Dear Friends,
It seems to me, we’ve entered the era of personalized terrorism. Ushered in by the attacks on Hezbollah by Mossad. Don’t get me wrong. I’m glad they did it. Because it was ushered in by harming evil people in an evil organization, but most of all… because it’s inevitable. Showing us that anything with a battery can be weaponized. If Mossad has that ability, the US does, as do the EU technocrats, the CCP, and Russia, to name a few. Those without it will be spending billions to acquire it. Because personalized terrorism is, and apparently will be… the nuke of the 21st century. This terrible new reality means the wise among us will take precautions. Get all internet of things items out of your home, car and kids lives. Because, while you can appease one despot… you can’t appease them all.
The attack on Hezbollah was brilliant in that it took out not only their commanders but their command and control infrastructure. The targeting was extremely precise. Not only did it wound most of the operatives with those devices, the wounded exposed many who were not known to Mossad as Hezbollah operatives. Now, no terrorist attacking Israel dares trust their communications devices. Else they could explode next to the terrorist’s ear while ordering the launch of rockets. There’s an old saying in war. “It’s better to horribly wound an enemy combatant, than kill him, because the wounded are more demoralizing than the dead.” Moreover, I’m glad it was used against evil people. Since that’s probably the last time personalized terrorism will be used against the guilty.
The technology to make anything with a battery a bomb is game changing. Because most people keep their cell phones, pagers and key fobs in their pocket… right next to our femoral artery and genitalia. Enhancing the terror effect. I can imagine a few ways to weaponize electronics with a battery too. Fill all the capacitors simultaneously… then overload them at once, maybe feed the charge back into the battery, or some other means I’m not smart enough to devise. Probably the latter. To get there however, the attacker has to hack the device. Which, apparently, isn’t all that hard if you have the know how. Imagine the effect on international relations if North Korea could detonate the US President’s cell phone, perhaps the British PM… or some loud mouthed escapee’s Ipad might go boom?
Once personalized terrorism has proliferated, no one will be safe from any despot. Any blogger could be targeted by any government, billionaire or psycho with the technology. Since, unlike nukes, it doesn’t require any more infrastructure than a lap top. Targeted killings make censorship redundant. Why censor when no one dares say a word? If war breaks out between the CCP and Taiwan, do you think all those devices made in China and powered by the latest lithium batteries will be safe? If Mossad has the technology for personalized terrorism, the CCP has it, freshly stolen directly from Mossad’s computers. Which means… even if you did keep your mouth shut, about a pending war… you and your kids could still be personally targeted at home in that war. A classic lose lose situation.
Smart people will take steps now to minimize their exposure to personalized terrorism. Those with solar panels and battery backups might want to disconnect from the internet. Even large screen tvs could be weaponized if they’re connected. Frankly, if this isn’t the death of the internet of things, I will be shocked. Astounded at the ability of the human being to rationalize an existential threat. While becoming outraged at the absurd. I should think explosion proof cell phone holsters would become a thing now. As for electric cars… While I like the idea, I would be reticent about buying one now. The sage among us are going to rethink our way of life. While the lemmings will run along with the pack. We’ll see if the lemmings overwhelm the wise, or if the wise can push the hoard, away from the cliff?
Sincerely,
John Pepin
