Hypothetical terrorist attack

[The Kernel]

This thread is probably going to be contentious, but I'm interested in the responses people come up with. The idea here is to figure out what a low tech, reasonably well funded terrorist cell could do damage wise in the US with the proper guidance.

Here is the situation: You have under you a terrorist cell with 15 members, all highly entrenched inside the US. You also have at your disposal $10 million in cash, as well matching funds abroad in international banks. You also have contacts in the US through various organized crime groups to obtain small arms and high explosives in small quantities.

All of your people have full papers and are reasonably well educated. What do you do with these resources if you have been tasked with giving the US the biggest bloody nose possible in a single or series of attacks?

[K. A. Pital]

My first question would be - is such a discussion of plausible terrorist plots legal?

[Durandal]

Simple. Just turn every major city in America into Baghdad. I mean, really, it's cheap, the population will literally be terrorized, the cost in terms of lost productivity from no one willing to take public transportation to work would be massive, and it can all be done with stuff you can buy at the local hardware store.

[Patrick Degan]

My first question would be - is such a discussion of plausible terrorist plots legal?

Discussions about overthrowing the U.S. government are legal in this country. You may as well worry about them jailing Clive Cussler or Tom Clancy for discussing the subject. Besides which, anything any of us could come up with which is plausible is anything terrorists could come up with. They wouldn't need Stardestroyer.net as a source of ideas.

[weemadando]

This thread has HoS or OT written all over it - but here's my 2 cents.

Option 1) Get each of the fifteen men an assault rifles and some training. Let them go beltway sniper wherever they choose.

Option 2) Select a city and get explosives. Set explosives to cut/disrupt mass transit lanes (bridges, train tracks, highways etc) around a population centre then start doing whatever you want. Go Die Hard 3 and put a bomb in a school and call it in to talk radio, send random gunmen into buildings and watch as people go fucking nuts because they can't get to their homes/families. It mightn't be a big bloody nose, but the aftermath will be on Larry King for months.

Option 3) Again with the random terror. Small amounts of explosives used for carbombs. Do this to random vehicles. Soccer mom SUVs, taxis, delivery vans etc etc etc. Combine with option 1 as appropriate.

Option 4) Make 'em look stupid. Spend $10million on lightboards and move to Boston.

[Lord Zentei]

Simple. Just turn every major city in America into Baghdad. I mean, really, it's cheap, the population will literally be terrorized, the cost in terms of lost productivity from no one willing to take public transportation to work would be massive, and it can all be done with stuff you can buy at the local hardware store.

With only 15 guys?

Instead, try a suicide rush with bombs into Congress when it is in session.

[The Kernel]

Simple. Just turn every major city in America into Baghdad. I mean, really, it's cheap, the population will literally be terrorized, the cost in terms of lost productivity from no one willing to take public transportation to work would be massive, and it can all be done with stuff you can buy at the local hardware store.

The problem is that you don't have the manpower to pull such a thing off unless you changed your tactics. Suicide bombing is out (your people are too expensive for that) so if you wanted to do that you'd have to stick to things like the Tokyo subway bombing.

[Lord Zentei]

Simple. Just turn every major city in America into Baghdad. I mean, really, it's cheap, the population will literally be terrorized, the cost in terms of lost productivity from no one willing to take public transportation to work would be massive, and it can all be done with stuff you can buy at the local hardware store.

The problem is that you don't have the manpower to pull such a thing off unless you changed your tactics. Suicide bombing is out (your people are too expensive for that) so if you wanted to do that you'd have to stick to things like the Tokyo subway bombing.

No suicide bombs? Well, so much for the above.

[Durandal]

Well okay, every major city would not be feasible. But you could hit one or two, and that'd do plenty of damage.

[weemadando]

Simple. Just turn every major city in America into Baghdad. I mean, really, it's cheap, the population will literally be terrorized, the cost in terms of lost productivity from no one willing to take public transportation to work would be massive, and it can all be done with stuff you can buy at the local hardware store.

Yeah, and if you really want to have fun, call it a general uprising against ZOG to get the crazies to join in.

[18-Till-I-Die]

I'd use fears of other subversive groups to mask my own.

