A discussion of the terrorist toner cartridge bomb attempt on NBC tonight suggested that the threat was possibly a distraction that would allow terrorist to learn about our ability to respond. Michael Sheehan, a former NY police officer who is an expert on terrorism saw the “ineptness” of Al Queda when it came to bomb manufacturing.
Without specific explanations from the terrorists themselves, it seems there are a few conclusions that can be reached:
1. That terrorist groups are highly active at this time;
2. That it is possible to get explosive materials onto commercial airliners; and
3. That the governments of the world have created an effective network that are doing a good job at pre-empting terrorist activity.
Today, Anwar Al Alwaki encouraged other Muslims to wage jihad, promoting small random attacks across the United States and Europe. While the State Department has identified Alwaki as an important Al Queda recruiter, the message he released this Saturday (October 23) was a generalized call for violence, rather than a specific threat. It may have been a signal to localized terror cells, but more likely it is the continued strategy of creating fear that has been successful as a weapon of late. If Americans and Asians stay at home rather than travel to Europe because they are uneasy, Al Queda wins with nothing more than words.
The response of European governments to the threats has inspired greater vigiliance and arrests. Paris takes information that the Eiffel Tower is being targeted seriously and evacuated the landmark and surrounding areas in September. This should make you feel more confident about your decision to head to Europe, reflecting the extra security you should expect as you visit popular places like the Vatican, St. Mark’s Square, or Picadilly Circus.
Still, the best police work can not protect every traveler from random acts, so you are wise to be alert to your surroundings and strange behavior. Alert, not paranoid. But that is good advice even when terror alerts are not high. Tourists are often seen as easy targets for pickpockets in many major cities, so secure your cash and keep an eye on cameras and other belongings. And get updates on threat levels so that you avoid targets when there is credible evidence of impending danger. Just keep the danger in perspective. It is a general threat with no indication that there is evidence of any significant organization in Europe at this time. (See the recent issue of Time
Recent reports suggest that Americans are traveling more, despite the weak economy. Even if most of the travel is domestic, unless you are leaving from a direct flight to Europe, the cost of domestic travel may impact your flight, just because of the increase in the number of passengers traveling to that gateway airport and the decreasing number of domestic flights available. The rules of economics suggest that the greatest profit is made by a passenger company when every seat is filled with a paying passenger; if there is little competition in specific markets, carriers can not only fill every seat but at premium prices. For you to get a deal, you need to understand the factors that affect consumer demand for specific seats on the planes traveling to Europe and your options. For detailed advice on getting the best price, go to Eurfirst’s detailed page on airlines
Welcome to my blog for first time visitors to Europe. Quick thoughts about travel to Europe will be posted here. My hope is to help you plan an affordable trip to Europe because I know it will help you better understand your world and your life back at home. My greatest fear of the current economic decline throughout the world is not that it will diminish the number of jeans in our closet or make us cut back on sugary lattes. It is that we will stop traveling and become more insular. The greatest prospects for peace comes from friendship and understanding; travel to new places help us develop both. If reduced income make us become insular, those despots who would demonize “others” as the reasons for our economic woes will be unchallenged.
Until I landed in Europe, my family meme was that my grandparents had left Europe, a place torn to shambles by war with nothing as beautiful as the sights I’d find in America. Our national chauvinism made me believe that I would find the best food, most advanced technologies, and friendliest people if I stayed home. 42 days in 2001 made me realize that the United States doesn’t have a monopoly on the good life. Yes, we have great neighbors, beautiful national parks, and delicious restaurants, but the Europeans are working on ways to live lives filled with great flavors, amazing art, music, and a reverence for the best of its past while acknowledging the errors of its past. The place you land the first time will be unlike anything you envision as you do the planning…it will look, smell and be so much different and probably, so much better.
