mattd

Here come the MANPADS

This threat is here to stay:

"The FBI arrested three people Tuesday for allegedly plotting to smuggle a shoulder-launched surface-to-air missile into the United States, government and law enforcement sources said. The missile was successfully smuggled into a port in New Jersey from Russia, several U.S. government sources said. FBI agents arrested a British citizen of Indian descent Tuesday afternoon in Newark, New Jersey. Law enforcement sources said he was an independent arms dealer and had sold weapons to al Qaeda in the past."

by mattd

Stupid claim

This Nader claim from US News, borders on insulting to those of us actually in the business of preventing terrorism:

"Get a load of this: Likely 2004 third-party presidential hopeful Ralph Nader thinks the 9/11 terrorist attacks wouldn't have happened if he had been president. He claims that amid all the big decisions new presidents have to make after inauguration, he would have ordered cockpit doors to be hardened against attack. He says an old report warning about how easy it is to get in the cockpit still sticks with him. What's more, he would have wiped out Osama bin Laden and his gang without a shot being fired. How? Bribe Osama's friends to hand him over."

by mattd

Hanging DARPA Out to Dry

Charles Cooper writes about public perceptions of DARPA. With the media coverage these days, it is easy to forget the DARPA charter and the intended unconventional nature of the research it conducts. As Cooper writes:

"The fact is that TIA data was supposed to focus on foreign intelligence and counterintelligence information gathered--not whether you rented "Debbie Does Dallas" on your last trip to Blockbuster. It's not hard to build in safeguards that protect against potential abuses of the system. The Defense Department set up internal and external oversight boards to make sure that constitutional rights and privacy protection are not compromised.

Painting a worst-case scenario of mission-creep, TIA critics say this is an open invitation to an Orwellian future. Really? I haven't seen any proof of that, though I did see the smoking hole that used to be the World Trade Tower complex in my hometown of New York City. "Full Story

by mattd

Losing Hacker Jeopardy

You win some and you lose some on a technicality. Yes, we took on the famous hacker Kevin Mitnick and his team and we were ahead going into final Jeopardy. We bet it all on the final Jeopardy question and they bet it all minus $10. We answered the question correctly and they answered it wrong, but we got beat because we didn't answer the question in the form of a question! Go figure...a moral victory and a technical loss! Regardless, our team made a strong showing and we had lots of fun. Seeing Hacker Jeopardy up close really gives you an appreciation for how much work Winn and G. Mark put into it, most of which goes unappreciated.

by mattd