Update on the story, they have found that the two men shaved their faces and cut their hair sometime prior to boarding the bus. Their visas showed them with facial hair and slightly longer hair than what was in their visa picture. So What in the world do two dudes from Saudi (almost all 9-11 highjackers were from saudi) want on a bus with children. Then upon questioning from law enforcement they both have different stories. If you are very innocent then shouldnt' they both have had the same reason. Then why alter your look?

It's my belief as someone who has been trained in terrorism by the govt. I have attended numerous classes on terrorist tactics, and recieve terrorism training atleast once every 2months for years now. These folks wanted nothing more than to see what kind of physical resistance they would face trying to enter a bus. would they be stopped by a possible guard on the bus (Like in Isreal) or would they be allowed to walk in straight to their positions. They may not have even been thinking suicide attack, they could have wanted to see if they could have accessed the bus numerous times to plant explosives, and blow up the bus with them not on it. They could have been trying to learn American school bus routines, where the bus travels, the best place to detonate a bomb IE... in front of some building or place that would send a message. There is more I could come up with that is actually used in other countries. Bottom line how many times in this country do grown saudi men just get on a school bus acting suspect (as acknowledged by the substitute bus driver deciding to call the school to see if they are students) and then you both don't have the same reason for why you guys decided to hop a school bus. That is called scouting, recon, surveillance and target aquisition. Any fool can walk right into a bus and blow themselves up, but maybe on thursdays the bus picks up more kids for special classes or something (like at my old school) Studying will give you maximum effect. Plus, if your going to kill yourself, you only get one shot at doing it right <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smirk.gif" alt="" />

Being realistic isn`t making yourself a target. I`m just trying to say that the risk is there but there isn`t a ton you can do about it without assuming that every single person who gets on the bus is guilty until proven innocent. Terrorists would love to see us lose our rights in the name of "safety" or "homeland security". Yes, It`s important but at some point you have to just sit back and acknowledge that it`s a dangerous world out there.

I don`t think I`ve got that worded real well but with cramming for finals my brain is starting to turn into mush. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> On a side note I`ve been driving to school lately and yesterday my truck('86 4Runner) was used to haul somebody out of a ditch near the school. They had been run off the road by a driver who didn`t look before speeding around a corner. The parking lots are crazy and at least in our area it`s still much safer to ride the bus.

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"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." Benjamin Franklin

We are living in troubling times but we shouldn't allow ourselves to become fearful. Benjamin Franklin and our founding father's lived with the knowledge if their actions failed they would be put to death. They put their lives on the line for the freedoms we enjoy today.

Thanks Tracy. I was looking for this quote yesterday and couldn`t remember who said it. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

I am generally pretty iberal on politics, but I am with Chris here. This stinks. Let the guys explain themselves, but remember the Chechen attack on the Russian school. Just because someone speaks Arabic is no reason to treat them like a criminal, but adults on school buses are very questionable, and Chris is completely correct in describing a terrorist MO. Reed was kept from threatening an El-Al flight, was seated next to an armed marshal, and so went to a western airline to try and blow it up. They do recon before they strike.

Cathy, I didn't intend for this thread to turn into a debate about the events. This is just a warning to anyone (and all my dog friends) whom is intrested. If it effects you, it does, if not, then don't worry about it.

It's our jobs as adults to protect our children, and although your more worried about drugs in school and dangers of driving that is perfectly fine, thats what a kid your age should be worried about, that is America. I don't want my grade school kids all worried about terrorist (which is not American), thats my job, and the job of other adults around the country, to protect our children in these days of growing danger. You just keep studing for your finals and make us proud when you get that good grade. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

What a shame.. I remember being able to walk home from school for lunch, by myself, and then walking back to school after lunch to resume the rest of the day. This was in early or mid elementary school, and I'm 24. I know if I have kids they'll never have the privilege of having a half hour or so at home to take a midday boob tube & food break.

Now we have to worry about oddballs boarding the bus (who in their right mind thinks sitting on a school bus full of screaming children and undisciplined teens is "fun?") and kids not being let on without ID cards? Jeez this is terrible.

Almost getting to the point where we should issue the mideast an ultimatum to shape up or face the fate of Hiroshima/Nagasaki and bring our troops home to protect our borders.

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Yes, It`s important but at some point you have to just sit back and acknowledge that it`s a dangerous world out there.

If and when you become a mother, I assure you, you will find it impossible to do nothing more than "sit back and acknowledge it's a dangerous world out there".

You used the term "being realistic". Being realistic is knowing that there are red flags in everything we do, whether it's a job we are considering, a boyfriend/girlfriend, a move to another state, etc. etc.

So, as a mother, it is not a sane decision for me to allow my kids to hang out with drug addicts, hang on a street corner after school, drive with "friends" who drink, yada, yada. The point, there is almost always a common thread that runs through groups of people who hang together. To say, "Yea, Teenager No. 1, go ahead and hang out with those guys. You'll be safe from the disastrous effects of driving and drinking because YOU aren't driving and drinking" is just stupid.

Any adult boarding a school bus, whatever nationality, is a RED FLAG!!!! Being proactive about this incident (I don't remember the city in which it took place) is all we can do to protect ourselves in the future from horrific harm. Maybe they weren't terrorists, maybe they were pedophiles. As far as I'm concerned, they belong in the same category.

I think a good analogy would be putting a traffic light up where there have been numerous pedestrian fatalities. Without people calling, complaining and doing something, the pedestrian fatalities would continue, wouldn't they?

Good luck on your exams. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

Can someone tell our President that 4000 undocumented illegals get through here every day, 3 Elephants just walked & swam over from Mexico. I thought we are fighting a War. Bush might need a reminder.

I do believe that parents(I'm not one yet) need to protect their kids from the dangers of the world(drugs, sex, violence), but at some point the kids will have to learn about some of these dangers and face them-as long as the parents do their job at prepping the kids, they will be able to handle it when the time comes.
The world we live in has changed forever. It changed a long time ago, before I was even born (1984) and at the rate things are going, chances of us NOT having to worry about strange adults on school buses, and the possibilty of terrorist attacks is slim.
I have met quite a few ignorant people where I live. Very close-minded people, bigots. If someone looks different of talks different(any ethnic background or sexual preference that differs from theirs) "creeps" them out. I guess I grew up with hippie parents who were very open-minded and they tought me that everyone is different. I don't judge someone of another race just by how they speak, dress or act-unless it's ina violent way-makes me think of the movie 'Crash'...hmm, interesting. Anyway.
I believe one thing that Cathy said, that the terrorists want us to be afraid and they want us to lose our god given freedoms that our founding fathers worked so hard for us to have. As I said, those days of freedom and living without fear are damn near gone. JMHO.

I just realized how dated this post was.lol. sorry.

I'm the mom of a teenage daughter, and I think what Chris said is terrifying. You better believe that I would be driving my daughter to school if the same thing were to occur here. But even here in my rural area (I actually live on an island) there are rules and regs that prevent this sort of thing from happening. They even have school "lock down" drills, and in fact the school is locked once all children have arrived. We are not even a likely target; isn't this standard procedure throughout the country? If not, it should be. Yes, at some point our children need to have the wherewithall to fend for themselves, but as parents I don't believe our responsibility for them ever really ends. We can prepare them, but at the same time should be right there to protect them. If there's anything worth "going over the top" for, it's the safety of our children.