Christmas Terror Plot - What Could Have Caused It?

"Call it a subdued confidence. Complacency brought to shame. A weakness laid bare. Or an enemy's unbroken resolve?"

When you are the president of the most powerful nation on the planet - brimming with sharp rhetorics that your administration engages in a no-nonsense war against terrorism, and a vexing call just spoiled your Christmas vacation, informing you that another terrorist plot has just been prevented on Christmas day in an American territory, what would have been your reaction firsthand?

As Barack Obama's administration scrambles to dispel accusations that his Homeland Security people have failed to carry out their duties, air travellers in the US have started to doubt over their safety yet again. This quirky scenario arose from the fact that an Al Qaeda agent has just penetrated US airspace that could have inflicted deaths on innocent Americans.

Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, a 23 year-old UK student from Nigeria is the suspect in this foiled terrorist attack. Aboard Northwest Airlines for Detroit from Amsterdam, he travelled under already suspicious circumstances. According to reports, he purchased his one-way ticket in cash for almost US$3,000. He also did not check any luggage save for a small bag, in a scheduled 2-week US visit.

Reports would further support that, this young man still carries a valid US visa, inspite of his inclusion in the UK's watch list for suspicion of radicalism. In a more surprising twist, his father had earlier warned the US embassy in Nigeria, in November 2009, about his son's leanings toward extremism that could potentially pose a threat to American interests.

But despite all this, anti-terrorism agents made no effort to take his case seriously. All necessary tools were at their disposal to at least apprehend this walking time bomb, but failed to take heed of the warnings. When the suspect's father himself waved the red flag of the imminent threat, and only a cold shoulder he could get as a response, there must be an air of complacency within their ranks - which is very contradictory to Obama's stance on war against terrorism.

Not wanting to be accused of incompetence, both the Dutch and American authorities started to play the blame game. American authorities alleged that the Dutch did not use body scanners, that could have detected explosives worn by Umar. But their Dutch counterparts were quick to refute, saying those were not allowed by the US to be used, of which the Americans insisted that either way, the suspect should have not gotten through.

The prevention of this botched terror plot however, should be credited to the brave and quick-thinking passengers of the plane, who subdued the suspect and did not blink a bit, to prevent another would have been 9/11 disaster. The suspect did manage to ignite the explosives, but not in a manner he would have wanted. Reports would later indicate, that the young man from Nigeria had received training in Yemen, sometime in Ramadan this year.

An estimated 76 grams of the PETN explosive was concealed in Umar's body, and a syringe with a chemical catalyst, carefully concealed in a pouch sewn into his underwear. This was a potentially strong explosives that had it been successfully detonated, enough to break the plane's fuselage that could have killed all on board.

This latest incident could be a precursor to another imminent terror attack on US soil. The Al Qaeda group - a sworn enemy of the US has famously declared war against America, and this determined enemy is just getting more ruthless and dangerous. In seven years since America unilaterally declared war against Al Qaeda, it has not inflicted heavy dent on the terrorist group, instead they are just getting more pervasive and sophisticated.

As news of this daring plot has permeated media all over the world, a substantial and more stringent security measures have been implemented right away in ports of the US and Canada. Aviation authorities all over the world are expected to follow suit, which is the natural thing to do. This new unfolding of events does not bode well to an already shaky aviation business, as post 9/11 statistics show that most passengers are becoming wary of air travel.

Though this incident would certainly be a challenge to rectify lapses in airport security, no matter how highly-sophisticated are the West's technology to prevent future attacks, the sworn enemy will always find its way and make its presence felt. The future cannot be foretold, whether how many lives will be lost due to hatred. Reports say that willing suicide bombers in a hundreds are undergoing training in Yemen, and it will only be a matter of time before they can carry out their "martyrdom".

Whether we agree or disagree in unison, the reason why all these nonsense happen - is because of religion. It is indeed a nonsense for any upright-thinking human being, but for a radical mind, full of hatred and wrath - this is what they call martyrdom. They were made to believe, that God delights in the shedding of the blood of the innocent, and that their actions merit rewards and special places in heaven. These twisted views reinforce their belief, that the enemy of their religion is also the enemy of God. And the enemy of God deserves to die. How false and sad. For as long as hatred pervades in their system, there will be no scarcity of haters, and consequently, no dearth of suicide bombers.

As we all know, the root of all these problems dates back in the Old Testament time. The enmity between peoples who refuse to live in harmony - one refuses to accept the existence of another, in the same hallowed ground. It is where the cause originated, and as has been prophesied - on that same hallowed ground, its cause will be settled and come to an end.

There is an unending quest for answers to a question left unsolved since the beginning of time, and this calls for wisdom. Generations of leaders from both sides have endeavored peaceful means to achieve peace. But peace will not be attained. They will never find that peace, instead hatred towards each other will consume their being. And the cycle continues - until the prophecy is fulfilled.

