Sunday, September 11, 2011

Dow 11K & Dirty Bomb Threat / Mideast Tensions

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Going into this weekend and the 10th anniversary of 9/11, there were reports of a credible terrorist threat for a "dirty bomb" attack in NYC and/or Washington DC:

Just two days before the 10th anniversary, New York City is on high alert.

Federal and local authorities have beefed up security after receiving intelligence about a credible threat. The alleged plot by al Qaeda involves detonating car bombs on bridges and in tunnels in New York and Washington D.C. to coincide with the anniversary of 9/11.

....

The crossroads of the world came to a grinding halt at various times Friday because for police Times Square has become the ground zero of the latest terror threat. Sources told CBS 2’s Marcia Kramer that another attempt to explode a bomb there is a key concern, and the intelligence suggests it could be a dirty bomb.

Read more @ CBS/NYC

Ahead of the 10th anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks, authorities in New York and Washington DC were on high alert after receiving a "credible threat" that was also deemed to be "unconfirmed." The threat appears to be centered around the possibility of a car bomb, with particular concern for Times Square in the heart New York City's midtown which was the site of the last known car bomb attempt by a terrorist linked to Islamic causes.

Authorities are worried that the terrorist operatives could use a radiological "dirty bomb" this time around, according to a local CBS News report. A "dirty bomb" is defined as a conventional explosive device that is packed with common radioactive material, such as the waste discarded by hospitals and power plants.

Checkpoints were established throughout Manhattan, and vehicles and bags were inspected for traces of gunpowder and radiation. Radiation monitors have also been positioned in a 50-mile radius of New York City, throughout New Jersey and Connecticut. Police are also equipped with hand-held radiation detectors.

Read more @ DigitalJournal


Now that the 10th anniversary memorials to 9/11 are over, I hope that NYC and federal officials remain vigilant.

For one, the purported purpose of al Qaeda terror attacks (which ultimately trace back to the Kremlin IMHO) are mass casualties. This year 9/11 fell on a Sunday leaving NYC mainly vacant for the memorial services. Dirty bombs are really weapons of mass disruption rather than mass destruction, so if any such attack is truly in the works, the odds are the terrorists would strike on a busy work day.
(Bioterror, on the other hand, is VERY dangerous.) This is particularly so on this occasion since the light traffic on Sunday allowed for very tight security for the 9/11 anniversary.

A second reason to be on alert, and I know most folks will have trouble fathoming this, is that the DJIA dropped sharply last Friday and closed below the psychologically important 11,000 mark:



I have been pointing out for years that significant historical shocks tend to erupt with reversals from psychologically important thousand marks in the DJIA and other major stock averages. One of the most profound examples occurred in early-September 2001 when the DJIA broke below the 10K mark and THEN 9/11 occurred:



Is a reversal from Dow 11K presaging a new terrorist attack in the U.S.? Also note that Egyptian mobs ransacked Israel's embassy in Cairo literally just as the DJIA was closing below 11,000 on Friday.

We are entering the "Fall" season now, so either which way people need to gird themselves for some very troubling days ahead IMHO. A dirty bomb terrorist attack could be part of that, but I think such an incident would be the least of our concerns compared to what's coming down the pike.



READ: IDF general: Likelihood of regional war growing


God have mercy on us.

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