RateItAll: The Opinion Network

I can only piggback on Jed1000's comment. The terrorists can threaten all they want in Italy - if you hadn't picked up n it in the news, two days or so after London, Italian police arrested something like 147 suspects (read Muslims) in Milan, and deported 53 of them. Despite many stereotypical beliefs to the contrary, the Italian security agencies are no fools. They manage to keep pretty good track of potentially dangerous foreign elements, and can act or react very quickly (as shown by the arrests I mentioned) when the occasion demands it. The Italians may have a loose arrangement with potential troublemakers (i.e., We won't bother you if you behave yourselves), but are not overly sensitive about rights of non-Italians (or of lawbreaking Italians for that matter). Without going into any specifics, when I was in the Army I was stationed in Italy for three tours, and worked very closely with Italian security folks. Let me tell you, it's not a winning proposition to screw with them in any manner, shape, or form. My higher headquarters was really nervous about some of the things the Italians proposed I get involved in with them, and basically told me to keep my distance (which sometimes I did, other times, eh!). If terrorists pull off anything in Italy, they might as well be suicide bombers, because their chances of survival when caught are nil.

Is there a European nation who thinks that they're immune from an attack like this? What was it PBeavr said about using your navel as a peephole?

Although we should take their threats seriously, I've learnt that these things don't end up happening. The terrorists are mainly all hot air because they have threatened attack after attack and only about 10% of them end up happening. I believe they are doing that deliberately, just being full of hot air. Of coarse they are not going to tell any of us their plans! They say, 'I'm going to attack such and such a place' when they will not, to bring a sense of fear and that they are still alive. What kind of idiot would spend their whole life planning how to kill and hurt other people? I think all these terrorists are a physical manifestation of the devil and have been programmed by Satan with instructions. Their purpose is to carry out the devil's will which is to bring paranoia in this world which will eventually lead to war.

I don't know about the Danes but the Italians have been putting up with terrorist attacks for decades. Everyone from red Brigades to the mafia have been wreaking havoc in Italy since the 1970s. They even survived having their prime minister kidnapped and murdered. I really don't think they're going to be rattled by a few more bombings. They'll deal with it as they always have.

Is it me of does all this terrorist activity seem like maximum effort and very little real result? Other than just pissing off the world, creating a general outcry and having their handiwork broadcast around the globe, just exactly what IS it that terrorists are trying to accomplish and just how much progress have they actually made in that direction? Nothing in the whole bomb/maim/kill scenario makes a bit of sense to me. I mean, imagine that your objective was to get some peoples attention and insult them simultaneously. And then lets say, for some reason, you thought that screaming obscenities and pounding your fist would do the trick. So, you proceed to pound and scream and scream and pound until your voice is gone and your fist is numb. Instead of being insulted or paying attention to whatever it is you want them to pay attention to (because you know, how can they really tell with all the screaming and pounding) the people are actually more annoyed than anything and their willingness to listen is replaced by a wish to see you gone. My question to the terrorists - and other world class fit throwing maniacs is just how many repetitions of this pointless behavior does it take for it to dawn on you geniuses that there just might be a more effective method of dealing with your grievances?

They will build on this terrorist moment to instill as much fear as they can.