A secure democratic Net is a fundamental right

security is built upon the following principles

* risk

* opportunity

* prevention

* remediation

there was a risk that 10 years after the 9/11 attacks and the same year that Bin Laden has been killed and that the organisation Al Qaida an sich has been weakened that they would try to do - even a small - attack just to get into the news or because some lone supporter wanted to revenge the death of his spiritual leader by his own death (and that of many others)

so because of that risk everyone involved in security made up lists of opportunities that terrorists would have to blow up something or to attack (this is in fact done on a permanent basis but should be updated frequently)

the last stage is that when you have selected the most obvious targets (and the weakest links) you start taking action to prevent any attacks as much as possible (without turning it into a policestate or becoming totally paranoïd)

and you prepare for what should happen if something goes wrong (disaster management)

well, I think that since a few months I have read that intelligence and security-agencies were preparing themselves for this anniversary and that when there were indications that maybe some terrorists may have slipped through the safety-nets or under the radar, some arrests were made and everybody was given more attention to every detail

and so it was for most of the people a very normal day of rememberance while thousands of others in the first line and in coordination and intelligence centers were keeping a global watch to keep it this way

it wasn't a quiet day because the terrorists decided it would be a quiet day, security doesn't come like this, it is the result of investment and endurance

it was to be foreseen that the year that Bin Laden has been killed and numerous other Al Qaida operatives and leaders have been arrested or killed some-one somewhere would get the idea to do something on the day of the 10th anniversary (that makes a splash in all media around the world) of the attack

an Icarus attack because it led to the downfall of Al Qaida in the end

now specific terorist threats are being investigated in the Us and in Berlin

in Belgium, capital of Europe, there will be more police on the street and as the tension is increasing in the anti-terrorist community (and as more details become known about the failed plot in Berlin) more (secret) actions may be put in place in and around our capital and other strategic places

it is a perfect day for a lone wolf  (or two of them) because it is

* an anniversary of a terrorist attack that will go into history (most other recent attacks are already more or less forgotten because they didn't change the course of history and the way the world is)

* an enormous media attention so that any attack will have an enormous media fall-out, millions of times even the impact of the attack itself

so he too, will be famous for the rest of the history of 9-11 instead of some attack that is already more or less forgotten

for critical installations and businesses it problably means that the physical securitypeople will work throughout the weekend in high alert

and if nothing happens, it was a good yearly exercise to be sure that everything is still as it should be and that nothing has been forgotten or overseen which would give that minute of opportunity to any physical attack (terrorism, vandalism, theft, social engineering, political activism,....)

and take time-zones into account, 9-11 has the same meaning around the whole world, do NOT take only your central time-zone into account

First I have been on the twin towers (in the restaurant) a few years before and I still remember the magnificient view of NY at night

I have been there - that changes a lot

secondly I will never forget the reaction of my little princess (much younger than) when she was watching Ketnet and that when the programmes where interrupted she called my wife (still) and said 'Mummy there are planes flowing in towers, that is not right' and mum thought it was another japanese kind of animation or what

thirdly it changed so much

* the discussion between privacy and security

* security and 'possible terrorist attacks and techniques and targets' became mainstream

* the way the antidemocratic terrorist (fearmongering) policeview got all the funds and powers it had asked for ever since (time to re-evaluate some things)

* the warmongers didn't only blow Al Quaida out of Afghanistan (it wasn't their safe haven anymore) but also went for the wrong reasons to Bagdad (and ruled it the totally wrong way - read the Green zone)

but ten years later, I am happy

* that Bin Laden is finally dead and that Al Qaida has no safe haven anymore (but attention for the sinai and somalia and some regions in Yemen or in the sahel - but those are not any near a nuclear country like Pakistan)

* that it is the people who overthrew the arabic dictatorships, not some guerilla or terrorist group - even if Libya needed a liberation army

* the rule of law and the principle of democracy and right to a free speech are becoming more important than the 'war on terror' or something like that

untill the next big attack they have been planning for a few years (9/11 took 2 years)

and that is finally why it matters

somewhere out there are some fanatic islamic, nazi or other deranged guys or women preparing the next enormous attack and we should prevent them from doing so without so much limiting our democratic freedoms

my last thought goes to the victims and the courage of the emergency services (dying slowly of cancer without getting a cent for it)

it will take another generation to forget 9/11 and who would say 'so what'  just as any other historic event