Everywhere we hit will be plastered with swastikas, KKKs and phrases like "Die Niggers" and such. And we'd send multiple letters and calls to various tv stations claiming to be a white-power faction. The cops will be looking for a bunch of rednecks with Toby Keith posters instead of muslims

Secondly i'd compound this by targeting places like black churches and such, while also randomly getting in much larger attacks against other establishments. Because of the "profile" of the group the former would get more attention than the latter by the authorities, and both can be fairly cheaply done with homemade bombs and such. Combine with several men trained as snipers going all Red Dawn on people and it'd be really scary for the general public. More so, make sure anyone of my people has NOTHING on them to connect them to each other, no Muslim extemist stuff or anything. So if any are captured they wont spill the beans, hopefully then i can maintain my cover indefinitely.

[Lord Zentei]

Seeing as it would be pretty hard to smuggle a bomb into Congress USSC and White House, and a suicide attack is out of the question, I suspect that the next target of choice would be Wall Street while it is in full session: that would definately qualify as a "bloody nose" (as per the OP), though it wouldn't result in martial law like killing off Congress would.

Although Goldfinger's idea regarding Fort Knox is a good one, I doubt that 15 guys could take it.

[K. A. Pital]

The best idea would be to somehow blow up the Parliament. It would have a terrifying effect on the US in general, not to mention the increased dictatorial measures and agressiveness. You might very well accomplish the transition between reality and 24 by a single good bombing.

[Yogi]

Instead of going after high profile targets, I'd go after lots of low profile targets. Simple pipe bombs in Starbucks, the mall, rural areas if I need to lay low for a while. The important areas are (or will be after I get started) heavily guarded, so I'll strike at many low-profile targets. This reinforces the idea that it isn't safe anywhere and even if you live in the boonies, you'll still have the possibility of being attacked.

[Lord Zentei]

The best idea would be to somehow blow up the Parliament. It would have a terrifying effect on the US in general, not to mention the increased dictatorial measures and agressiveness. You might very well accomplish the transition between reality and 24 by a single good bombing.

That was my first idea. It's a bit difficult since the Kernel has since ruled out suicide attacks. You would need to smuggle the bomb in there or go 9/11 by remote control or something.

[Uraniun235]

Execute a series of bombings at key power transmission facilities to cripple the power grid and incapacitate major commercial/industrial facilities. Taking out much of the East Coast shouldn't be too big a problem, given that the system failed all on its own in 2003.

[weemadando]

The best idea would be to somehow blow up the Parliament. It would have a terrifying effect on the US in general, not to mention the increased dictatorial measures and agressiveness. You might very well accomplish the transition between reality and 24 by a single good bombing.

That was my first idea. It's a bit difficult since the Kernel has since ruled out suicide attacks. You would need to smuggle the bomb in there or go 9/11 by remote control or something.

You could try going all IRA with mortar attacks...

[Darth Raptor]

If the United States had one single, overriding Achilles' Heel it would have been hit already. That's why every terrorist target is symbolic. The WTC? Capitalist shrine to comercial consumerism. The Pentagon? Corrupt heart of America's militant, imperial power. Myself, I favor 18's approach. Terrorism is inherently political, and attacks aimed at power plants, factories, bridges and military targets signify that you're thinking too much like a legitimate general leading a legitimate army, and not the leader of a band of violent criminals out to make an unmistakable statement. You want to foment as much panic, chaos and violence as possible. Your own personal agenda is irrelevant. You could be a Muslim Arab, Irish Catholic, Nazi or communist revolutionary. America is already a powder keg of religious and ethnic tension and it's hypothetically very cheap and trivially easy to light that fuse. At the end of the day, the Americans will be doing most of your work as racists and fundamentalists plunge headfirst into the melee they've wanted for so long. The South in particular is a very ripe target.

[Lord Zentei]

The best idea would be to somehow blow up the Parliament. It would have a terrifying effect on the US in general, not to mention the increased dictatorial measures and agressiveness. You might very well accomplish the transition between reality and 24 by a single good bombing.

That was my first idea. It's a bit difficult since the Kernel has since ruled out suicide attacks. You would need to smuggle the bomb in there or go 9/11 by remote control or something.

You could try going all IRA with mortar attacks...

Yeah, but you couldn't make Congress inoperable that way. Most if not all of the Congresscritters would survive, and set up shop elsewhere under heavier security at an "undisclosed location".

