Anyone else surprised that there have been no "dirty bombs" in Iraq yet?

[NNN0LHI]

There were large amounts of radioactive material needed to make such bombs in Iraq. That is for sure. Every time I here about another car bomb in Iraq that is the first thing I wonder about. Anyone else thought about this?

Don

[jenk]

1. they may be preparing for such an attack

who knows

[HighNoonMeetUp]

2. Saving them for election month maybe?

They work better when timed properly.

[gauguin57]

3. in IRAQ?

I'm surprised there have been no dirty bombs in the United States!

To wit:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A25599-2003Nov11?language=printer

"WASHINGTON (AP) - Despite tightened security, terrorists still have a "very significant" chance of obtaining enough radioactive ingredients to create a dirty bomb, federal investigators conclude.

"This finding arises from studies that document more than 1,300 disappearances of radioactive materials in the United States over the past five years. Most have been recovered, but some losses remain unsolved."

AND ...

http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/cst-nws-key09.html

"WASHINGTON -- A U.S. nuclear weapons laboratory must replace up to 100,000 locks at a cost of more than $1.6 million, after staff lost several sets of master keys to the complex, then failed to notify superiors, it emerged Friday."

[Maple]

4. They are surrounded

by radioactivity and bombs...why would this scare anyone in Iraq?

[K-W]

5. Dirty bombs arent really

anywhere near as big a deal as they were made out to be. Why bother obtaining a dirty bomb when a very easy to make bomb is perfectly effective in toppling a Humvee and killing some U.S soldiers.

[mistertrickster]

6. Nobody knows what happened to the radioactive material . . .

What did SH have anyway? Can't someone find it with Geiger counter finders?

[Maple]

7. You can find it

anywhere. In a hospital garbage bin for one.

Only the bomb part is dangerous...the radioactivity is not.

Small amounts, easily dispersed.

[karlschneider]

8. A 'dirty bomb' isn't all that effective, really.

To widely disperse a significant amount of lethal isotopes requires a VERY large "conventional" explosive. If someone has enough "dirt", it would be more effective to sprinkle it out the window of a car while driving through a city (assuming a martyr-type suicide enterprise.)

To do such a thing in Baghdad would create undesirable collateral consequences. In New Orleans or Pittsburgh, the results would be orders of magnitude more productive for whoever wants to terize people.

[Cocoa]

9. not their M.O.

they go with what works, and what they have expertise in, i.e. car bombs.

[maggrwaggr]

10. why would they set off a dirty bomb in their home?

doesn't make a bit of sense.