A Look at the Threat Advisory System http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2005/07/07/national/w115137D67.DTL (07-07) 11:51 PDT , (AP) -- The Homeland Security Department's color-coded advisory system is designed to inform authorities and the public about terrorist threats. The level has been raised seven times since the start in March 2002 and never has fallen below yellow, the midpoint. The threat levels: GREEN: Low. Slight risk of attack. BLUE: Guarded. General risk of attack. YELLOW: Elevated. Significant risk of attack. ORANGE: High. High risk of attack. RED: Severe. Severe risk of attack. A timeline of terror alert events: _ March 12, 2002: Alert system instituted. It begins at yellow. _ Sept. 11: Threat level raised to orange. Officials say attacks possible around anniversary of Sept. 11, 2001. _ Sept. 24: Level returns to yellow. _ Feb. 7, 2003: Threat level raised to orange. Officials worry about attacks coinciding with the end of the Hajj, a Muslim religious period. _ Feb. 27: Returns to yellow. _ March 17: Threat level raised to orange. Officials believe terrorists may attempt attacks after President Bush gives Saddam Hussein 48 hours to leave Iraq _ April 16: Returns to yellow. _ May 20: Level raised to orange. Officials say al-Qaida has entered an operational period worldwide. _ May 30: Returns to yellow. _ Dec. 21: Level raised to orange. Officials report increased terrorism-related reports around holiday season. _ Jan. 9, 2004: Returns to yellow. _ Aug. 1: Threat level raised to orange for financial institutions in New York, Washington and Newark, N.J. Officials say intelligence indicates al-Qaida might be planning attacks. _ Nov. 10: Returns to yellow. _ July 7, 2005: Threat level for mass transit systems raised to orange after attacks on London's public transit system.
The problem I have with generic quotes like this is they don't address all circumstances. They just provide a convenient "sound bite" to support a particular point of view. For example, what do you say when a nation should be concerned or afraid? Say, France in 1940? Do the people who oppose the leaders of the French government say "Rule a nation by fear and the people will do your bidding." to get political points? Then Hitler invades and its too late to say "I told you so." Maybe the people in charge (Bush, etc...) really feel they are doing the right thing. It's perfectly okay to think they are screwing it all up but I don't believe they are evil people with some sort of plot to enslave us all. Actually for most "sayings" there are equal (and equally true) counter-sayings. For example "Birds of a feather flock together" and "opposites attract" are both true statements under different circumstances. The circumstances happen often enough to warrent a "saying" but, clearly, they aren't universal truths. You statement "Rule a nation by fear...." probably has truth to it under certain circumstances (probably Pre-WWII Germany) but its certainly not a universal truth and I don't think it applies here. Time and history will tell.... Remember "The Lord of the Rings"? There was a scene where the King of Gondor (I think) was under the control of that guy (wurm?). When he was approached about preparing the Kingdom for war (because it was coming) they (the people asking to prepare for war) were accused of being Warmongers by that wurm guy. Clearly they were men of peace preparing for a war they didn't want. They weren't warmongers. They were being called warmongers by a person with a political objective opposite to theirs. Just because someone says your a warmonger doesn't mean that you are.
FYI, Here is a link to the Homeland security Threat & Protection advisory system web page. At the bottom there is a link to a PDF on what citizens should do. I havn't read it yet but in case anyone wants to here is the link (note the link is at the bottom of the page)... Homeland Security Advisory System Adendum: I just read the page and mostly it's about listening for more instructions, having a plan and knowing evacuation routes. All stuff good for any kind of emergency (like hurricanes and earthquakes). They really don't expect citizens to do anything but be prepared to listen for instructions.
it is amazing to me that the Bush aplogists will bend over backwards defending a color system but remain silent on issues that could really help to protect America. Coast Guard plagued by breakdowns By Mimi Hall, USA TODAY http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2005-07-05-coast-guard_x.htm WASHINGTON — The Coast Guard's ships, planes and helicopters are breaking down at record rates, which may threaten the service's ability to carry out its post-9/11 mission of protecting ports and waterways against terrorism. Key members of Congress, maritime security experts and a former top Homeland Security Department official say that the fleet is failing and that plans to replace the Coast Guard's 88 aging cutters and 186 aircraft over the next 20 years should be accelerated. "This nation must understand the dire situation in which the Coast Guard now finds itself," says Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, chairwoman of a Senate Coast Guard subcommittee. She favors replacing the Coast Guard's "deepwater" fleet — the ships and aircraft capable of operating far offshore — over 10 to 15 years. Former Coast Guard commandant and Homeland Security deputy secretary James Loy says "the stakes are simply too high in the post-9/11 environment" to continue to allow the Coast Guard's aging equipment to continue to deteriorate. Some ships are more than 50 years old, well beyond the recommended age for replacement. (Related story: Sailing far from smooth) The Bush administration wants to increase the amount of time it will take to replace a fleet that's among the oldest on the globe — older even than fleets owned by nations such as Algeria and Pakistan. The "deepwater" replacement program, conceived in 1998 as a $20 billion, 20-year plan to replace the fleet, could be increased to 25 years under a White House plan. The strategy would save the government money in the short term. The White House budget office declined to comment. Snowe calls the idea a "violation of common sense" amid mounting concern that terrorists will try to sneak weapons of mass destruction into the USA through a port. Adm. Thomas Collins, commandant of the Coast Guard, says he supports the White House plan and has enough refurbished equipment to operate the fleet. But this month, he told Congress his equipment is failing at unacceptable rates: •In fiscal 2004, the engines on the Coast Guard's 95 HH-65 helicopters suffered power losses at a rate of 329 per 100,000 flight hours, up from 63 per 100,000 flight hours in fiscal 2003. The comparable Federal Aviation Administration standard is 1 per 100,000 flight hours. •There have been 23 hull breaches — holes that let in water — requiring emergency dry-dock repairs in the 49 110- and 123-foot patrol boats since 2001. •Each of the dozen 378-foot cutters, most of which operate in the Pacific, suffers a significant engine or hydraulic or refrigeration system breakdown on every patrol. •For all major cutters and patrol boats, the number of unscheduled maintenance days was 742 in fiscal 2004, up from 267 in fiscal 1999. The loss of cutter days in fiscal 2004 equated to losing 10% of the major fleet for an entire year. Stephen Flynn, a maritime security expert and former Coast Guard officer, says the agency is "operating at the level, in many instances, of a Third World navy." The Coast Guard was moved into the Department of Homeland Security in 2003 and given primary responsibility for maritime security in addition to its regular duties. The added responsibilities include patrolling the nation's 361 ports and 95,000 miles of coastline, boarding and inspecting tens of thousands of cargo ships and recreational boats, and reviewing security at the nation's commercial ports.
Maybe it doens't apply here in your opinion, but it sure seems to fit to me. Maybe the system means more to police forces across the country. I doubt the Bush administration is evil and trying to enslave us, but I do believe they are liars and trying to manipulate us.
