Could it Happen Here?

It's hard to believe that a week ago today Mumbai was on the verge of going under siege of terrorist guns in one of the most horrific terrorist attacks since September 11th. Now that the attack has ended and with most of the suspects killed or detained, the public has turned its eyes towards laying the blame for these attacks. Along with laying the blame people are also starting to wonder whether these types of attacks could happen anywhere else in the world. The unfortunate answer seems to be 'yes'.

Many people are wondering how such an attack could occur in a major city like Mumbai. If one takes a look at a map of the area that was attacked last week you'll find that it's nearly surrounded by water on all sides making a seaborne landing near impossible to detect or deter. To think of it another way, during the Second World War, Germany knew that the Allies would land on the northern coast of France at some point. They did their best to shore up defenses but despite that, the Allies did manage to maintain the element of surprise and storm the beaches of Normandy. In this case, India was aware that attacks could happen at some point and at some time but it is impossible for them to post guards along every square inch of coastline in the city. Even then, the Taj, responding to calls for additional security in the weeks leading up to the attacks, had installed metal detectors at the entrances of their hotel. Who knew that the terrorists would know to come in through the less securely guarded back entrance?

And what about the response on the part of the authorities and army? Again there are those who condemn them for being 'slow' to respond or in delaying their counterattacks. The main problem was that these terrorists had come in fully prepared knowing exactly where they were going to go and who was responsible for what. Though many times we like to live in the illusion that terrorists such as these are likely planning their attacks in caves with scribbled maps in the dirt they are more often as not very methodical in their planning and new evidence suggests that these teams had advanced reconnaissance of the area along with GPS trackers and maps of the area so that they knew routes to and from their targets. And when you're dealing with a big city like Mumbai, is it any wonder that one or two attackers could get through without being detected? Just imagine 30 cops trying to track one determined individuals through the alleyways and streets of New York at night in the midst of panic and uncertainty?

So what do we do? What happens if someone decides to attack the US the way India was attacked last week? What are we going to do? Sure we can beef up security and increase the number of guards at potential target hotels and cities around the nation. But for how long? You can only stretch a rubber band for so long before it finally loses its elasticity and then breaks. We can keep additional guards on post around our harbors and beaches. We can add bunkers and defensive positions around the US coastlines and the like but to what effect? Look at our borders with Mexico. So many illegal immigrants are entering this country and for years we have been unable to effectively stymie the problem. Is it possible to then secure the entire United States in anticipation of this type of attack?

The world is a big place and there are lots of people inhabiting it that have problems or issues with someone or the other. It's rare to go someplace in the world and find an area that is free of conflict. No matter where you go someone usually has a problem with someone else. Maybe not in Switzerland but still, most places in the world have some form of conflict with someone else. Maybe it isn't up to the level of a shooting war but it's not exactly 'shiny happy people-land' either. After September 11th, the world was more or less on alert for potential attacks. Their guard was up but the enemies of the world waited. Then the attacks on the tube in London occurred and again the world was ready for anything. Then it ebbed. Now once again the world is ready to defend against an attack like the ones in Mumbai. The only question is how long will this readiness last before we become complacent again?