Originally posted by Kr0n:
The idea of having onboard marshalls basically serves as a deterrent to any potential terrorist activity.
I feel there is hardly any deterrant.
marshalls on planes are quite ok, but on MRT trains?
the MRT trains are so long, and there are so many people on the train too, it would be so easy for a suicide bomber to do his job there, how is a marshall on a train going to prevent that? It is almost similar to the suicide bombers who blow up BUSES in Isreal....just what kind of deterrant will work with such people?
There are so many ways that the MRT trains and the rail structure can be sabotaged. Just one bomb on one of the pillars which support the rail tracks will do enough economic damage for SG. It is just like Nicoll Highway in a sense.....except that there are no alternative railway tracks for the trains to divert to.
I think the public needs to do their part too - announcements asking people to report suspicious articles are needed, but whether they are effective is another thing, many singaporeans really prefer to mind their own business.....they dun like to kay poh....
if there are really marshalls, then the people will think that looking out for suspicious articles is not their job, and that the safety on trains are the responsibility of the marshalls, which is definately not the case. People do tend to get complacent over time too.
To me, having marshalls are just a waste of money....sigh....and any real sloution to combating this terrorist problem will be expensive and probably not worth the cost - but again, how can the benefits of effective security be measured in terms of dollars and cents? It is simply difficult to gauge the benefits, if any at all.