posted on February 7, 2003 05:10:53 PM new
It means to stay away from tall building with Elevators. Oh wait a minute. Not all tall buildings.
Amen,
Reverend Colin
posted on February 7, 2003 05:20:04 PM new
Hi KD - I think this series of alerts are used to heighten awareness. We're approaching the ....how was it said? ... Five minutes before twelve. Maybe ?? ready to strike? Maybe soon after the 14th of this month ??? Possibly because of the elevated chattering our intelligence is hearing?
If the government didn't have some way of being able to cover their rears, they would take the blame of not warning the people, like they did after 9-11. But how can they warn us [other than this way] when they don't have specfic known targets? Just makes law inforcement and the general public more aware to be watchful, imo.
posted on February 7, 2003 06:26:25 PM newI'm afraid I don't get the concept. What good does it do?
Have you noticed that every time the tide against Bush & "war on terror" begins to gain more ground and his rhetoric loses more credibility, we are treated to "alerts" about possible terrorist attacks here in the US? The info & its sources are touted as "highly credible"--though we are never told any more than that--but it always fizzles out.
IMO, these "heightened alerts" are used to keep us stirred up & rally support for Bush's cause. Censorship, like charity, should begin at home; but unlike charity, it should end there --Clare Booth Luce
posted on February 7, 2003 06:34:30 PM new
I take it to mean to keep your doors locked and not play your stereo loud, respect your elders, play fair, be wholesome, clean and reverent, call the police about anyone that looks suspicious.
Oh, forgot, it also means you don't have to go to work unless you're in the army, and you still get paid.
Everyone got it ? Let's go on alert...
[ edited by REAMOND on Feb 7, 2003 06:35 PM ]
posted on February 7, 2003 06:37:48 PM new
Also, just found this out- at this level of alert, if you are chasing terrorists and flash your headlights, you can run red lights, go the wrong way down streets, and park wherever you want.
posted on February 7, 2003 07:11:04 PM newHeightened alert was what saved the shoe bomber from blowing up that plane load of people.
Didn't need "heightened alert" with Reed--the guy acted weird throughout the flight. That and the fact he made little attempt to hide the fact that he was trying to set fire to his shoe was enough for him to be caught.
Heightened alert was what help the truck driver point out the DC sniper to police.
With a sniper in the area people had reason to be alert, didn't they? When there is a real reason to be alert, people are--they will keep their eyes peeled when a rapist or child molester has been operating--or when there has been a series of break-ins in an area. But in the case of the government's "terror alerts" we are told nothing, we are given no proof--even after the alert fizzles out. In fact, you will notice that nothing more is usually said about such a fizzled alert after they go out of their way to scare people out of their wits in the first place. Censorship, like charity, should begin at home; but unlike charity, it should end there --Clare Booth Luce
posted on February 7, 2003 07:31:09 PM new
Could it be that the government wants a reason for this proposed legislation to pass?
"MOYERS: Including lawful permanent resident aliens. It would give the government the power to keep certain arrests secret until an indictment is found never in our history have we permitted secret arrests. It would give the government power to bypass courts and grand juries in order to conduct surveillance without a judge's permission. I mean these do really further upend the balance between liberty on the one hand and security on the other."
"MOYERS: Congressman Burton, Dan Burton, of Indiana, a very conservative congressman, who is Chairman on the Committee on Government Reform. He said recently, "An iron veil is descending over the executive branch."
Now your forte is moving information around in Washington trying to find out what's going on. Would you agree with what Congressman Burton has said here?
LEWIS: I absolutely agree with what he's saying. I mean there have been 300 roll-backs of the Freedom of Information Act since September 11th. All over America, at the state and local level, as well as the federal government. The Attorney General sent a message to every federal employee, when in doubt, deny any Freedom of Information request.
We have other things like presidential papers being sealed off. We have reporters trying to cover things in Afghanistan being locked in a warehouse and not able to file their stories. Even before September 11th, we had one reporter's home phone records seized by a grand jury without telling him or his news organization.
There's a lot of things happening with information, access to information, and efforts to stop journalism that I have not seen in 20 plus years of watching Washington and journalism and government interact. And it's not just information. It's not information for information's sake. This is about health, safety, lives…"
"MOYERS: One of the provisions in here as I understand it is that the government could actually strip citizenship from someone if — for example, if you were found, according to this, if you were found making what you thought was a legitimate contribution to some non profit organization.
LEWIS: Right.
MOYERS: Foundation. And months from then, that foundation were deemed by the government or that organization were deemed by the government to have been in some way supporting terrorists, you could lose your citizenship because of your contribution, even if you didn't know…
LEWIS: That's right."
"And then this magazine, which is non-partisan, says this is part of the administration's broad campaign to run the federal government more like a private business. And with private businesses you have more control over employees, you have more control over information. Do you see that developing as a syndrome of this administration?
