Olympic Security

[Skin_and_Muscle]

Somebody I know extremely well is an army captain involved in the Olympic security.

As always there is an intense monitoring of "chatter" across the world. I.e. phone calls, texts, emails, chat rooms and this is how they find out when someone is planning to kill tens of thousands of people.

No one is going to scramble jets just because they fancy it. When information suggests that there might be danger, then it will be specific and the fighter planes will be deployed with one clear mission.

It will be messy, be sure of that, but the alternative is just to allow a massive missile to hit a stadium full of people.

Aren't we making the same point? Forces work on intelligence and act accordingly. Fighter planes can be deployed when it becomes clear that they are needed.

Instead, suggesting that missiles can be launched from residential areas as a counter-terrorist device seems to undercut this.

If the MoD is acting on intelligence, then isn't it the case that it is either not good enough to justify the missiles at the ready (because they don't know where the threat comes from) or that it is so good (and they are not sure of where the threat comes from) so the local residents should start to get suitably panicked (or terrorised?)?

[Kinoulton]

Absolutely. The Eurofighter Typhoon is capable of downing almost any missile and would seem to me to be a more efficient deterrent.

In particular, if you try and lock onto it, it will seek you out and kill you.

I do wonder if the deployment of rockets around London is a publicity stunt when the forces have much better ideas.

[DickyP]

.... They are not deterrents, the sort of people that carry out terror attacks hardly care if they survive. Surely it is better to look paranoid than be unprepared.

Deterrents aren't just a matter of scaring some-one off: it also consists of making something not worthwhile, which these probably do.

[CJ]

went to the Olympic Park last night for the hockey, and the security was spot on. Like airport security but more efficient! and pretty speedy. OK, there were not that many people there but even so.

[Kinoulton]

I see the general problem with security is that it is all often show.

I went to the San Siro to watch AC Milan v Inter Milan and the security was very visible. Literally hundreds and hundreds of gun toting policemen ringed around the area around the stadium.

My wife and I passed through this armed mob but were never checked for anything. Once inside, the Inter Milan "away" fans celebrated each of their three goals by firing off massive distress flares which they had "smuggled" into the ground.

At half time, the Inter fans were hurling anyting they could find at the armed police down below, with no comeback.

Security means covering every single aspect very thoroughly, and not just peppering the area with untrained stewards who have not been provided with any intelligence information.