1. Anti-Aircraft Missile Proliferation Is Out of Control

The Malaysia Airlines 777 shot down today was flying at about 33,000 feet. It takes a big rocket—one about 16 feet tall—to hit a plane at that altitude.

There was a time when the missile proliferation threat everyone worried about was the shoulder-fired variety. Now it seems that more powerful mid-range missiles are falling into the hands of rebel groups and untrained paramilitaries. It’s pretty scary to consider that three fighting forces in the area—Russian government forces, Ukrainian government forces, and separatist rebels—have the technology that could have taken down the airliner.

This proliferation is happening in Ukraine, but there is a risk of such equipment falling into the hands of ISIS fighters in Syria and Iraq. Oh yeah, and those shoulder-fired missiles are also proliferating, with governments giving them to rebels fighting Assad regime in Syria. So it’s not like that threat is diminishing, either.