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Think now, you’re in a park. It’s a normal day. Just a toy plane. They are unsuspicious. But now imagine that little plane carrying 40 to 50 pounds of explosive being on that toy plane. This is what William Saletan talks about in this article”Rezwan Ferdaus remote-controlled planes plot: How can we stop the technology of terrorism?”
Ever since 9/11, terrorist attacks have been more frequent; we have just been able to stop them before doing any damage. But with all of the advancements since that day, it’s easier for people to plan and carry out such things. Rezwan Ferdaus was charged with “plotting.” He was caught by an undercover agent who posed as someone who was selling the supplies that Rezwan was looking for.
Ferdaus planned to hit the Pentagon and the capitol with his remote control planes. He used fake names to get price quotes and to get money through PayPal. The planes he got were able to fly on autopilot, could go up to a speed of 160, and could fly to a target using GPS coordinates. Last I checked, not many people who enjoy flying toy planes don’t usually need a GPS system programmed into it.
It’s a scary thought, using everyday things. Things you can buy off the internet, harmless software, stuff we use to help us, to destroy us. the only reason his plans didn’t go through is because we had undercover agents in the FBI that were able to detect who he was and what he was doing. But that’s one person, there’s more people out there planning and waiting. What if next time they aren’t caught before it’s too late?
What we can do to prevent this problem is not a clear answer. The public doesn’t like that. So for now we live everyday expecting the best of people trusting that they won’t make bomb out of the Barbies at our local Toys- R- Us. All we can do is watch and let the government do their job; let’s just hope that’s enough. Enough to stop the next guy who has learned from others mistakes.