in fissionable uranium and plutonium.
So, in the worst case scenario that seems closer with every passing day, we could see New York, Washington, D.C., and
other key cities destroyed. If that happens, the President’s latest directive may prove meaningless and the plans that
al-Qa'ida has been making for a very long time will come true.
LINKS TO RELATED TOPICS:
Islamism & Jihadism -- The Threat of Radical Islam
Page Three
Page Two
Page One
International Politics & World Disorder:
War & Peace in the Real World
Page Two
Page One
Islamist Terrorist Attacks on the U.S.A.
Terrorism & American Homeland Security
Osama bin Laden & the Islamist Declaration of War
Against the U.S.A. & Western Civilization
Islamist International Terrorism &
U.S. Intelligence Agencies
Counterterrorism & U.S. National Security
Military Weaponry & International Security:
Weapons of Mass Destruction & Arms Control
U.S. Military Defense & American National Security
U.S. National Security Strategy
American Foreign Policy -- The Middle East
Alan Caruba is a veteran business and science writer, a Public Relations Counselor, and Founder of the National Anxiety Center, a
clearinghouse for information about media-driven scare campaigns. Caruba writes a weekly commentary, "Warning Signs," posted
on the Internet website of the National Anxiety Center, which is located at
www.anxietycenter.com.
Caruba’s new book, Right Answers: Separating Fact from Fantasy, has been published by Merril Press.
© Alan Caruba 2007
Published with Permission of Alan Caruba
ACaruba@AOL.Com
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THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE, USA
An Online Journal of Political Commentary & Analysis
Dr. Almon Leroy Way, Jr., Editor
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Conservative Government Ensures a Nation's Strength, Progress, & Prosperity