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Since it got LIR, here are two notes about Belgium...

I listened to a former national security adviser to Bush yesterday. He pointed out that Belgium has six different police forces, and the interdepartmental communication is a running joke across Europe. So, even if some people knew, that doesn't mean that they passed along word to people better positioned to do something.

Also, another guest (we seriously listened to seven hours of political talk radio on the drive home) pointed out that Belgium has a large Muslim community. In fact, this has led to issues with other countries who would like them to monitor one particular neighborhood, Molenbeek, more carefully. Belgium has refused to do this since they feel that A) it's infringing on the rights of Belgian citizens and B) they never anticipated that Belgians would perform such acts of violence against their own countrymen. So, it sounds like there's a bit of under the table satisfaction from other European countries that this transpired. They hope it's a wake-up call for Belgian policy departments to share information internally as well as externally across Europe.

I'm fascinated by all phases of the discussion. Since Brussels is the base for a world police force, they've clearly developed a lot of political issues with other countries over the years. The Syrian refugee situation in combination with a population that is almost 10% Muslim has led to a continent-wide frustration. And I'm honestly not sure who is right and who is wrong on any of these topics.


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