I may not be an authority to tackle issues like this, or if I may say I'm getting out of bounds, but indeed the truth cannot be denied. Each one of us may be having some slight disagreements, and or different insights on the issue, or perhaps I just went too far on a deeper perspective, but my conviction is that - unless we open our senses and start to believe that all these happen to give way for that divine prophecy, we may not be able to comprehend things laid out before our eyes. We may be highly-intelligent in a worldly standard, yet we are doomed to perish because of our lack of understanding. For we have been warned to know the truth because the truth will set us free.

Philippine Sea Tragedies: Who's The Real Culprit?

"It's a shame, when a government that can shamelessly afford a million-peso dinner cannot afford to pay minimum wage for personnel supposedly tasked to secure the safety of its people."

They say Christmas is for children. If so, this is a cruel Christmas for some children who perished in the recent tragedies at sea. Back to back sea tragedies in Philippine waters this Christmas is no Christmas at all for the victims and those who lost their loved ones. When passengers were gearing up for their memorable Christmas vacation, disasters struck.

As of posting time, many bodies are still unaccounted for. Search and retrieval operation is still ongoing. Relatives of the missing still await news from the authorities. Those who survived are considered fortunate, and those who perished their destiny already sealed.

The Philippines is known to be one of the world's largest archipelagos. It is comprised of 7,107 islands, mostly inhabited. Its maritime history is as old as human civilization. And it is no surprise that it also boasts of maritime disasters, its record no other country would dare challenge.

This year alone, an incredibly-dizzying record of 11 disasters had already occurred in Philippine seas. Hundreds of lives were already lost and survivors have yet to move on with their lives. To a country that boasts of world-class seafarers, the rationale that these disasters are attributed to incompetence is just absurd. But what makes this phenomenon seemingly unavoidable?

From the words itself of the Marina Administrator, she unhesitatingly admitted that the government lacks iron will to implement laws on maritime safety. She further stressed that they lack personnel to conduct ocular check on sea-worthiness of all passenger vessels. This is the painful truth, all patrons of this so called roros (roll-on roll-off) have to live with.

In provinces outside of mainland Luzon, the traveling public have no other choice, but to patronize this kind of transportation. Apart from its being affordable, it also allows passengers to carry loads of cargoes necessary for their day to day subsistence. So in essence, it is their only mode of transportation.

The usual causes of these disasters arise from over-loading, over-crowding (actual passengers are higher than what is being declared in the manifesto), and dilapidated vessels that are actually third or fourth hand bought at a cheap price - which make them unfit for sailing, but are hugely tolerated to operate.

As expected, authorities are quick to blame the owners of these ill-fated vessels citing irresponsibility and greed. Fingerpointing becomes the norm in these cases and the usual culprit would be the ruthless yet defenseless Mother Nature. What a good riddance of culpability from our government officials!

If our government within its power cannot ensure the safety of our sea travellers, what the hell on earth these Marina and Coast Guard people are doing? What makes these agencies beneficial to our people? That would also be preposterous to abolish their existence! But why is it everytime disasters happen, they just sheepishly admit they lack manpower to execute their duties? How many more vessels are considered to be sea-unworthy, yet continuously proliferate our ports?

This is my take on this. If you happen to be a citizen of a third world archipelagic countries like Indonesia, Bangladesh and the Philippines, and you don't have any other choice of transportation, but to avail of the services of these doomed floating cemeteries; start to think that this is your government's inexplicit way of curtailing population growth. Why not? Despite the Philippines being the country with the worst record in maritime disasters, it is yet to learn from its blunders!

When we talk about safety and hundreds of lives are at stake, whatever it takes to ensure lives are preserved, we ought to do everything within our power and capacity. But who cares? "These are only poor people with less impact to our existence! Why bother to increase the budget of Marina or Coast Guard when there is not much left from government coffers?" Sad to say, these are the obvious monologues from our corrupt officials, who until now refuse to realize they are being derelict and grossly irresponsible.

The Marina administrator herself, in her capacity admits that, their lack of personnel is the reason why not all vessels are being thoroughly inspected for sea-worthiness. It was reported that a crew who did not survive the incident, even managed to text her family saying there was a big hole in the ship and that she was scared it might capsize. Unfortunately for her, she lost her life in the first week of her first job.

How many more lives await their end in the cruel seas of our archipelago? While the poor and helpless citizens drown in the seas, so are our unscrupulous and corrupt government officials who drown in the bounty of their plunders. It's a shame, when a government that can shamelessly afford a million-peso dinner, cannot afford to pay minimum wage for personnel supposedly tasked to secure the safety of its people.

No matter who is willing to take the blame, be it the greedy shipowners or the derelict Marina officials, or the ever-furious Mother Nature, or the lazy and sleep-deprived legislators, who would just attend the sessions and yawn, it all comes down to one - a corrupt government that is unable to protect its citizens by virtue of greed and slothfulness - is the one culpable and should be put to shame.

A school of thought readily supports and concludes that - in a third world country like ours, a citizen's longevity does depend on leaders who have powers to prolong or curtail his or her existence. This theory is very self-explanatory. Then our dilemma starts from the question of how and when to get rid of them and who to replace them. As election nears, everyone sounds and looks like angels, that you would get confused whom to believe. The problems in our country today are the very same problems already written in history. Leaders have come and gone. But the change that everyone invokes remains a dream.