Terror Comes to America

EmergencyNet NEWS Service
Tuesday, July 30, 1996
Vol. 2 - 212

TERROR COMES TO AMERICA ...
By Steve Macko, ENN Editor

The pipe bomb explosion on Saturday at the Summer Olympic Games in Atlanta served as yet another reminder to U.S. citizens that they are at the mercy of groups or individuals who have political or religious agendas, personal grievances or psychological problems.

The beginning of terrorism coming to the shores of America was the February 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center in New York City in which six people were killed and more than 1,000 others were injured. Next came the 19 April 1995 bombing of the federal building in Oklahoma City where 168 people were killed.

Before those two major events, terrorism that was directed at the United States was mainly contained to attacks on U.S. embassies and facilities in the Middle East and in Latin America. The more prominent attacks were the October 1983 bombing of the U.S. Marine barracks in Beirut and the December 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland.

The pipe bomb that exploded in the park in Atlanta on Saturday showed that an attack need not be on a grand scale. It doesn't have to be accomplished by a well organized terrorist group with hundreds, or maybe thousands, of members and supporters. An act of terror can be done by a single recluse, such as the infamous Unabomber -- who sent his deadly packages through the U.S. Mail.

Philip Stern, a terrorism expert with the New York-based corporate security firm, the Fairfax Group, said, "As an open society and a democracy this country is particularly vulnerable. We have free passage, coast-to-coast, anyone can apply for a visa to visit and the population is both enormous and diversified."

According to Stern, who has been quoted in this publication many times in the past, such factors provide cover to anyone who may wish to commit an act of violence against this country. Those kinds of people may be resentful economic "have-nots" or even religious fundamentalist extremists who see Western culture, values and power as oppression. Stern said, "At the same time we have the Montana Freemen, the Branch Davidians and the people who bomb our churches -- all symptomatic of disenchantment with society among people who are willing to use violence."

Stern said that such violent acts, such as the bombing in Atlanta, are "impossible to stop." Even if stricter controls, more surveillance and other increased security measures were to just be confined to government buildings and airports -- there would still be a danger. "The one thing you can't protect is the general population in a large urban area," Stern said. "Even Israel, a democracy that is under siege 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, can't stop it -- and they have in place a security system that we could not possibly emulate, due to this country's size." He added, "It would be like a giant trying to swat a gnat. The question is, how do you protect the American Airlines flight from Columbus to St. Paul? It all comes down to the cost factor -- how much you are willing to spend and what civil rights are you willing to have intruded upon to protect against terrorism."

Even before Saturday's bombing in Atlanta, people in the U.S. were already on edge after the downing of TWA Flight 800 off the coast of Long Island. The blast that occurred in Centennial Park only renewed concerns about how the U.S. was defending itself against terrorism.

The cause of the downing of TWA Flight 800 has not been officially determined, but if the jetliner was brought down by a terrorist plot -- it could be considered to be a pretty sophisticated plot. In comparison, the explosive device in Atlanta was easy to make and detonate in an unsecured area.

A major difference between the Atlanta attack and Middle East terrorists is that the Mideast terrorists often use high-powered car or truck bombs -- while it appears that domestic militia groups tend to focus on government buildings and not crowds of people.

The dean of Northeastern University's criminal justice program in Boston, James Alan Fox, says that there is essentially two motivations for bombers and they are: revenge and attention. Fox said, "The desire to make a statement can be that of a well-organized terrorist group that uses victims as pawns to advance their cause or it could be someone who is just interested in feeling important."

Given the increased focus on violent anti-government groups, sometimes called militias, Fox said that a militia sympathizer may have committed the bombing in Atlanta to gain attention. Fox said, "Through an amateurish bombing like this, he can feel like he's part of the movement. He can elevate his sense of importance."

Marvin Vitch, who is a security consultant, recently said, "The pipe bomb itself is a very, very unsophisticated device. Its components can be purchased in your local hardware store. Building one is quite simple. If you don't know how to do it, there are any number of books available ... that will teach you explicitly, step- by-step."

For 17 years, the infamous Unabomber kept investigators baffled because he carefully crafted his pipe bombs. He was very careful about the materials that he used and he was much more than the average, run-of-the-mill pipe bomb builder.

One special agent with the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) said that he was confident that the person(s) who committed the bombing in Atlanta would be apprehended. The agent said, "A pipe bomb is very inefficient. It always leaves a lot of evidence behind. We've investigated thousands of these. We know what to do."

Soon after the downing of TWA Flight 800, President Bill Clinton took additional steps to tighten security at airports, even before the downing was officially called a criminal act. Considering the downing of the plane and the bombings of the World Trade Center and the Oklahoma federal building, Senator Sam Nunn said that the U.S. is now finding itself in the same position in regard to terrorism as people in Great Britain, Israel and other countries. Nunn said, "The public in this country is on the front line now."

