7/7

the observer (april 9th edition) gave some hints as to what the report into the july 7th london bombings was going to be saying. in essence it seems to be saying that the bombings were planned based on information available on the internet, that it was done on a shoestring and that there was no direct support from al-qaeda.
in short it was a simple and inexpensive plot. described as 'The London attacks were a modest, simple affair by four seemingly normal men using the internet.'

according to the observer this will raise fresh concerns over the vulnerability of britain to attack by small, unsophisticated groups.
have to say this somewhat surprised me as i would have thought that these were the types of attacks that we would be most vulnerable to. at least with an organised terrorist organisation (such as the ira) there is the possibility of building up a knowledge base concerning the methods and the people and so be better placed to thwart them.
it is going to be so much hard to stop individuals who take it upon themselves to mount an attack.

in fact there is no way to be totally safe, unless we give up all our freedoms and even then there is no guarantee that if we do that we will be secure. while i do not think that the present government is overy authoritarian its desire to press ahead on something like id cards where there is no proof that it is a scheme that will work, also means that the populace have more reasons to distrust them when it comes to measures that are likely to work.

but given that the 7/7 bombers appeared to have an extreme interpretation of islam, but while also enjoying a westernised lifestyle there is no easy way to discover the potential perpertrators among us.
the fact that these bombers or terrorists are driven not only by secular matters but there is a large element of religous fervour in what inspires them points to the fact that perhaps to only way to protect against them is to win the hearts and minds of the community in which they live in order to stop them from ever being able to gain the support they need.

it is easier said than done.