The idea was to force the US into martial law.

[K. A. Pital]

You would need to smuggle the bomb in there or go 9/11 by remote control or something.

The security in Wash. DC is abysmal. At least from what I personally saw. I mean, launching an RC vehicle with high-explosives into the Congress should be easy job. Since you have $10 million, I think you could get the needed remote flyer. Moreover, there's little chances to prevent this attack if carried out from immediate vinicity of the Congress.

[Lord Zentei]

If the United States had one single, overriding Achilles' Heel it would have been hit already. That's why every terrorist target is symbolic. The WTC? Capitalist shrine to comercial consumerism. The Pentagon? Corrupt heart of America's militant, imperial power. Myself, I favor 18's approach. Terrorism is inherently political, and attacks aimed at power plants, factories, bridges and military targets signify that you're thinking too much like a legitimate general leading a legitimate army, and not the leader of a band of violent criminals out to make an unmistakable statement. You want to foment as much panic, chaos and violence as possible. Your own personal agenda is irrelevant. You could be a Muslim Arab, Irish Catholic, Nazi or communist revolutionary. America is already a powder keg of religious and ethnic tension and it's hypothetically very cheap and trivially easy to light that fuse. At the end of the day, the Americans will be doing most of your work as racists and fundamentalists plunge headfirst into the melee they've wanted for so long. The South in particular is a very ripe target.

I doubt that a string of low security target attacks would be successful in that, if the DC sniper's asstardism is anything to go by: it could just as easily bring people closer together.

Better to first force a marial/emergency law situation without revealing your hand, then go for inciting sectarian violence as people chafe under the new reality and start to point fingers.

Not that the OP required disintigration, merely the largest possible bloody nose: there's only so many things you can do with 15 guys and 2x10 million dollars, and I doubt bringing down the US is one of those things.

[CaptainChewbacca]

I'd have about half doing sniper attacks and blowing up power transformers. ONE faulty transformer blacked out the east coast for 24 hours a few years back.

One thing that would, I think, scare the bejezus out of the media is if you started picking off Hollywood celebrities, or perhaps a truck bomb at the Oscars. Take out America's cultural/social consciouness, so to speak.

[Dennis Toy]

Quote:
You would need to smuggle the bomb in there or go 9/11 by remote control or something.

The security in Wash. DC is abysmal. At least from what I personally saw. I mean, launching an RC vehicle with high-explosives into the Congress should be easy job. Since you have $10 million, I think you could get the needed remote flyer. Moreover, there's little chances to prevent this attack if carried out from immediate vinicity of the Congress.

HA! yea RIGHT. Have you BEEN to DC recently? DC is a FUCKING BUNKER. Streets closed off, Jersey Barriers and Bollards around every federal building, camera in front and around the buildings. You can't even drive a box truck on any of the avenues near the Capitol without having the Capitol Police intercept you with guns drawn. That little R/C airplane attack your planning, KEEP DREAMING.... You can't sneeze the wrong way in DC airspace without the air national guard flying up and intercepting your ass with a trigger finger and an eagerness to blow your ass out of the sky.

[Dennis Toy]

I would send 2 men onto the subway system and instruct them to wait until the train is under the river and destroy himself. 3 Men would be sent to 3 shopping malls and 3 more would be sent into department stores. Other ones would be sent into sporting events like a football or baseball game or to a concert with a famous celebrities like Britney Spears or Christina Aquela.

[fnord]

Dennis, I believe The Kernel said earlier in the thread suicide attacks are out, as you can't drum up replacement manpower.

As weemadando suggested, shrapnel-enhanced mortar attacks on public gatherings, such as Australia/NZ's Anzac Day parades - Globalsecurity.org quoth ranges in the 1-3 km band for man portable mortars that presumably could be set up anywhere convenient, then destroyed or abandoned in place.

How feasible would chemical, radiological or biological attacks be? Going a bit beyond the OP's remit?

If the whole point is to terrorise, rather than just rack up corpses for the hell of it, perhaps not make all attacks outright lethal. Maybe a couple of mortar attacks with leaflet rounds, anonymous ones, with psyop stuff on them. Then let the stampeding sheep do the damage.

Vehicle borne IEDs would be too useful to pass up, I guess - what about cribbing ideas from the Iraqi civil war currently in progress?