Below The Beltway

One year after the attacks on London’s mass transit system comes news that the FBI has broken up a similar plot aimed at New York City’s tunnels:

WASHINGTON — Authorities have disrupted planning by foreign terrorists for an attack on New York City tunnels, two law enforcement officials said Friday. FBI agents monitoring Internet chat rooms used by extremists learned in recent months of the plot to strike a blow at the city’s economy by destroying vital transportation networks, one official said.

Lebanese authorities, acting on a U.S. request, have arrested one of the alleged plotters, identified as Amir Andalousli, the other official said. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because the investigation is still under way.

The plot itself was pretty brazen, but probably would not have achieved its objective because even jihadists are subject to the laws of physics:

The Daily News reported that the plotters wanted to blow up the Holland Tunnel, the southernmost link between Manhattan and New Jersey, in the hopes of flooding New York’s financial district. The desired effect would be akin to the flooding that ravaged New Orleans in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, the newspaper said.

The Daily News said, however, it was unlikely that any plan to flood the financial district would work because it is above river level.

I grew up near New York City and travelling through both the Lincoln and Holland Tunnels frequently. While it might not cause a flood an attack on either one of those tunnels would cause a considerable amount of damage. So, yes, the terrorists are stupid for thinking they could flood Wall Street, but that, as Ann Althouse points out, is part of the problem.

More coverage from James Joyner who points to this post by Chuck Keller at TPM Cafe:

The fear mongers are at it again. It’s the one-year anniversary of the attacks in London. That puts the needle of fear back into the arms of America’s junkies.

The closer we get to November, the more we will see “NEWS” stories about “potential” terrorist threats. Last week it was the “Gang That Couldn’t Shoot Straight” in Miami. Now New York is announcing a foiled “terrorist” attack on the Holland Tunnel. ?PLOT? FOILED Wow! Homeland Security makes me feel all warm and fuzzy. It is such a relief knowing they are out there working so hard 24/7 “protecting” us.

We heard similar nonsense in the runup to the 2004 Presidential election. Any release of information about potential terrorist plots was dismissed by the left as electioneering and fearmongering. It is enough to make one wonder whether they truly believe that we are in danger of being attacked, or whether they care.

Kim Priestap has a more rational take on the story:

This should be a reminder that we really are engaged in an active war on terror. So many on the left have criticized the president’s methods for keeping America safe, including the NSA Terrorist Surveillance program, the Phone Call Database, and most, recently, the Terrorist Bank Records program. However, we would not have been able to stop this plot at the “talking phase,” as Senator Schumer put it, if we weren’t able to monitor international communications.

I can’t say I disagree.

More from Kevin Aylward and LaShawn Barber