They wouldn't have to taint the whole supply. All they would have to do is get it into the system intake. What ever "it" is could be encapsulated in a soluble container or base like a time-release vitamin.

In Washington State, they closed off public access to the watersheds right after 9/11. I know this because when I headed up into the Sultan basin recreation area to do some end of the season gold panning, I was met with a sign that basically said turn your ass around and keep going. I chatted with the guy at the local hardware store and he told me that the road was barricaded with concrete barriers a few miles up from where I encountered the big red sign. What they are guarding is Spada Lake, which is the reservoir for the city of Everett.

If they did manage to get the "stuff" into the intake, in this case it would have to travel 27 miles in one of six 36'' pipes. I know they have water treatment plants in the cities to chlorinate and fluorinate the water- I imagine these facilities must be well guarded even before 9/11.

I doubt water supplies are on their list of targets. Their aim seems to be more than just killing Americans. Although it would be fool hearty not to have security at national gatherings like the Superbowl and The World Series I don’t feel that throwing us into despair and demoralizing us is their objective. The fact is, if they wanted to, they could have planned the attack to coincide with a major sporting event and add it to the list of targets, killing tens of thousands of people. Rather that’s what we imagine them being capable of .They want to disable the country as a hole. Go after infrastructure with low-tech methods. They had temporary success disrupting the airlines and nudging the economy into recession.

I think their strength lies in planning and coordinating attacks and the fact they are under no time constraints. I feel it was a huge impact on the American psyche to turn on the television and see the Pentagon AND the WTC burning AND the wreckage of another plane on the ground and rumors that there were more highjacked planes still in the sky as one facet of our transportation and shipping system came to a stop-one plane at a time, one blip after another. I am encouraged (there is nothing really encouraging about any of this) by the fact that there were only 4 planes highjacked and only 18 highjackers. They must have known that they only had one opportunity at this type terrorism, that it would never be that easy again. Yet they only had resources for four targets and only on the east coast.

What ever they choose next- if they are allowed to choose , will probably be simultaneously attacked multiple targets that we may not be thinking of like fiber optic cables or oil refineries. If the ever do get a hold of a nuke I don’t think they will be able to read the Russian instruction manual. They’ll be looking for a fuse to light. (sure hope I’m right)