More Confirmation Egypt, Libya was a Terrorist Attack

Video of Egyptian Protesters

Multiple independent sources now confirming that the attack was indeed a terror attack.  The plot thickens, since we have reports that an al-Qa'ida operative, a former Guantanamo detainee, was involved.  The official line is that this attack was brought about by some video posted two months ago, but that is baloney.  An offensive needs to be mounted immediately against these attackers, and there should have been a lot more condemnation from Washington.  Just the usual vacuum of leadership that we have all come to expect.

No one should still be under the delusion that this was an angry mob motivated by some perceived disrespectful portrayal of their prophet. Too many governments are cowering; we must set the example by a show of strength.  If there is no projection of power, that will embolden  al-Qa'ida to continue launching attacks if not against us, against our allies.  While the White House continues to lack testicular fortitude, Romney is providing only criticism of the President without a plan of his own.

The President should have launched an offensive in response to this attack.  I find it hard to believe that there was no awareness that this was anything less than a purposeful, planned attack against the US.  Of course, the sources I cite are claiming this is not the case.  Choosing 9/11 as the date of the attack seems to indicate forethought, otherwise it's a bit of a convenient date to throw an ad-hoc terrorist attack.

Egypt and Libya Protesters are Part of a Larger Military Attack

Despite what many are reporting, it is difficult for me to believe this is a simple mob or riot.  The video that was referred to was nearly two months old.  It gives me pause that the protesters would wait for 9/11 in order to produce maximum effect.

It is clear the intent here was a military action.  This was not a simple protest about a film.  Not only did al-Queda make the claim the attack was revenge, but again the video was two months old.  If this was about outrage over a video, the attack would have come sooner.  I'm not going to believe these people waited until precisely the anniversary of the attack on the WTC to voice their grievances.  Simultaneously, do you expect me to believe a simple uncoordinated mob knew where the safehouses for the embassy officials were

Furthermore I am outraged at the bifurcation given by the Egyptian prime minister, Hisham Qandil, on this issue.  Take this choice quote.  About how the west needs to:

strike a balance between freedom of expression and to maintain respect for other people’s beliefs.

I am referring to third party reporting from the New York Times. In that article, the PM of Egypt quote continues.  It as if he treats the "protesters" response as appropriate to the film makers work.  Now I have my problem with the film maker, Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, (he is a scumbag, drug dealing, criminal that should have been deported long ago,) but that juxtaposition is completely inappropriate.  In fact who cares really since it is now clear that this is no longer about a film.  This leads me to conclude that the PM is on the enemies side.  That would make him an enemy to this country.

Over the past 30 years we have made friends with those that should have been our enemies.  We have forged alliances with nations that do not believe in our way of life.  We should have been busy wiping off the face of the earth.  I know our military forces our stretched, and our boys are stretched out.  But I also feel we have no other choice based on the information we have.  At this point I support military action against Egypt.  It has been shown without a shadow of a doubt that they are no longer our ally.  I don't believe they ever were.

Concerns About the Security and US Response to the Situation in Egypt and Libya

I have several concerns about the current situation with Egypt.  I am concerned about the lack of passive and active defensive systems in place to handle these situations.  I am wondering where the embassies security forces were.  It concerns me that the US response so slow.  We already have forces in place to immediately respond, so why send in a warship?   I am concerned about the ease and speed that the protesters had getting through these.

The embassy is located in a troubled region.  From anecdotal observation, US embassies in conflict areas generally have passive physical barriers in place to safeguard against just this sort of occurrence.  I am very surprised the mob was able to get through them as quickly as they did.  I am also surprised that an rocket-propelled grenade round was able to get through and actually make kills.

Military Grade Active Denial System (ADS)

I would have also assumed that in the event of the failure of a passive defense system like a high wall or reinforced doors, there are sufficient numbers of trained armed security forces in place to protect diplomats and other civilians present in the facility.   What happened to these forces?  Also there are so-called "Active Denial Systems" or ADS that can be used against mobs of people.  They are already being used domestically by police departments on Occupy Wall Street protesters, who comparatively speaking pose much less of a threat.  Why aren't these systems in place at a US embassy where it is likely to have large congregations of people during conflicts?  Especially in regions like this.  How is it possible that the protesters managed to kill three people, and are still hanging around?

There are already forces in place in the middle east in granting the failure of any of these passive and active defense systems.  Deploying any number of these forces would have had a response team in place much faster than two days after the fact.  This is a grievous failure on our part.  In order to ensure stability in the region the response has to be rapid.  Our enemies know that we are already over stretched in multiple countries.  By delaying the response, we simply psychologically reinforce the resolve of the rioters.  Why are we taking our time by sending in a warship that will take days to get into position?