I hope the public will not respond with indifference the next time our president raises the national terror threat level from yellow to orange. Perhaps the president should have tended to the main message his terror threat system tries to convey. Bush must have heard the tale about the little boy who cried wolf. The fluctuations in the terror threat level intimidate and frighten the public, and if nothing is produced by the changing of the level, a desensitized and jaded public will react with apathy the next time the level is raised.
In addition, the government seems to broadcast different messages about the exact quality of the preparedness citizens should have. Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge urged citizens to buy a terrorism survival kit complete with duct tape, canned goods and a three-day supply of water. Plastic sheets were also recommended (to cover windows in case of a biological attack).
Not everyone agrees with Ridge and his precautions, though. According to a recent CNN interview New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg believes New York is safe. “You are very safe, and it is preposterous to think you shouldn’t ride the subway, that you shouldn’t go to the theater, that you shouldn’t go to restaurants, children shouldn’t go to school. How can you say that?” he said. But which advice should we take? The words of the director of Homeland Security, or the mayor of one of the world’s busiest metropolises?
The Federal Emergency Management Agency recently released a guidebook for “citizen preparedness” (http://www.fema.gov/areyouready/). The guidebook has guidelines citizens should take for natural disasters as well as terrorist attacks. The section on terrorism, though, is futile in many ways. It begins with the following point: “Wherever you are, be aware of your surroundings. The very nature of terrorism suggests there may be little or no warning.”
It is true that security in many areas has been heightened. There are plenty of obvious signs of boosted security at sporting events and airports. Very recently, the trunk of my car was checked at Baton Rouge Metro Airport for the first time. Ever. Police cars can be found all around LSU sporting events. This is definitely not a bad thing. Perhaps the increased presence of law enforcement officials and the military may reassure the curious and confused public. Whether or not the increased presence will be effective is only part of the logic behind such a boost. The government knows a committed terrorist could probably do almost anything he or she wants, and it may be difficult to track a terrorist with a single vial of smallpox. The security boost, therefore, is for moral support; it is a symbol of a nation fighting a plague in any way it can.
Of course, the most frightening part of terrorism lies in the possibility of dying. It would be a fool’s blunder to die because a simple precaution was not taken, and I must admit that I am not as prepared as Tom Ridge would like me to be. I have no duct tape or plastic sheets. I have no canned food, but I believe the food issue may be resolved easily (by my supply of ramen).
Before safety precautions may be implemented, though, the public needs to know exactly what needs to be done, and in order to do so one unambiguous voice must prevail in public direction.