Quote Originally Posted by Hazir View Post
They were good enough; a highly visible attack resulting in deaths and maimed people. I think by terrorist standards this has to count as a success. Terrorism isn't about blowing holes in a building, it's about making people affraid to go about their regular lives. As such, a pressure cooker filled with an explosive and shrapnel is a lot scarier than a plane being flown into a big tower.
They were 'good enough' to evade bomb-sniffing dogs and pre-race bomb sweeps, either by type of device -- or knowledge of security measures in Boston, and the race itself. It may even turn out all the bomb ingredients are so common they can't be traced with accuracy. But they were stupid enough to choose a heavily photographed/videotaped area, with CCTV from surrounding stores.