# OBL Planned THREE Attacks Against USA? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 23, 2002, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obl-planned-three-attacks-against-usa/129258 "2002-09-23T12:59:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ralph124c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2002, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obl-planned-three-attacks-against-usa/129258/1 "2002-09-23T12:59:35Z")
This morning’s BOSTON GLOBE reports that John Walker Lindh (the saintly kid whose dad compared him to nelson Mandela) has informed the FBI that there was to be THREE massive attacks on America. Supposedly, the World Trade Center attack was only the first-and the third was to be devastating! Now, this dirtbag (Lindh) may not be a credible source…but he’s been sentenced, so i don’t see why he would have a reason to lie. So, if this is true , and there are sleeper cells all across the USA, waiting to be activated, what should we do? Organize massive arrest and detention of Arabs? Or hit the Al-Queda hideouts in Yemen with high-yield nukes? Or, does the evidence in fact point to Iraq? Given the silence from OBL, I tend to think walker is telling the truth…and what’s this about a massive smallpox immunization plan? Surely Al-Queda never had plans to spread smallpox?:eek: ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2002, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obl-planned-three-attacks-against-usa/129258/2 "2002-09-23T13:09:59Z")
Three attacks: WTC, Pentagon, White House (fell short in PA) ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2002, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obl-planned-three-attacks-against-usa/129258/3 "2002-09-23T13:17:26Z")
I’ve been so saturated by terrorism news that I’m pretty much tuning it out now. There’s so much glurge and hand-wringing that I miss the “news” news. What was Lindh’s sentence? ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2002, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obl-planned-three-attacks-against-usa/129258/4 "2002-09-23T13:21:19Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by ralph124c \* > **what should we do? Organize massive arrest and detention of Arabs? Or hit the Al-Queda hideouts in Yemen with high-yield nukes?..:eek:** :eek: indeed. ---
**Author:** ![Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/50afbb/32.png) [@Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duck_Duck_Goose)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2002, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obl-planned-three-attacks-against-usa/129258/5 "2002-09-23T13:28:02Z")
Why would he lie? To get attention. I’m guessing that by this time, people have basically stopped talking to him. He just sits there in his cell, day after day. But if he can come up with something to talk about, then he gets more Feds to pull him out of his cell, and he gets to spend a day or two “debriefing”. Johnny: He hasn’t actually been sentenced yet–that’s due on October 4. He pleaded guilty and they’re expecting that he’ll get 20 years. [http://fyi.cnn.com/2002/fyi/news/07/15/walker.lindh/](http://fyi.cnn.com/2002/fyi/news/07/15/walker.lindh/) [http://www.cnn.com/2002/LAW/07/15/walker.lindh.hearing/index.html](http://www.cnn.com/2002/LAW/07/15/walker.lindh.hearing/index.html) ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2002, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obl-planned-three-attacks-against-usa/129258/6 "2002-09-23T13:29:47Z")
OBL’s words (according to the London Sunday Times) were: “the second attack will make America forget the first attack. The third attack will destroy America”. I am guessing he meant the three targeted buildings, as **Philster** said. Lindh did, however, mention 50 suicide terrorists sent to the US, of whom we know 19 are dead and at least one in custody. Of course there’s no guarantee of the accuracy of the information given to Lindh, or of his testimony. I don’t think somehow that nuking anyone is going to diminish global terrorism… ---
**Author:** ![minty\_green](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f6c823/32.png) [@minty\_green](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/minty_green)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2002, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obl-planned-three-attacks-against-usa/129258/7 "2002-09-23T14:54:34Z")
Considering that not even the guys who were with bin Laden on the day of the attacks knew what was coming, I think the chances that he revealed sensitive information to some dumbass from California are pretty darn slim. ---
**Author:** ![toadspittle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c0e974/32.png) [@toadspittle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/toadspittle)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2002, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obl-planned-three-attacks-against-usa/129258/8 "2002-09-23T15:26:17Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by ralph124c \* > **This morning’s BOSTON GLOBE…** Really? I just searched [bostonglobe.com](http://bostonglobe.com) and found no references today (09/23) to “LINDH”, “LADEN”, or “OSAMA” … Is it Monday’s paper, or was it from the weekend? ---
**Author:** ![barbitu8](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/839c29/32.png) [@barbitu8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/barbitu8)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2002, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obl-planned-three-attacks-against-usa/129258/9 "2002-09-23T15:31:53Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Philster \* > \*\*Three attacks: WTC, Pentagon, White House (fell short in PA) \*\* From statements from other captured al Qaeda, the 3d target was not the White House, but Congress. This makes sense, as the 2d’s primary target appeared to be the White House, but took out the Pentagon as a secondary target. The 2d plane passed over the WH, came back, and hit the Pentagon. ---
**Author:** ![bhb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7ab992/32.png) [@bhb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bhb)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2002, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obl-planned-three-attacks-against-usa/129258/10 "2002-09-23T15:44:50Z")
I saw a video on CNN where they showed OBL talking to his groupies. He held up a finger before each attack. 1 for the first tower, 2 for the second tower, 3 for the pentagon, then he held up a fourth but nothing happened (4th plane was supposed to hit Congress/White House). Someone mentioned above the OBL thought that each one would progressively get worse and no one would remember the first attack in the end. Well, OBL himself in the video, explains that he didn’t realize the 1st plane (and second plane) would collapse the whole building. He thought it would only burn the upper floors killing maybe 100ish. Slight miscalculation… ☹ ---
**Author:** ![barbitu8](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/839c29/32.png) [@barbitu8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/barbitu8)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2002, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obl-planned-three-attacks-against-usa/129258/11 "2002-09-23T20:27:38Z")
OBL was in the construction business and altho he could not guarantee the collapse of the bldgs, he thought that was a distinct possibility. He held up the third finger, meaning the third plane, but did not indicate that the Pentagon was the target or primary target. ---
**Author:** ![Dave\_D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/49beb7/32.png) [@Dave\_D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dave_D)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2002, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obl-planned-three-attacks-against-usa/129258/12 "2002-09-24T00:33:49Z")
Here’s a link(Hopefully this works) [http://www2.bostonherald.com/news/national/natl09232002.htm](http://www2.bostonherald.com/news/national/natl09232002.htm) The paper that reported this was the Boston Herald. It describes the 9/11 attacks as phase one. While I would also find it hard to believe Johnny Walker Yellow would know exactly what the first stage was the report makes it seem like these things were given in a vague fashion to the underlings.(Enough to keep up their spirits, not enough that if they actually got captured it’d make a difference.) ---
**Author:** ![manhattan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/manhattan/32/7_2.png) [@manhattan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/manhattan)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2002, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obl-planned-three-attacks-against-usa/129258/13 "2002-09-24T01:01:53Z")
And of course, the question of “what to do” is a subjective one, best left for IMHO or GD. This thread is closed.