New York Explosion – Domestic Terrorists Just As Dangerous as Foreign

I was on TV on 9/11 as a terrorist analyst. I did the same during the 1991 Gulf War. Some of the clips are on "YouTube" under the ID "Fjet2020". People seem to be missing the point when it’s said this was “not” a terrorist attack. We seem to have forgotten that America is as vulnerable to a domestic terrorist as a foreign one.

Have we forgotten the damage by Tim McVeigh and Terry Nichols, white American natives, with a grudge and a truck bomb at the Oklahoma City federal building?

The explosion in New York at a military recruitment center was by a person on a bike, who threw a device made from a green ammunition can filled with explosive powder. It blew out the lower part of the glass -- it's being described as a "low explosive." The act is the same; whether it’s an American or a foreigner. What if next time it is a “high” explosive?

The incident bore strong similarities to two past incidents where small homemade bombs or incendiary devices were tossed at official buildings in New York in the last two years. Two were tossed at the British consulate and more recently two were tossed at the Mexican consulate.

So, there goes the theory that it is someone with a grudge against our military. Why attack a U.S. Military recruiting center, the British and Mexican consulates? What about the man in Las Vegas who is sick from Ricin poisoning? The Anthrax killer was never caught. We have a trend developing here, so we need to be as concerned with domestic terrorism from people whose faces may look like Tim McVeigh but adopt the common Middle East practice of trying to “fix” things by firing a rocket or tossing a bomb.

I recommend that people start thinking ahead to minimize the threat that will not go away when an individual or small angry group can easily obtain or make explosives.

The New York attack on the recruitment center should have been anticipated and prepared for. The bomb broke through the glass, causing damage and exposing the building to the elements.

If the center had installed a bomb-resistant window film available from our sponsor, Armor Glass International, the bomb would not have penetrated the glass. The inside would have been protected from damage even if the windows were shattered by the explosion. The Armor Glass film could have kept the building sealed and redirected the blast. If employees and guests had been present, they would have been saved from flying glass shrapnel. In hurricane zones, the same film would provide the same protection.

Terrorism is a part of our world in this 21st Century, whether it is Al Qaida or a local nut case who makes a bomb to make a point. Terrorism is also Mother Nature on a rampage the form of storms with flying debris.

This latest incident in New York, and the coming hurricane season, should be a warning that all of us who live in glass houses (offices, etc.) are vulnerable to these threats until we add 24/7 protection.

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