Readying between the lines

[nadinbrzezinski]

from Napolitano's statements...

We are already way ahead on the federal plan to deal with the flu

[Oregone]

1. Isn't she the same person who thinks the 9/11 hijackers came from Canada

I wonder if McCain also backs her up on this one too. :)

[nadinbrzezinski]

2. No, but that would not be hard to fathom

[Oregone]

3. Not sure what you said "no" to...

She was shredded in the media here for this (and so was Obama somewhat for picking her). Every now and then, these people do get pissed.
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2009/04/20/f-transcript-napolitano-macdonald-interview.html

McCain's backup here:
http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2009/04/24/mccain-border-canada-911.html

Im not inferring she is incompetent completely. Just, well, ya know, everyone makes at least 1 mistake. Sometimes 2.

[nadinbrzezinski]

4. I know the media shreded her

but knowing a little about the canadian border and how damn porous it is... more in fact than the mexican border, it is all but an outlier

Now that said, I'd like to see proof that this ever happened

Yes it did... in 1999

[Oregone]

6. The issue isn't how porous the US/Canadian border is actually...

The issue is how porous the Canadian/World border is. This attitude implies that it is a breeze to get into Canada as a staging area for moving into the United States. It suggests Canada accepts terrorists and has zero security, and hence, we must restrict the flow into US (thereby restricting trade).

But evidence points out (9/11 alone) that far more terrorists get straight into the US from international destinations than into Canada. Even if it may be easier to get into Canada (and then go through another crossing), it is easy enough to go straight into the US that a terrorist wouldn't bother anyway.

Some theorists suggest (and the idea is propagated in the media here regularly) that all this security talk is bullshit (since it isn't even based on historical realities), and terrorism is being used as a justification to implement protectionist trade policies against Canada (by impeding the flow of goods). I don't know either way, ya know.

[nadinbrzezinski]

7. All media coverage is bullshit for some

we have had one historic case

And the US canada border is very porous

As to projectionist policies, watch borders close in the next day or so, at most

world wide

[Oregone]

8. "watch borders close in the next day or so"

Yeah, Im worried about this too.

Were about to have our first Canuckian. Im not sure if family is going to have to cancel travel plans.

[Hannah Bell]

5. i think we're up to 6 fear-mongering ops now....

"Of U.S. swine flu patients only one needed hospital treatment...none...were seriously ill..."

[Garbo 2004]

9. WHO: now at Phase 4:

http://www.who.int/csr/disease/avian_influenza/phase/en/index.html