Most nuclear power plants were built during the 1960s and 1970s, and like the World Trade Center, they were designed to withstand only accidental impacts from the smaller aircraft widely used at the time, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said as it opened its annual conference. "If you postulate the risk of a jumbo jet full of fuel, it is clear that their design was not conceived to withstand such an impact," spokesman David Kyd said.

There's a simple solution for this, as well as for many of the other jumbo-jet-attack scenarios. Go back to an earlier suggestion by Lucky Green: : Which of course represents the crux of the issue. The passengers aboard the : aircraft, the workers in the towers, and the emergency personnel on the : ground are dead for two reasons: the US unreasonably meddling in other : People's affairs until they crack, and the extremist gun control measures in : place in the US today, preventing law-abiding citizens from carrying the : firearm of their choice aboard a commercial aircraft. Who could deny that a : few citizens armed with their personal handguns could have stopped two or : three of guys armed with mere box cutters? This is a good idea, but it doesn't go far enough. Guns are not the answer. Anti-aircraft missiles are the answer. We should have a government program to distribute anti-aircraft missiles. Every able-bodied American should be armed with one. Stinger missiles use a shoulder launch carrier and can be fired without much technical training. Any time an aircraft appears to be off course or behaving oddly, anyone in the area can shoot it down. This will be much safer and more reliable than a gunfight on the airplane. Let's seem 'em go after our nuclear plants or dams, knowing that vigilant Americans stand ready to defend these structures with lethal force, never mind the cost in lives! After all, the more arms people possess, the safer the world will be. That seems to be the philosophy of prominent cypherpunks. Stay tuned for: Why should only TERRORISTS have suitcase nukes?