Times Square Bomb, Updated

OpFor with a Times Square Bomb update:

The WaPo is reporting that the Feds are closing in on a 'person of interest':
'Investigators are getting closer to tracking down a person of interest in the attempted bombing in Times Square, identifying the man as a naturalized U.S. citizen who is originally from Pakistan, according to a senior administration official. {Emphasis added-DWD.}
'The man is believed to have used cash three weeks ago to purchase the sport-utility vehicle that was loaded with explosive material and left Saturday night in midtown Manhattan, law enforcement sources said. Officials said Monday that they have developed domestic and international leads in a plot that appears more complex now than it did when the investigation began.' (Emphasis mine.)
One of the things that bothers me most is how lucky we are to have gotten a(nother) pass. This unfortunately has prompted some, who ought to know better, to call the act 'amateurish'. The late, great LtCol Jeff Cooper used to define 'Condition White' as the state of mental unpreparedness in which you will be saved only by the miraculous intervention of a third party or by the incompetence of your assailant. How long are we going to live on that? We have also discussed how much havoc can be wrought by a small number of dedicated, trained operatives.

This is just the beginning. We need to get our minds right, and our swords sharp.

(Fox News has more info.)

As I suggested over at Ry's place, the authorities are well aware of the fact that this could well have been a real disaster, and that their use of terms like "amateurish" and "potential terrorism" smacks of "Don't worry your pretty little head about it."

"Just go ahead and bury your head in the sand, we'll see that everything will be all right."

For example, in that post I link to last paragraph, Ry points out that agricultural grade Ammonium Nitrate fertilizer can, indeed, be used as an effective component in an explosive. It won't be quite as powerful as the stuff normally used in explosives, but in conjunction with the propane, gasoline, and gun powder that were also present, it would have done the job. Would it have done the same job on Viacom-parent-corporation-of-Comedy Central-Headquarters that McVeigh did on the Murrah building? Probably not quite, the SUV (so much for selling your car on Craig's List, eh?) didn't contain as much ANFO as that Ryder Truck did.

But it would have been horrific enough.

My question is, are we talking incompetence, nerves, or was there a double-agent involved? I bet I know which one Big Daddy Government wants us to believe, but even if it was a double agent, do you want to rely on him (or her!) being able to prevent every attempt from succeeding?

I think I'll stick to states where I am legally allowed to defend myself for the near future...

(Good thing that's most of them!)