Some time during the night, British officials arrested 21 suspects in a terrorist plot involving liquid explosives and – you guessed it – airplanes. British intelligence uncovered evidence that terrorists (of unknown origin, though Al Qaeda’s name is mentioned in the story) intended to blow up six to ten commercial passenger jets en route from Britain to the United States.

CNN doesn’t report the date of the planned attack (which may mean officials don’t know and may mean British Intelligence is smart enough not to tell CNN), but with the fifth anniversary of 9/11 approaching terrorists obviously intended to remind the United States and its allies that the war on terror is not, in fact, over – or the product ofDarthW and his Stormtroopers of Conspiracy Theory(despite what the moonbats would have you believe).

Both the United Kingdom and the United States have increased their terror alert warning levels and increased airport security measures (Translation: if you’re traveling this week, best pay attention). The United Kingdom has temporarily banned all carry-on luggage (including electronic key fobs, so be sure to pack the car keys in checked luggage if you’re taking them with you), whileU.S. airport security will no longer permit passengers to carry any liquids on board (reports this morning indicate certain medicines and baby formula may be excepted).

Now you know the basic facts (and I’ll link in a roundup below in case you want more) – but as usual, that doesn’t mean we’re finished here.

I prefer not to fly if I can avoid it – and have since long before 9/11. When I have no alternative, however, I prefer to fly light and fly in accordance with the rules. I’ve never minded security precautions and I mind them no more after 9/11. Frankly, if you’re offering me a choice between taking off my shoes (something I’d prefer to do anyway) and sitting on a plane that gets blown to smithereens in midflight, I’ll not only take them off – I’ll let you keep them.

What continues to amaze (though not surprise) me is the number of people who complain – loudly and obnoxiously – about security measures at the airport. Last time I traveled, I counted at least ten very loud whiners (mostly women – sexist though that may sound) objecting to every aspect of the security check. They didn’t like the lines. They didn’t like taking off their shoes (Get serious. Almost all of them were wearing slip-ons – I checked). They didn’t like having to take the laptops out of the bags and put them through the screening device separately, and they absolutely hated having to run their cellular phones through the screener. (Were they expecting a call at precisely that moment?).

And I’m sure these new regulations won’t please them any more than the old ones. In fact, I’m relatively sure the whining will get worse due to the new carryon restrictions. No water bottles. No hairgel. No shampoo. No frappucino. Not that this means they’ll leave the forbidden items at home, of course. I’m betting the airports become one gigantic traffic snarl as people continue to try and bring “just a little bottle of hair gel” or “just a water bottle – unopened, see?” And you know I’m not talking about the ones who didn’t know the rule. I mean the ones who think they can slip one by, talk the screener into an exception – avoid the rule, because after all, “Do I look like a terrorist?” Just once I’d love to see the security screener look that 6-foot blonde straight in the eye and say, “Yeah Lady, you do. Hand over the water bottle and move along.”

It won’t happen, of course. Security will do their jobs (politely in most cases) and passengers will be forced to obey the rules (again, politely in most cases, with a few notable and voluble exceptions). But if you must travel – today, or any other day – try to be polite, and don’t complain. If you’re not a terrorist, the security is there for your protection. Stand in the line, remove your shoes, take out the laptop and finishthe frappucino before you get there. And above all, quit whining – because it’s precisely that security that’s going to make sure you’re able to whine getting off the plane as well.

As promised, here’s your roundup of others discussing the foiled airplot:

• Rhymes With Right has the story and a specific list of items banned flights originating or terminating in the United States. (If you’re traveling in the U.K., plan to check absolutely everything.)
• Hot Air is following the story closely, with more news updates than anyone else at this point.
• If you wantlinks to the original MSM sources for various articles (and there are many), head to Pajamas Media.
• Flopping Aces has excerpts from major news sources, updated every few hours as the story broke and continues to break.
• Counterterrorism Blog has information about this morning’s press conferences and updates frommajor network news sources.
• As always, Michelle Malkin has the headlines and continuing updates, along with excerpts from other bloggers discussing the story.
• The Immigration Blog looks at the connection between immigration and terrorism
• RightWinged is following all of the terrorism-related stories in the news this morning. This is a great roundup of news and blogger responses from both sides of the political aisle.
• Outside the Beltway has the news from several MSM sources (including embedded videos) and is updating through the day.
• Pros and Cons has a discussion of what happened, what didn’t happen and what could have happened (and, I might add, quite a good discussion for someone who needed to get to trial this morning).
• Other summaries and discussion at Captain’s Quarters, Wizbang (lots of updates and news here), FullosseousFlap’s Dental Blog (promises continuing updates throughout the day), Big Dog’s Weblog (you can count on the dog)

high loans yield

In most countries, dangerous together xanax ambien s outnumber land-line phones, with fixed landlines numbering 1.