It seems we're always hearing about how tough this "war" will be because of how smart the enemy is. People point to how long it took to plan the WTC attacks. But let's think about this for a minute Ted...what smarts did it take to pull off those attacks? I mean, how smart do you have to be to learn how to fly a plane? How smart do you have to be to try to sneak a knife onto a plane? What other intelligence did this attack require? Learn how to fly, and ambush some airplanes...do you have to be a genius to do that? I don't think so. I think the US is much smarter than this group of thugs, and they may have one more (desparate) attack in them, but that's it. I think we're already onto them. They were dumb enough to leave a huge paper trail in their wake, which has led to numerous arrests. Does anyone else agree with me that this enemy is not as smart as advertised?
I disagree. You have any idea how difficult it is to hijack a plane? I don't want to go into detail, but bottom line is - it is VERY difficult. And the way they timed their attacks, and pinpointing the location of their targets......sheesh these freaks are geniuses. Anyways, point is, these guys aren't nearly as dumb as you think. I'm sure you don't think that they're dumb dumb dumb idiots, but I don't think that you think these guys are as smart as they really are (if that makes any sense. )
Is there that much of an uproar being made about how smart the enemy is? If anything I think the enemy is fearless. I don't think they're any smarter than any other group; but as individuals, they are incredibly brave. Which is why this whole "they're cowards" is a joke. I'm sure it takes no guts to pilot a jet straight into a building or go on other similar suicide runs. Heinous, thoughtless, animals they are, but cowards they're not.
TheFreak: I think that you're correct that they may not be as smart as advertized. They had flight training... but come on, security was a joke. Nobody resisted on 3/4 planes, evidently. How hard is it to walk on a plane, stab some unarmed civilians, and say you have a bomb? I hope that they just got lucky because of relative unpreparedness. They already have the advantage of being willing to die. I hope they aren't sophisticated as well.
The "intelligence" is not in the actual results, it's making sure you get the results. It's in the contingency plans, coordinations, secrecy, etc. For example, if you or I tried to duplicate this (even ignoring the new security levels), we'd probably fail. Maybe the CIA/FBI would find out. Maybe I'd have troubles at the gates. Maybe you'd pick the wrong plane. Maybe passengers would fight back. Maybe you'd make a slight error at the controls (due to nerves). I think it's always easy to say <I>after the fact</I> that "oh that was simple" when you only see the results. Who knows how much preparation went into contingency plans, other training, etc. Its a much different story beforehand to coordinate and organize it.
I wouldn't call them genuises, but they are definitely smart. But more than anything else, they were devoted, and disciplined. To train and study a couple of years in advance for the one day that will lead to your demise. That's discipline. As for being smart, I don't think it was a coincidence that they struck the towers where they did. I'm speculating here. But I think they knew how approximate they wanted to be on target. I'm sure many hours of discussions were about at what point is the best point to strike to dismantle the WTC. Blah. I'll stop now, it's making me sick.
Also, I don't think its so much the 19 individuals involved, but the whole Al Qeuda (?) organization. They've been able to bomb all sorts of stuff such as the USS Cole, the embassies, etc, and we haven't been able to stop them. We don't even know where exactly their leader is. When an organization can hide like that even from all the technology the US has, I think that says something about how smart they are as a group. That said, overwhelming force and dedication can overcome any amount of smarts.
Its not a matter of being intelligent. You're correct in saying it doesn't take to much thinking to hijack a plane with knifes and ram it into a building. Its the security and patience (if i was a kamakazi, i think i'd be more patient too) that is appauling. None of these guys know nothing. They don't want to know anything, just in case they get captured. If you commit a crime and you don't tell anyone, you might get away with it. The more people you tell, the more likely you will be caught. But 50 people for 5 years of planning??
Three points: The plan hijacking was one incident amongst hundreds...the coordination of all those incidents is mind boggling. Two...for an insight as to how smart these guys are, read up on the death of the "opposition" muslim leader last week... Three... this whole thing seems to be a 'set up' to get the US to bite, react randomly...and cause other muslim nations to rise up against them... Let's hope they are wrong on part three...
The footsoldiers themselves probably aren't that bright. The individual cells - none of which generally have contact with each other - probably aren't that bright. The guys who give the orders and coordinate the logistics, financing, planning, etc. are very smart. Osama is no dummy. He's bonkers, but he's no dummy. Just like Saddam; many observers believe that he may be a paranoid schizophrenic, but he's clearly intelligent (tho he's made many miscalculations). These guys are extremely intelligent, they just don't understand Western psychology. But whoever took those put out options in the markets (or whatever they're called) before the attacks was clearly pretty bright. They actually made money off of the attacks...
