From Associated Press 12:57 PM PST, January 8, 2007

MIAMI -- A package that was going to be loaded onto a cruise ship at the Port of Miami tested positive for plastic explosives today, the Coast Guard said. The package was tested six times, and each time it came back positive for the military-grade explosive known as C4, said Petty Officer James Judge. The package was destroyed, and a Miami-Dade County police bomb squad was inspecting the remains to determine if there were any explosives inside. Police spokesman Bobby Williams said the instruments used to test the package sometimes give false positives. "We still need to check it out," Williams said. The package was included in provisions that were to be loaded aboard Royal Caribbean International's Majesty of the Seas. Explosives detection instruments gave the positive reading about 2 p.m., the cruise line said. The FBI was monitoring the situation, spokeswoman Judy Orihuela said. The developments came a day after three Middle Eastern men in a cargo truck sparked a brief terrorism scare at the port. After a bomb squad search, authorities concluded that the men were carrying automotive parts and that the scare stemmed from miscommunication.

[ 01-08-2007: Message edited by: CGT ]

http://www.nbc6.net/news/10697209/detail.html

But it just goes to show a heightened level of security (and insecurity) in our post 9/11 world!

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Originally posted by Jonathan:
I mean look at all the airline incidents that happen and how many middle eastern people are acused in our airports for being terrorist.

Jonathan

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Originally posted by lasuvidaboy:

What is a real lack of common sense is asking an 80 year old white grandmother from Iowa to go through a second security check.

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I makes perfect sense. It prevents other people of Middle Eastern decent from complaining about profiling

[ 01-09-2007: Message edited by: timb ]

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Originally posted by lasuvidaboy:
What is a real lack of common sense is asking an 80 year old white grandmother from Iowa to go through a second security check.

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Originally posted by timb:

I makes perfect sense. It prevents other people of Middle Eastern decent from complaining about profiling

[ 01-09-2007: Message edited by: timb ]

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Originally posted by Cunardcoll:
what they say about machines sometimes giving false alarms , that's NOT true , it's impossible to give false on those machines , if it's twice positive there is something , believe me.

Jochen

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Originally posted by 6263866:
PHEW!
Well, I still question why someone would place explosives on a cruise ship? I say this because their goal would have to be trying to cripple the cruising economy and not to cause a high amount of casualties.

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Originally posted by lasuvidaboy:

If a ship(s) had to be laid up that would really be a surprise as the lines would rather heavily discount their cruises and send the ships out full.

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That proved true after 9/11--people were afraid to travel anywhere, and the cruise industry suffered. But once the cruise lines lowered rates to unbelievably low fares, people decided to risk their lives and go after all!

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Originally posted by Jonathan:
Remember a while back when those terrorist off somalia attacked the seabourn ship that thing got hit with a rocket propelled granade that didnt even do any damage but get imbeted into the steel.

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Luck - hitting a window or other weaker parts of the ship would have causes severe damage.

Also i think think terrorist would really understand the schematics of a ship to successfully destory it there are weak and strong spots and i dont think they could find where those spots are. [...][/QUOTE]

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Originally posted by Jonathan:
Yeah but still flying a plane into a building or the ground etc. isnt that hard but a ship is more complex than an airplane.

Jonathan

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Whether a ship or a plane is more complex system is certainly an interesting discussion. Anyhow - flying a plane into a building is not as easy as it might seem.

Jonathan

[ 01-10-2007: Message edited by: Jonathan ]

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Originally posted by lasuvidaboy:
... but ALL the terrorists on 9/11 were Arab Muslims.

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Originally posted by Jonathan:
But when i sail on a ship i feel a lot safer than i do flying in an airplane. Atleast i know if i ship got attacked we could all get off and into the boats where as on a plane its either gain back control or crash.

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On 10 September 2001 we all felt perfectly safe, even if we were flying. On 12 September 2001 we were all feeling very insecure and anxious, whatever we were doing. Yet it is certain that on 12 September we were in fact safer than we had been two days earlier.

It is not difficult to imagine a type of attack on a cruise ship which could kill or seriously injure a large proportion of the people on board. And after which the ship might simply be isolated and not allowed to dock or unload. Just because terrorists crash aircraft, it doesn't mean that they'd attack a ship by crashing it.

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Originally posted by Globaliser:
What about all the terrorists since then? Have they all been Arab Muslims?

Come on, it's time to get real.

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Originally posted by Globaliser:
What about all the terrorists since then? Have they all been Arab Muslims?

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Originally posted by lasuvidaboy: The vast majority still are. A sad fact.

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