Missing Explosives

Though I am trying to keep this as non-partisan as possible, I have to comment somewhat on this missing explosives story. I am watching the special pentagon briefing right now, and I need to point one thing out:

They are consistently referring to the missing RDX as "munitions" or "ammunition" and lumping the amount missing in with the other destroyed munitions across Iraq to illuminate this as a small amount. The problem with this is that RDX is not easily comparable to bullets or caches of bombs. RDX is a highly explosive material used not only in the common plastic explosive C-4, but is also the explosive material used to jumpstart nuclear bombs and missiles.

Lumping in this substance with more common military items is not just illogical, but highly misleading to the American public, because finding any amount of this substance would be a terrorists dream, as they could use it effectively in almost any terrorist attack.

The fact that this cache was allowed to be left semi-unguarded after it's initial capture by US forces is a major mistake, no matter who was in charge, because the loss of this substance leaves any American, no matter what party or location, at more risk than before.

Edited - 11/1/04 - I said RDX, when it is, in fact, HMX, which is "the highest-energy solid explosive produced on a large scale in the United States" - something that, though I was wrong on the type of explosive, proves my point even more.