Register claims terror plot's rubbish

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Soldato
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The register, creators of incorrect 'news' and dubious rumours have a headline claiming that the recent terrorist plot was would never have worked. Interesting, though being elreg I choose not to believe it until it's gone through some lengthy peer review - so anyone got anything to say about the article?

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"For some real terror, picture twenty guys who understand op-sec, who are patient, realistic, clever, and willing to die, and who know what can be accomplished with a modest stash of dimethylmercury.''

All across Northern england there are disgruntled British muslims googling dimethylmercury.

It does worry me that after the event people always come up with these type of stories. I remember one going on about how easy it would be to drive a lorry laden with explosives into a nuclear power plant and attempting to blow a hole in it.


If they dont think of these things before hand all you have to do is hang about a week and the press will give you the best ideas for casuing mass devistation.
 
fini said:
The register, creators of incorrect 'news' and dubious rumours have a headline claiming that the recent terrorist plot was would never have worked. Interesting, though being elreg I choose not to believe it until it's gone through some lengthy peer review - so anyone got anything to say about the article?
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The whole point is that the article is referencing peer reviewed work (from TFA) to reach its conclusions.

The point of the article is that the press pipes this crap up us, with no heed for how the real world works.
 
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Borris said:
The whole point is that the article is referencing peer reviewed work (from TFA) to reach its conclusions.
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It references peer reviewed work for specific details, but there's nothing to link each bit of 'solid' news together with the next except for the register's own writtings.

Anyone know enough to be able to say what the reg is saying about it being completly infeesable is correct?

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I read a quote in the Times suggesting that anyone who doubts the terrorists would have succeeded should be offered a free transatlantic trip with all the suspects under the old security measures :p
 
From a very limited chemistry knowledge point of view, I would tend to agree with them. To get anything like the explosive power needed to bring down a plane, they would have to get stuff such as quantities just right, otherwise running the risk of a fizzle rather than a bang.

While there defintiely was a threat, the actual proportion/ real level of it is definitely debatable.

-Leezer-
 
fini said:
Anyone know enough to be able to say what the reg is saying about it being completly infeesable is correct?

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I can't see much in there chemistry-wise that stands out as being wrong. The example of a decompression incident that they pointed out (Aloha Airlines Flight 243) is a good one as it shows the kind of damage you have to do to bring a plane down with any kind of certainty.
 
SiD the Turtle said:
Anyone know what they used in 7-7? Was it similar?
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most media seems to claim acetone peroxide but that seems a bit off to me - you are more likely to blow your own hands off whilst making it.
 
fini said:
The register, creators of incorrect 'news' and dubious rumours have a headline claiming that the recent terrorist plot was would never have worked. Interesting, though being elreg I choose not to believe it until it's gone through some lengthy peer review - so anyone got anything to say about the article?

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From the article:

We're told that the suspects were planning to use TATP, or triacetone triperoxide, a high explosive that supposedly can be made from common household chemicals unlikely to be caught by airport screeners.
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TATP is indeed nifty if properly produced and stabilised but not the easiest of things to make on a plane. I highly doubt that this was the compound of choice and there are plenty of other simple options available to them.
There does appear to be a lot if interest in disinforming the public about the method and threat. I wonder why?
 
Just because it might not have worked doesn't mean that they weren't going to try it. I imagine managing a minor explosion on a plane would have achieved their aims to a certain degree if not their intended death toll.
 
scorza said:
Just because it might not have worked doesn't mean that they weren't going to try it. I imagine managing a minor explosion on a plane would have achieved their aims to a certain degree if not their intended death toll.
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but its unlikely that any explosion would occur just by mixing (if they were using acetone peroxide), so they are really misrepresenting to the public.
my boss saw another news programme where they went to a so-called expert and was showing off ammonium triiodide saying how dangerous it was - fine when wet, explosive when dry, but something that would be impossible to blow up a plane with.
 
scorza said:
Just because it might not have worked doesn't mean that they weren't going to try it. I imagine managing a minor explosion on a plane would have achieved their aims to a certain degree if not their intended death toll.
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TATP is not the easiest, simplest or most effective binary explosive for them to use in that situation. I agree that even if they utterly cocked up the mixing it could still bring a plane down but there are such simple and effective alternatives that I think it unlikely that TATP was their first choice.
 
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