Just about immediately after the bombing in Atlanta Saturday, FBI Special-Agent-In-Charge Woody Johnson of the Atlanta Field Division said that the explosion was "considered an act of terror." Many counterterrorism and security experts have questioned the quick labeling of the incident as an act of terrorism. While it is terrible that two people were killed in the incident, one from an apparent heart attack brought on by the blast, what happened early on Saturday morning was not on the same level as what happened at Munich Olympic Games in 1972, where Palestinian gunmen murdered eleven Israeli athletes.

Robert Gardner, a security expert from Ventura, California, asked, "What is terrorism? Is it some Middle Eastern group or is it just some whacko who wants to liven up his evening?" After the FBI in Atlanta announced its assessment that the bombing was an act of terrorism, many in the uninformed main stream news media rushed to connect the event with the recent crash of TWA Flight 800 and the attacks in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, as well as the Oklahoma City bombing.

But terrorism experts, including those associated with this publication, quickly pointed out that the weapon that was used -- a pipe bomb laced with nails and screws in a knapsack -- was crude and that the motive for the bombing was unclear.

Laird Wilcox, an author and an expert on political extremism in the U.S., said, "I can't see Middle Eastern terrorists building a pipe bomb. They are far more advanced than that. It would surprise most of us if a group were involved. It was probably an individual or a couple of individuals. Maybe even young people. The militia groups have been so thoroughly penetrated and watched since Oklahoma that if a plot like this was being discussed the FBI would have known about it."

The potential for terrorism at the Olympic Games was discussed in a book entitled, "The Political Olympics." Its author Professor Derick Hulme said that it was in the interest of the government to label the bombing in Atlanta as terrorism before all the facts were in. He said, "All violence immediately becomes terrorism now."

Hulme was asked why it was in the interest of the government to label the attack terrorism, he replied, "It is very attractive for government figures and the media to do that. It answers questions fast and makes a political point." The Professor said that he believes that the Atlanta bombing was carried out by "one single crazy person." He added, "All this proves is that anyone can gain access to the world's media through the Olympics."

Robert Gardner said that the focus on terrorism would help known extremists groups -- even if they had nothing to do with the attack. Gardner said, "If they can be perceived as having disrupted the Olympics without even doing it, so much the better."

But as we return to main point of this article -- authorities and citizens in the U.S. are painfully beginning to learn that it is virtually impossible to prevent attacks on civilian targets. Doctor Bruce Hoffman, an expert on terrorism at St. Andrews University in Scotland, said, "Experience has repeatedly shown that terrorists, when confronted by heightened security, simply turn to softer targets."

The British newspaper Independent on Sunday said that there was a distinct difference between the terrorists operating in Europe and militants in the United States, such as Tim McVeigh -- who is accused in connection with the Oklahoma City bombing. The paper said, "When the IRA explode a bomb they do so with a political rationale. However foul their means, the end is clearly understood. The pattern of the American way of terror, now beginning to emerge, is unique. The Atlanta bomb, like the Oklahoma bomb, was an act of rage, nothing more. America's bombers do not make demands. They have no defined objectives. Terror is not an instrument of political persuasion. It is a means to vent spleen. Which, as the century draws to an end, does not speak well about the health of America."

As we conclude our analysis of this issue, Paul Copher, a counter-terrorism analyst, who is a former member of the U.S. military intelligence establishment, and a former trainer of counter-terrorism topics at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in Georgia, sums up the entire situation in America in his capsule comments; "I would predict a couple months of paranoia... then the security levels will drop because bombs won't be going off each day to sharpen the skills of the security forces."

Copher continued his analysis; "In regards to Atlanta, I have an idea "ole Billy Bob" did not want all these 'foreigners' in his state. The copycats are all wired now for the upcoming (political) conventions. The EOD/Bomb Disposal units are getting calls for every package or bag they see, just like in Israel. But, then the excitement will wear off and the INCONVENIENCE will take over."

Editor's Note by Clark Staten:
(Analysts at ERRI sincerely hope that Mr. Copher is wrong and that familiarity will not breed contempt. But, a historical perspective would suggest that he is probably right and that unless additional terror acts happen in the next few weeks or months, that the politicians, the media, and the public will do their best to quickly forget the reality of future threats against America. Caution is urged about a future failure to continue to plan, equip and prepare, as the collective mindset moves on to idyllic denial or to the next controversy or issue of the day. Terror has come to America and it is incumbent that we prepare to combat it at every turn, and in every way. Failure to do so, as demonstrated in Atlanta and Moriches Bay, NY can prove deadly.)