Terror Plot

Interesting watching all this stuff about the terrorist plot develop. Especially as John Reid made an announcement about how we'd all have to be prepared to surrender some of our freedoms in order to protect them just the day before.  Classic Orwellian doublespeak if ever I heard it.
One wonders why, given that the plot centred around flights between Heathrow and America, it is that the largest number of restrictions and messed up flights centre on internal flights? Not to mention why, since the police have stated that the planned attacks were not due to take place for some time after they made their arrests, that these restrictions were begun on that day. Or why it was deemed safe for planes to begin to fly out of Heathrow after 3.00pm. Finally, why, since this was a plot based in and heading out from Britain, was it deemed necessary to restrict incoming flights?Actually, I know the answer to the last one. At least, I can guess; the airlines didn't want their planes grounded in the UK.
This business about liquid explosives has long been known. Christopher Brookmyre's novel "A Big Boy Did it & Ran Away" -released just before 9/11- opened with a terrorist doing exactly what was described by the police yesterday. Except Chris wasn't dumb enough to actually list the chemicals - unlike the tabloids here today. So why, given that this technique was known to be in the terrorists’ arsenal, do we suddenly have these restrictions now? And what's to stop them putting them into a suitable container and carrying them the same way drug mules do?

I'm flying south for a wedding in 2 weeks and I'm doing the video & some of the photography at it so I need to carry cameras. I've seen the way baggage handlers treat luggage. Now they've had their workload tripled do you really think anything fragile will be making it to the other end intact? And with the new check-in times my 40 minute flight is now going to take up to 6 hours - longer than by coach. Oh, and I just can't wait to stand in a loooong queue in a sweaty security hall with a load of people with their shoes off waiting to put them through the x-ray machine.Look, I know they need to be vigilant and they have to try to counter these plots, but this smacks more of being seen to do something than actually controlling events. What's next? Internal exams for all 'plane passengers? The terrorists are achieving their aims without even having to detonate a device. Our own governments are doing the job of restricting our freedoms and disrupting our lives for them. I just hope that they’ve got it right this time. If their intelligence has screwed up again I hate to think what the consequences might be. They can evade shooting some poor slob for having a beard and a suntan but disrupting this much business? They’d better have real evidence this time and not just ‘credible intelligence’.
Oh, and instead of being on the street actually dealing with crime, you might be interested to hear that Strathclyde Police - my local force, who have in the past refused to send officers to investigate gangs with axes in the park or reports of burglaries in progress - will be hand-delivering letters to local Muslims to 'reassure' them that none of this is personal. Priorities...