Posted on 07/16/2008 11:00:40 PM PDT by brityank
Edited on 07/17/2008 6:10:50 AM PDT by Admin Moderator. [history]
At the stroke of midnight July 8, the Denver Water Board closed the road over Dillon Dam in Summit County, Colorado, citing security concerns. The board’s decision, which was implemented without advance notice to local governments and citizens, has not been well-received. It has sparked protests by enraged residents and has even prompted officials from Summit County, three affected towns nearby and the local fire and rescue department to file suit in state district court in a bid to force Denver Water to reopen the road.
(Excerpt) Read more at stratfor.com ...
[My bolding of the second and third paragraph]
http://www.water.denver.co.gov/ for more dam information.
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Are they getting ready for the DNC convention meltdown?
ping
Terrorists need a target that causes, well, terror. Blowing up an outhouse out in the boonies, for example, would terrorize one person at best if there is someone using the outhouse at the time it was blown up (let’s put aside the deluxe four-holer outhouses from the Depression).
Bringing down the Twin Towers in the most media-saturated city in the US, as well as attacking a target in DC (also a media-saturated city) guaranteed terrorists that people would be terrorized - if not by being in immediate proximity to the attack, but by the press winding people up as well.
So let’s say they try to take out this dam. What happens? Well, a couple local reporters get real lucky. The local population worries a bit, but they’re likely made of much hardier stuff than the residents of Denver. The town of Silverthorne is small, like less than 5,000 people. So you terrorize (at best) about 5K people. Not the million+ in Denver.
So what happens when a dam break floods a small town? Look at Rexburg, ID and back to when the Teton Dam failed. Folks did not panic. Yes, people died, lots of property was lost, but there was no state of abject fear or terror there.
As a result, I don’t think that a thinking terrorist would try to breach this dam. There’s just no real terror potential here, unless they poison the water supply.
But breaching the dam? Make a mess? Yes. Inconvenience the people of Denver? Yes. Terrorize them? No.
The Dillon reservoir is part of Denver’s drinking water system. If the dam broke all that water would flow northward along the blue river then turn left at the Colorado river coming down from Rocky Mountain Park. No chance of it getting to Denver to clean up the mess left by the DNC convention.
This dam issue is not going to go away. After all, it has been one dam issue after another and there have been no dam solutions to the dam problem. I was kind of hoping they would get some dam experts to provide dam guidence so this dam thing would go away.
(Oh man I am aweful!!)
I think it’s pretty ridiculous too.
However.....the terrorism aspect comes as the sequelae to the dam being blown up. There are always 2 aspects to acts of terrorism: the destruction of the initial act and the fear caused by realizing that your security has been breached and not knowing if more acts are going to happen.
Terrorism’s power comes from instilling fear and causing disorder & instability.
Yes, fully agree.
And to pull that off really well, they need to pick a target where they get the maximum media exposure.
Look at the anthrax thing, for an example. What a brilliant piece of terrorism. Low cost. Look at their targets: media people and pols - in the urbanized east. Brilliant. They had all sorts of New Yorkers ordering ciproflaxen by the bucketful.
Mind you, where I lived out in central Nevada, we had recurring anthrax that would just pop up on some ranches and farms when we’d dig holes. There had been a wave of cattle deaths due to anthrax in the 30’s, the cows were buried and when you disturb the earth where they were buried, you stir up anthrax. It isn’t the weaponized form, but you do get sick from it. No big deal. No panic - among rural people.
Among city people? Well, they go nuts hearing about it. Want another government program to deal with it. (sigh).
I really think that any attack on US soil will be in urban areas of media concentration. Plotting attacks out in the boonies is a good way for the jihadists to end up dying an ignominious death at the hands of people who “cling to their religion and their guns.” ;-)
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As NVDave has so eloquently said, Plotting attacks out in the boonies is a good way for the jihadists to end up dying an ignominious death at the hands of people who “cling to their religion and their guns.” Plus, the governments have little to alarm and enhance the terrorism outside of the large urban centers.
I would not be surprised to see some type of act committed at any of the major party conventions, and in fact would more expect one against one of the third party's instead of the Dem or Rep's, any type of large gathering will get them visibility and get the MSM and governments to create their enhancements of any action.
I HAVE HAD A SIMILAR EXPERIENCE AS SHOWN BELOW WITH THE ENVIRONMENTALISTS and their LETTERS about a creek seperating property I own with my mother and my aunt. It took an environmental lawyer to set them straight, and protect my assets. Here is something you may have read but uses your favorite word:
This is an actual letter sent to a man named Ryan DeVries by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Quality, State of Pennsylvania . This guy’s response is hilarious, but read the State’s letter before you get to the response letter.
SUBJECT: DEQ File No.97-59-0023; T11N; R10W, Sec. 20; Lycoming County
Dear Mr. DeVries:
It has come to the attention of the Department of Environmental Quality that there has been recent unauthorized activity on the above referenced parcel of property. You have been certified as the legal landowner and/or contractor who did the following unauthorized activity:
Construction and maintenance of two wood debris dams across the outlet stream of Spring Pond. A permit must be issued prior to the start of this type of activity.
