"Terror strikes from the sea could be even more catastrophic than those from the air, intelligence officials say. They fear a hijacked oil tanker could be rigged with explosives or a radioactive dirty bomb could be smuggled ashore in a shipping container." This from AP.
"But almost 5,000 ships and about four out of every five of the nation's ports, ferry terminals and fuel-chemical tank farms failed to meet a Wednesday deadline for submitting security plans showing how they will deal with those potential threats. . . .
"'We do not have all the plans,' Lt. Cmdr. Jeff Carter said. 'We recognize that despite our best efforts, there are those who won't comply for a variety of reasons.'"
Not too long ago, it was suggested that structures resembling the oil platforms at sea be constructed as lines of first defence, where ships would be required to stop and be inspected prior to continuing on to dock in port.
Sounds like a worth-while expense to me, right up there with securing our borders.
It doesn't appear that we lack imagination; we just seem to lack the will.