# Plot to blow up 10 US airplanes over Atlantic - credible threat, or rumour-mongering?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plot-to-blow-up-10-us-airplanes-over-atlantic-credible-threat-or-rumour-mongering/368144>\
**Category:** Great Debates\
**Created:** [August 10, 2006, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plot-to-blow-up-10-us-airplanes-over-atlantic-credible-threat-or-rumour-mongering/368144 "2006-08-10T12:41:41Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 12

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**Author:** ![FRDE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e68b1a/32.png) [@FRDE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FRDE)\
**Post date:** [August 19, 2006, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plot-to-blow-up-10-us-airplanes-over-atlantic-credible-threat-or-rumour-mongering/368144/221 "2006-08-19T14:13:57Z")

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[QUOTE=David Simmons]  
Two things. Martyr videos are easy to make whether or not you actually intend to be a martyr. Even if you do intend to be a martyr that doesn’t guarantee your plan is a good one or that your method of carrying it out will be effective.  
[/QUOTE]

I think I would happily remove a ‘putative martyr’ and make him watch his own video until he came up with something interesting.

[QUOTE=David Simmons]  
The history is that explosive incidents have been with conventional explosives. The agent in the 9/11 attacks was ordinary jet engine fuel.  
[/QUOTE]

Actually it was box cutters - if you are talking about inorganics

[QUOTE=David Simmons]  
As the article noted, a large economic constituency has developed (one might say with explosive speed) that pushes sniffers, x-ray machines and all the other paraphernalia associated with the security business.  
[/QUOTE]

And oddly, I don’t trust them, I would go for a well trained interrogator any time.

Once one said to me ‘you have probably been through this more times than I have’

I do not disagree with screening, but I reckon we in the UK should have tooled up for it years ago. And it should be nothing to do with BAA

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**Author:** ![Rufus\_Xavier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/eada6e/32.png) [@Rufus\_Xavier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rufus_Xavier)\
**Post date:** [August 19, 2006, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plot-to-blow-up-10-us-airplanes-over-atlantic-credible-threat-or-rumour-mongering/368144/222 "2006-08-19T16:23:33Z")

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A few days ago, there was a story that said that the suspected ringleader was probably tortured for information in Pakistan.

> **[Pakistan says 'ringleader' admits link with al-Qaida](https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2006/aug/14/afghanistan.world)**
>
> Arrested Briton has given 'many clues' but campaigners say he was tortured.

If so, that leads to one of two conclusions:

1. If the terror “plot” was not a real threat, then it may have been a largely fabricated story as the result of torture, demonstrating again the dubious benefit of torturing terror suspects for information

2. If the terror “plot” was, indeed, a real threat, then it can be argued that torturing terror suspects actually saves lives, and this case will bolster the argument of those that are in favor of it.

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