In fact you can do two things with his manifesto

You can read it and become sad of such stupidity and dangerous tunnel vision

or you can show that it is totally ridiculuous

first all documents here have been cleaned of the terrorist practical part

secondlly there is a folder with a clean Word version for you to copy

so than you open the document and you go to search and replace and you replace words throughout the document with other words

for example islam with smurfs or with any other word you come up with

you can change one word or several words so it really becomes nonsense

what it really is

and than you send it everywhere and place it everywhere

and somewhere someone will download it and will find it strange or a good joke on a stupid text

Viva groucho marx

"Bitter criticism of Islam, a "grass-roots" profile, islamophobia: that's what "experts" immediately point to in the wake of the disaster created by a so-called "Christian extremist" (or, in contradiction, a freemason).  Compared with the Oslo bombing and the Utøya killings, a small anti-christian killing in Egypt or elsewhere is explained simply as an act of an unbalanced lunatic, or as the effect of social tension caused by the "American-Zionist" masters of the universe.  That is the iniquitous model of the bankable explanation presented to us.

Without reducing the inexcusable aspect of his acts, let's focus on the circumstances in which Anders Behring Breivik planned his crime. Was he a "lone wolf", like the Oklahoma City bomber or the failed assassin of Chirac? Is he a white knight trying to stop the supposed implosion of a derailed world by shooting at the heart of the future elite?  Let's follow this hypothesis for a while, and hence reject that he was pathologically affected. His rage, fed by video games, may also have been caused by the lack of real debate on the radical changes caused by a multiculturalism.

If there were a real counter-power, symbolic or spiritual, enabling a critical debate on the role of Islam in the world without being accused as a racist, maybe this  inexcusable and vile act would have taken another form? Nobody knows. But please, do not put all the blame on islamo-criticism gone wrong. This criticism is either absent in the mainstream, or demonized. The thousands and thousands of people murdered by (radical) Islam should weigh heavier than these 92 deaths.

So, let us remain rational and ask ourselves why such extreme acts are perpetrated. Don't put the blame solely on populism and its derivatives. Lacking real debate, society is forced, even raped, to the point of disappearing, dissolving the people and replacing it with another one - and whoever refuses is treated as a racist. If this continues, we should not be surprised to see other tragedies occur. "

http://www.brusselsjournal.com/node/4773

copy of the post here

just for a good understanding : this blog has asked many times at skynetblogs to take down an al-qaida taliban propaganda blog to no avail

so what are they saying at the Brussels Journal

that it is normal that he has done it

that it is normal that others will do it

that they understand, comprehend but not condone (but where is the difference) what has been done and what will be done

and that if we don't want it to happen again - by other lunatics inspired by their writings - we should implement their solutions

this puts the brusselsjournal in the same melting pot as all those rightwing forums on which there is now talk that it was a CIA-Mossad operation-cover up or not serious compared to all the killings by Muslims or whatever stupidity

they are a bit more ideological or respectful - but the tone is set - and that tone is dangerous

in fact they are doing the same excuse trick some islamic ideologues are-were using with Al Qaida (sorry for the victims, but I can understand that....) and for which they were rightly attacked

there are only two ways to change a democratic society, by democratic means or by violence - your choice. If you condone terrorism (and please don't begin with calling everyting violence and going back to some black periods of European democratic history) you can't be democratic.

it will be interesting to read if all the contributors and sponsors of this multi-author blog agree with this (and how long the post stays online). The comments are already telling....

these (click to enlarge) are some of the people he has killed (traitors of the highest degree) the day before

I am a democratic socialist but if it were liberals, nationalists or whatever, everybody in a democratic society has right to an opinion as long as it doesn't threat the well-being and lives of others

Our Belgian minister of defense wanted to talk to Google maps to be sure that some information was blurred on Google maps because it could be used by some inspired wacko's to fly an airplane in it (as if you could miss them....)