LEWIS: I think it's incredible what's happening. I see a wholesale assault on access to information in this country that has not really been seen, I have to just say it, since Richard Nixon."
posted on February 7, 2003 08:40:40 PM new
Well, snowy, you know that makes people like Linda and Bear dance for Joy! They blithly trust our government to do the right thing when it has absolutely no incentive to do just that. In fact, it has the opposite incentive and it is working hard to destroy our way of life.
posted on February 7, 2003 08:51:28 PM new
Borillar, I don't know. Dan Burton doesn't seem to like this, and I find myself in agreement with Bob Barr. (Pinching self, oh yes, I'm awake) Both conservative. Ron Paul will go into fire ant mode with this.
You have the right to an informed opinion -Harlan Ellison
posted on February 7, 2003 11:18:55 PM new
It's nice for them to dance for their voters. Talk is cheap ~ if you can get the air time. I'll be more swayed by their voting record than anything that they have to say. How often in the past have polticians poo-poo'd an unpopular agenda and have been caught voting for that very agenda? Too often to be an occasional anomoly.
So, let me hear what they say that you like, then let's look up how they actually voted.
posted on February 8, 2003 05:02:00 AM new
My understanding is a hightened alert requires them to start a lot of actions by the governmental agencies that they have really been avoiding because of the expense.
For example when I came home yesterday from doing a little work I saw two fighters and a tanker plane sitting on the end of the runway at Selfridge.
The fighters had ordenance and drop tanks hung and there were all sorts of support vehicles including fire and rescue out near the runway, and they seemed to have more perimeter security than usual.
They apparently don't have a specific mission but it looks like they configured to launch the tanker first and then I imagine after the fast guys climbed out the'd top off and have their max range available.
I have not seen aircraft on runway alert since the Cuban missle crisis.
When I got home and saw the security alert I figured that was why.
posted on February 8, 2003 01:16:31 PM new
What, the elevated alert level is orange. Well, that just stinks. I have nothing to wear to an ORANGE alert. And just after I had blue got my Blue Level and Green level wardrobes filled out.
By the way, what the hell goes with orange alert level? Would the purple flak jacket with the fusia kevlar helmet be just too gosh????
.................................................
Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Firemen, Police. We call them our heroes...but we pay them like chumps
posted on February 8, 2003 02:31:31 PM new
Oh mlecher, you're just a clothes horse and really don't care about government warnings. Besides, alert coordinayed ear rings are enough, well maybe shoes too, but any winter color clothes are fine with alert colored ear rings and/or shoes.
posted on February 9, 2003 02:36:30 AM new
What does Clinton think of these alerts?
KING: What do you make of the alerts we're under? The Yellows and the Greens and the -- what do you do in the cases?
CLINTON: I don't think there's much for us to do, but what happens -- to be fair to the government, they're in a pickle. If they don't issue the alert and something happens, then they cover up.
If they do issue the alert and people don't have anything to do they feel like they're being jerked around. It's a difficult thing for the government.
If the alert is a possible terrorist attack, then at least, you know, people can look around.You'd be amazed how many things are foiled almost, not by accident, but just by alertness.
There were, for all of the terrible things we suffered when I was president -- Oklahoma City, the first World Trade Center bombing -- there were lots and lots of things, an attack on the Lincoln Tunnel, attack on the Holland Tunnel and attack at the Los Angeles airport....
KING: That were stopped?
CLINTON: ... that were stopped. Planned bombings in cities in the Northeast, the Northwest over the millennium.
KING: Really?
CLINTON: Yes, that were stopped by vigorous law enforcement and working with citizens and sometimes somebody picked up a tip. So I think that the government's in a difficult position because they know when they give these alerts they may scare people and there's nothing quite they can do and they don't really want them to stay off airplanes or anything like that. But if they don't give the alert and something happens then they'll always wonder might somebody have picked it up?
Taken from Larry King's interview of former President Bill Clinton.
[ edited by Linda_K on Feb 9, 2003 02:38 AM ]
posted on February 9, 2003 11:22:25 AM new
Linda, that's if you give them the benefit of the doubt. If this was Clinton's Presidnecy, I'd favor that belief. But this is the Bush Administration and our Constitution is under attack like never before, series of Wars caused by Bush's lack of diplomacy, and an economy that Bush has a formal "hands off" policy on, I seriously doubt that this adminsitration does it simply for those terms. More than liekly, they can see the propaganda advantage of it, especially with excitable people. There is little difference between the Bush Adminstration and Adolph Hitler's Nazi Regeime and the gap is closing further every day.
posted on February 17, 2003 05:04:42 PM new
Is the alert over yet? It's Monday now and terrorists were supposed to attack on the weekend, on the east coast somewhere. Thank goodness nothing happened! I thought I read somewhere that Osama said they would strike when least expected, so why not stay on the highest alert possible... forever?
posted on February 17, 2003 05:36:10 PM new
the CIA secret weather control technology was responsible for stopping all the use of aircraft as improvised weapons.
You guys crack me up.
