CIA: Terrorists to Nuke US Cities | Homeland Security

A new report by retired longtime intelligence officer Rolf Mowatt-Larssen, who served as chief of the CIA's Weapons of Mass Destruction Department, accuses the U.S. government of seriously misreading al-Qaida's operational objectives. "Al-Qaida's reasoning," according to Mowatt-Larssen's new report from Harvard's Kennedy School, "runs counter to analytic convention that equates the ease of acquisition of chemical, biological or radiological weapons with an increasing likelihood of terrorist use - i.e., a terrorist attack employing crude weapons is therefore more likely than an attack using a nuclear or large scale biological weapon."

"In fact, it is the opposite" of that conventional wisdom, according to the analysis, entitled "Al-Qaida Weapons of Mass Destruction Threat: Hype or Reality." Al-Qaida's motivations suggest "the greatest threat is posed by the most effective and simple means of mass destruction, whether these means consist of nuclear, biological, or other forms of asymmetric weapons."

That makes all the scarier the scolding that came this week from the congressionally authorized Commission on the Prevention of Weapons of Mass Destruction Proliferation. That panel gave the Obama administration an F grade for its performance in preparing the U.S. homeland for a terrorist attack that utilized biological warfare. - Newsmax

Dominant Social Theme: Batten down the hatches.

Free-Market Analysis: We follow up yesterday's somewhat controversial column "Lieutenant Colonel Says US Coup Feasible" with this item from Newsmax (and perhaps elsewhere as well) which is actually entitled, "Former WMD Chief: Al-Qaida Awaiting Nukes." We focus on analyzing this story because it is yet another variant in our opinion of the authoritarian meme that has continually retained popularity with the US military, America's 16 separate spy agencies and, for some reason, many in the alternative media.

Yesterday we discussed the potential for martial law in the West and especially in America, and pointed out the Internet's never-ending fascination with this potential state of affairs, especially in America. But we then suggested that a gradualist strong-man model followed by a Hitler or Mussolini was perhaps more likely than the naked declaration of martial law by an Obama presidency (or any other) for the foreseeable future (or near future anyway).

If you missed yesterday's coverage of this issue, click here to read now.

We pointed out that, especially in America, the size of the country, the lack of programs to control gun ownership (despite every effort) and the basic culture of the republic, which still abides, would spell no end of trouble for a political class that decided to solve its problems with a brutal military solution. This is NOT to say it could not happen - anything can happen - but an abrupt attempt at a military takeover, especially of America, would more likely result in an endless guerilla-style insurrection than a docile and pacified nation.

The "martial law" meme, we suggested, was (at least potentially and in-part) a power-elite promotion designed to frighten people, especially those with libertarian leanings, and make them feel hopeless and helpless. The promotion itself (if that is what it is), is being cleverly combined with the limnings of an increasingly authoritarian state that includes an ever-more militarized police force and "cooperation" between federal, state and local policing authorities - as if such totalitarian efficiencies are actually a net positive for civil society (they aren't).

Britain of course is far down this road, but the US is hurrying down it, too. We would suggest that the unseemly haste we observe on the way to "endless policing for endless security" is aided and abetted by a military and intelligence community that is happy to reinforce every social fear available. Not only that, but we hav