Israel is one of the few countries where the Satellite Imagery of Google maps is more blurred than elsewhere

"That's because, in 1997, Congress passed the National Defense Authorization Act, one section of which is titled, "Prohibition on collection and release of detailed satellite imagery relating to Israel." The amendment, known as the Kyl-Bingaman Amendment, calls for a federal agency, the NOAA's Commercial Remote Sensing Regulatory Affairs, to regulate the dissemination of zoomed-in images of Israel.

While trying desperately to have another impact-attack on US soil and while trying to regroup its priorities on the Arabian-African continent after its losses in Iraq and the military pressure in Afghanistan, Al Quaida has found  another 'zone without statecontrol' to rebuild without a concerted military-intelligence response to fight it while it is still in its first stage of development, the Sahel. It is an enormous desert without  clear borders and where there is no permanent police or military surveillance with mountains to hide behind and nomads to travel with. It is also known to be a zone where smuggling, kidnapping and tribal warfare or powersharing is more important than anything else.

When you talk about the Sahel, you talk about France and when you talk about France you talk about Europe.

It means that while we were more or less off the Al Quaida radar, we are again part of it.

Belgium has no new increased risk for attacks is being said but don't be fooled, we have too many international civil and military targets to be no target.  We are a natural target, like it or not. This is no fear-mongering. This is just a fact. Which means that for any important building or service in Brussels or near such an internationally important service (or transport) physical security and ID checks and good evacuation procedures (and real testing of them) are an essential part of your securityplanning. Like Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery.

You can't say that Belgium as a whole has a limited risk because that is nonsense. You can say that the risk is higher around international and important buildings and transport centers but that the risk is minimal in 90% of the rest of our country.

Another thing to notice is that the plans were not against military or politically important building but against landscape buildings, buildings that are important because they are remembered as such by millions of people. The Atomium is one building like that. The Palais de Justice in Brussels is one like that. The European Commission building. Or Manneke Pis :)

What is the chance ? The chances are historically minimal, but don't be fooled. If you aren't prepared (at least on paper) your losses when we get hit will be enormous compared to your preparations now.

Don't get yourself lost in big enormous comprehensive plans that take years and thousands of Euro's to accomplish. Keep it simple and be sure that have other advantages from it. Security controls and monitoring of the flow of people in and around your building also limits espionage and sabotage or criminal activity. Backups and different data locations keep the network and services running when some hardware failures occur. Procedures of authority when people are not 'available' are also useful when somebody important has an accident or is unavailable for some time. No discussions, just follow the procedures.

Just think of the following : what do i need to keep my business or service running and how long can I afford certain parts of my business or service to be unavailable. Terrorism, bad weather, strikes, sickness.... whatever the reason, just use the one that your management will accept, even if it is just the fad or hype of the day.

9/11 is the day the world changed

privacy had to be reduced to combat terrorists

and some used it to inspire fear and reduce our freedoms as well

war had to be waged in Afghanistan to destroy their international base (and we are still there)

and some used it to invade Iraq for the wrong reasons

and according to the book Green zone (must read) made a total mess of it

9/11 is the day thousands of all races, languages, religions and nationalities died

no matter what the motives or religion of the attackers

no matter what you think about any aspect of the US policy somewhere in the world

there is no excuse for this mass murder

meanwhile we can say that after a few other date-11 attacks and some lunatics in the US

and some discovered plans in Belgium and elsewhere in the world

we should be careful to keep a dialogue of peace and understanding open

with all democratic and modern people of all religions and nationalities

because extremists - whatever their religion or nationality - have exactly the same language

and goals and methods

we should also honor those who in the background are trying every day to prevent another attack from happening (and in Belgium without the necessary resources compared to other countries)

9/11

my girl said that day, because the childrenprograms were interrupted - as the rest of all the TV channels

"mama there is a plan flying in a building, that can't be"

" no you are joking" (sitting in the next room)

look ..... and than the tv stayed on for days

she still remembers it as if it were yesterday, 9/11 is her first confrontation with terrorism

and religious extremism in its most violent form

as for Belsec, we have always supported for more power and resources for the Belgian anti-terroristforces and we will continue to do so as long as it is done without paranoia or without the goal of total-observation-of-everybody-anytime-anyway-anyhow-anywhere

because not everybody is a criminal or terrorist or extremist and those should be monitored and controlled and limited in their possibilities with every democratic means at our disposal

so my girls will still live in a safe environment but that is also a democratic and open environment