Terror threat

Editorial: That radioactive hole in our counterterrorism barrier

If global terrorism has you concerned that our safety hangs by a thread, consider how thin that thread might be -- or how close to home the threat might be.

A report from the Center for Public Integrity describes a successful and admittedly not-particularly-sophisticated effort by fewer than 10 people to gain a license and buy enough materials to build a so-called "dirty bomb" right here on U.S. soil.

We'll admit some special concern that a hub for this activity was in Texas.

Thankfully, these were government-paid watchdogs proving a point, which is that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission still must contend with a big gap in America's counterterrorism net.

The frightening problem is that this sting demonstrates how easily actual terrorists could acquire the goods to build a bomb made from lethal radioactive ingredients. A dirty bomb attack has long been high on the list of counterterror concerns because such a bomb is relatively simple to make and very portable.