It begins...

[Pab Sungenis]

http://cnn.netscape.cnn.com/news/story.jsp?flok=FF-APO-1110&idq=/ff/story/0001%2F20040801%2F1252334577.htm&sc=1110

WASHINGTON (AP) - The government is considering raising the threat level in Washington and New York City and for financial companies, a Homeland Security Department official said Sunday.

Secretary Tom Ridge planned to discuss the alert status at an afternoon news conference at department headquarters. It was not immediately known what intelligence was leading the government to consider such action.

New York's status has remained at orange, indicating a high risk of terrorist attack, since Sept. 11, 2001, and a change to red would not mean dramatic changes in the city, said the Homeland Security official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

So, we establish a precedent for raising the level in "certain areas" based upon "intelligence" that we're not at liberty to discuss. And, even though this article downplays it, code red gives authorities the power to completely shut down everything in an area.

It is now only a hop skip and jump to suddenly, 5:30 AM November 2nd, "certain intelligence" causing a Code Red to be declared in New York, California, and Ohio, and the Republican Governors use it as an excuse to cancel election day and have the legislatures select the electors instead. Bang. Over 100 electors moved from the Kerry column to the Bush column nice and legally, and Poppy's Supreme Court has already said that it's legal.

This announcement today is a bad precedent, and should not be allowed to stand.

[jeff30997]

1. Yaaaaaaaaawn!

We all knew they would do that kind of thing.

[Pab Sungenis]

3. Yeah....

But even I didn't think they'd have the gall to go ahead with it.

[Snoggera]

2. Just when I think I've used up my allotment of anger

I find new wells to tap. This is bullshit.

[Puglover]

4. I would hope at that

point we take it to the streets.

[dolo amber]

5. I would hope so too

but if there's a new episode of "The Simple Life" or something on, don't count on it...:eyes:

[Fleshdancer]

6. Does NYC have enough $$$ to go to red??

I keep reading stories about how NYC is gettin screwed because they're not receiving adequate amounts of funding to implement everything Homeland Security suggests.

Here's how the Homeland Security describes code elmo:

# Severe Condition (Red). A Severe Condition reflects a severe risk of terrorist attacks. Under most circumstances, the Protective Measures for a Severe Condition are not intended to be sustained for substantial periods of time. In addition to the Protective Measures in the previous Threat Conditions, Federal departments and agencies also should consider the following general measures in addition to the agency-specific Protective Measures that they will develop and implement:

1. Increasing or redirecting personnel to address critical emergency needs;
2. Assigning emergency response personnel and pre-positioning and mobilizing specially trained teams or resources;
3. Monitoring, redirecting, or constraining transportation systems; and
4. Closing public and government facilities.

[BenDavid]

7. Bush election based on Fearmongering:

The boogeyman will get us, and prior to and now afterwards it is the boogeyman cometh. Yep, and we all should have seen this coming because the Republican National Committee showed what bush's re-selection campaign would be about: FEARMONGERING.
Hell folks just think about it, bush is pretty good at warmongering, so why the hell not play the fear card? Just think back a lil' and think of the first ad ran by the RNC. It plainly stated, that if we do not re-elect Bush, the big, bad boogeyman will get us.We can also remember now going on 3 years after 9-11 the Bush administration has: failed to identify and capture the anthrax killer, failed to capture or kill Osama bin Laden, THE ACTUAL BOOGEYMAN WHO GOT US, and failed to capture or kill Mullah Omar of the Taliban. Worse, rather than going after the terrorists who actually attacked us, Mr Bush has invited all of the world's terrorists to attack us by delaring war on them and the result is the U S bogged down in two guerrilla wars.
Personally, I found the secret Bush is using. He (Bush) has no desire to win the war on terrorism. What he wants is PERPETUAL WAR,and PERPETUAL FEAR because that means perpetually enchancing the power of the government:His government.
So now as Tom Ridge comes forth with his message of FEAR, two times in the past two to three weeks, we as citizens ought not fall for all this fearmongering. We all knew this was going to be the "SUMMER OF FEAR" and to me, Bush's war on terrorism is a flop. Terror is merely a tactic, not an entity. Yes, the big, bad boogeyman did hit us on September 11, 2001 and yes we all should remain calm and well informed but never give in to their FEARMONGERING.

[Deja Q]

8. Hmmm, at least 'intelligence we are not allowed to discuss' sounds better

than 'We don't have specific information' - the unimaginative line that Tommy Toddler 'Boy who called Wolf' Ridge keeps saying on every single occasion.

[Walt Starr]

9. After the way KErry has come on, they HAD to move to plan "D"

Plan "A" was Bush just wins nice and fair.

Plan "B" was a Diebold victory, but we shut that down.

Plan "C" was always to scare everybody into voting for Bush.

Plan "D" is what we see now, a full out military coup d'etat because they cnanot win an election and cannot even steal one.

Get used to it, folks, this signals the end of democracy forever.