Bill Press: I'm a terrorist -- color me purple ( repost )
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-( reposted )-
From: "CJ" <jop...@euronet.nl>
Newsgroups: alt.conspiracy,alt.security.terrorism
Subject: Bill Press: I'm a terrorist -- color me purple
Date: Wed, 27 Mar 2002 23:07:17 +0100
Bill Press: I'm a terrorist -- color me purple
Phone wires are color-coded. So are smog alerts. And now, thanks to
Homeland Security czar Tom Ridge, even terrorist alerts are
color-coded.
It's the latest phase of the administration's war against terror and
the silliest so far. Even sillier than the shadow government -- and
that's saying something.
In order to identify the general level of danger we're facing at any
one time, Ridge has promulgated a new federal alert system based on
five colors ranging from green, the least dangerous, to red, or high
alert. Each color would demand a different response from law
enforcement.
Green, according to the White House, means a "Low" threat: Check
facilities for vulnerability to terrorist attack and train personnel.
Blue means "Guarded" and calls for a review of emergency response
procedures and giving the public information. Yellow, or "Elevated,"
means it is time to increase surveillance of critical locations and
implement contingency and emergency plans.
Orange signals a "High" threat and calls for coordinating security
with armed forces, restricting access to threatened sites and taking
additional precautions at public events. When the red, or "Severe"
alert is sounded, law enforcement officials are directed to close
public and government facilities, monitor or close airports, and
increase or redirect emergency personnel.
It seems so neat and logical, until you stop to think about it. Are
there, indeed, varying degrees of terrorism? If real, shouldn't every
terrorist alert be red?
The idea of a green, or harmless, threat is hard to imagine. We surely
don't expect them to attack with water balloons. Until we know all
terrorist threats have been eliminated, the security measures Ridge
outlines should be in place at all times, not turned on and off from
one day to the next.
Despite that inherent contradiction, Ridge insists the rainbow
warnings would make the war on terror less confusing. Is he serious?
It will make things more confusing.
True, the armed forces have long employed a similar system of
color-coded response. But what works in the contained, secret world of
the military won't work for the entire country --especially since
these codes are to be announced to the general public, and not just to
law enforcement.
Until Monday, March 11, according to Attorney General John Ashcroft --
who shares with Ridge the job of setting appropriate levels -- we were
on maximum, red alert. The very next day, Ridge announced we were
downgraded to yellow. What changed overnight? What were we supposed to
do differently? And what happens when, someday, it drops from yellow
to blue?
Talk about confusing. We deserve a citizen's handbook. Is it OK to
walk the dog when it's green, blue, yellow and orange -- but not red?
When we see a strange car in the neighborhood, do we dial 911 when
it's red but only give it a dirty look when it's blue? Do we dare take
a flight when it's red? Go bowling when it's orange? Weed the garden
when it's yellow?
Nobody knows, except Tom Ridge. The day he announced the country had
changed from red to yellow, he headed for Florida to play a round of
golf. At least we know what one color means: When it's yellow, head
for the greens!
The truth is, nothing will change in our daily lives. We won't notice
or know the difference from blue to orange. But terrorists will.
They'll know at any moment how prepared we are for whatever evil acts
they're trying to pull off.
That's the biggest weakness of the Ridge plan. Tell the public and
you're telling the terrorists, too. For us, a green light may mean
relax. For them, it will mean full speed ahead, the coast is clear,
attack. Where is the wisdom in broadcasting our moves to the enemy?
When examined closely, Tom Ridge's color scheme is nothing more than
public relations, designed to give the appearance of action, without
doing anything.
It's been six months since September 11. Yet not one al Qaeda cell in
this country has been discovered and shut down. Nobody's been charged
with mailing those anthrax-laced letters. Only 2 percent of closed
containers arriving at U.S. ports are inspected. Our borders are full
of loopholes. And only 5 percent of checked luggage is screened before
being loaded on planes.
There's a lot of work to be done before we're safe from terrorism. A
pretty, color-coded alert system won't help.