A review of the Department’s files shows that no permits have been issued Therefore, the Department has determined that this activity is in violation of Part 301, Inland Lakes and Streams, of the Natural Resource and Environmental Protection Act, Act 451 of the Public Acts of 1994, being sections 324.30101 to 324.30113 of the Pennsylvania Compiled Laws, annotated.
The Department has been informed that one or both of the dams partially failed during a recent rain event, causing debris and flooding at downstream locations. We find that dams of this nature are inherently hazardous and cannot be permitted. The Department therefore orders you to cease and desist all activities at this location, and to restore the stream to a free-flow condition by removing all wood and brush forming the dams from the stream channel. All restoration work shall be completed no later than January 31, 2006.
Please notify this office when the restoration has been completed so that a follow-up site inspection may be scheduled by our staff.
Failure to comply with this request or any further unauthorized activity on the site may result in this case being referred for elevated enforcement action..
We anticipate and would appreciate your full cooperation in this matter. Please feel free to contact me at this office if you have any questions
Sincerely,
David L. Price
District Representative and Water Management Division.
&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&
Here is the actual response sent back by Mr. DeVries:
Re: DEQ File No. 97-59-0023; T11N; R10W, Sec. 20; Lycoming County
Dear Mr. Price,
Your certified letter dated 12/17/02 has been handed to me to respond to. I am the legal landowner but not the Contractor at 2088 Dagget Lane , Trout Run, Pennsylvania .
A couple of beavers are in the (State unauthorized) process of constructing and maintaining two wood “debris” dams across the outlet stream of my Spring Pond. While I did not pay for, authorize, nor supervise their dam project, I think they would be highly offended that you call their skillful use of natures building materials “debris.” I would like to challenge your department to attempt to emulate their dam project any time and/or any place you choose. I believe I can safely state there is no way you could ever match their dam skills, their dam resourcefulness, their dam ingenuity, their dam persistence, their dam determination and/or their dam work ethic.
As to your request, I do not think the beavers are aware that they must first fill out a dam permit prior to the start of this type of dam activity.
My first dam question to you is: (1) Are you trying to discriminate against my Spring Pond Beavers, or (2) do you require all beavers throughout this State to conform to said dam request?
If you are not discriminating against these particular beavers, through the Freedom of Information Act, I request completed copies of all those other applicable beaver dam permits that have been issued. Perhaps we will see if there really is a dam violation of Part 301, Inland Lakes and Streams, of the Natural Resource and Environmental Protection Act, Act 451 of the Public Acts of 1994, being sections 324.30101 to 324.30113 of the Pennsylvania Compiled Laws, annotated.
I have several concerns. My first concern is, aren’t the beavers entitled to legal representation? The Spring Pond Beavers are financially destitute and are unable to pay for said representation — so the State will have to provide them with a dam lawyer. The Department’s dam concern that either one or both of the dams failed during a recent rain event, causing flooding, is proof that this is a natural occurrence, which the Department is required to protect. In other words, we should leave the Spring Pond Beavers alone rather than harassing them and calling their dam names.
If you want the stream “restored” to a dam free-flow condition please contact the beavers — but if you are going to arrest them, they obviously did not pay any attention to your dam letter, they being unable to read English.
In my humble opinion, the Spring Pond Beavers have a right to build their unauthorized dams as long as the sky is blue, the grass is green and water flows downstream. They have more dam rights than I do to live and enjoy Spring Pond. If the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection lives up to its name, it should protect the natural resources (Beavers) and the environmen t (Beavers’ Dams)
So, as far as the beavers and I are concerned, this dam case can be referred for more elevated enforcement action right now. Why wait until 1/31/2006? The Spring Pond Beavers may be under the dam ice then and there will be no way for you or your dam staff to contact/harass them then.
In conclusion, I would like to bring to your attention to a real environmental quality, health, problem in the area. It is the bears! Bears are actually defecating in our woods. I definitely believe you should be persecuting the defecating bears and leave the beavers alone.
If you are going to investigate the beaver dam, watch your step! The bears are not careful where they dump!
Being unable to comply with your dam request, and being unable to contact you on your dam answering machine, I am sending this response to your dam office.
THANK YOU.
RYAN DEVRIES & THE DAM BEAVERS
I meant adjoins my aunts property. Although the problem was about some clearing she done on her side, there was a beaver problem, where they dropped off beavers in a creek that never had any in over 100 yrs...
What I meant about the "DNC convention meltdown" wasn't that someone might want to use the water for clean up. I was thinking about all the degenerates that the DNC will attract trying to poison the water. If they have armed guards on it, that thought must be on their minds too.
“degenerates” Oh, Is Helen going to be there too?? I would love to see the “Recreate 68” bunch shut down the whole city of Denver, it would serve them right; hosting the DNC convention here. They would be much better served in San Francisco (the land of fruits and nuts). I understand you are talking about the local nutjobs, not the “religion of peace” nutjobs.
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