Nbadan
02-10-2005, 11:13 AM
WASHINGTON, Feb. 9 - In the months before the Sept. 11 attacks, federal aviation officials reviewed dozens of intelligence reports that warned about Osama bin Laden and Al Qaeda, some of which specifically discussed airline hijackings and suicide operations, according to a previously undisclosed report from the 9/11 commission.
But aviation officials were "lulled into a false sense of security," and "intelligence that indicated a real and growing threat leading up to 9/11 did not stimulate significant increases in security procedures," the commission report concluded.
The report discloses that the Federal Aviation Administration, despite being focused on risks of hijackings overseas, warned airports in the spring of 2001 that if "the intent of the hijacker is not to exchange hostages for prisoners, but to commit suicide in a spectacular explosion, a domestic hijacking would probably be preferable."
The report takes the F.A.A. to task for failing to pursue domestic security measures that could conceivably have altered the events of Sept. 11, 2001, like toughening airport screening procedures for weapons or expanding the use of on-flight air marshals. The report, completed last August, said officials appeared more concerned with reducing airline congestion, lessening delays, and easing airlines' financial woes than deterring a terrorist attack.
NY Times (http://nytimes.com/2005/02/10/politics/10terror.html?hp&ex=1108011600&en=50d329a477de39c5&ei=5094&partner=homepage)
I thought that this report, the development of which was resisted by the Bush administration, and the release of which has still been delayed by the Bush administration, was rumoured to have fingered the CIA as having been responsible for insufficient intelligence gathering and reporting and thus being responsible?
But now, THIS rumour seems to finger the FAA for not connecting the dots regarding all this information that the CIA supposedly didn't gather or report on.
So, did the CIA drop the ball? Or did the FAA drop the ball?
Or are WE expected to drop the ball and believe that this administration had NOOOOOO idea this was going to happen, despite PDB entitled "Bin Laden Determined to Attack Inside the United States" which was presented to the President on August 6th, 2001, just one month before the attacks on 9/11?
August 6, 2001: At his Crawford ranch, the president is told about possible attacks, including that bin Laden may hijack airplanes. The CIA gives Bush an analytic report on al-Qaeda during his daily briefing, focusing on terrorist attacks inside the U.S.. The report was titled: "Bin Laden Determined to Strike in U.S.". After receiving the report, Bush left work early and spent the rest of the day fishing.
Bush read on vacation, what? When there's fishin to be done? Yeah, right!
But aviation officials were "lulled into a false sense of security," and "intelligence that indicated a real and growing threat leading up to 9/11 did not stimulate significant increases in security procedures," the commission report concluded.
The report discloses that the Federal Aviation Administration, despite being focused on risks of hijackings overseas, warned airports in the spring of 2001 that if "the intent of the hijacker is not to exchange hostages for prisoners, but to commit suicide in a spectacular explosion, a domestic hijacking would probably be preferable."
The report takes the F.A.A. to task for failing to pursue domestic security measures that could conceivably have altered the events of Sept. 11, 2001, like toughening airport screening procedures for weapons or expanding the use of on-flight air marshals. The report, completed last August, said officials appeared more concerned with reducing airline congestion, lessening delays, and easing airlines' financial woes than deterring a terrorist attack.
NY Times (http://nytimes.com/2005/02/10/politics/10terror.html?hp&ex=1108011600&en=50d329a477de39c5&ei=5094&partner=homepage)
I thought that this report, the development of which was resisted by the Bush administration, and the release of which has still been delayed by the Bush administration, was rumoured to have fingered the CIA as having been responsible for insufficient intelligence gathering and reporting and thus being responsible?
But now, THIS rumour seems to finger the FAA for not connecting the dots regarding all this information that the CIA supposedly didn't gather or report on.
So, did the CIA drop the ball? Or did the FAA drop the ball?
Or are WE expected to drop the ball and believe that this administration had NOOOOOO idea this was going to happen, despite PDB entitled "Bin Laden Determined to Attack Inside the United States" which was presented to the President on August 6th, 2001, just one month before the attacks on 9/11?
August 6, 2001: At his Crawford ranch, the president is told about possible attacks, including that bin Laden may hijack airplanes. The CIA gives Bush an analytic report on al-Qaeda during his daily briefing, focusing on terrorist attacks inside the U.S.. The report was titled: "Bin Laden Determined to Strike in U.S.". After receiving the report, Bush left work early and spent the rest of the day fishing.
Bush read on vacation, what? When there's fishin to be done? Yeah, right!