How The Ridge Stole Christmas!

LewRockwell.com ^ | December 24, 2003 | Butler Shaffer

[EveningStar]

The stockings were hung by the chimney with care, When Tom Ridge appeared with a pre-Christmas scare!

Just four days before Christmas, Mr. Ridge was the principal source of network entertainment as he announced that he was raising the "terror alert" in America from "yellow" to "orange." The upcoming holidays might, he supposed, provide an opportunity for some ill-defined group to attack some possible targets someplace in the homeland he imagines it his province to protect. When a 6.5 earthquake hit central California the following day, I almost expected members of the Busheoisie to praise Tom for his foresight and for making us aware of the threat of tectonic terrorism!

[EveningStar]

I'm not a big fan of the Patriot Act but this is just more typical pseudolibertarian paranoid drivel.

[EveningStar]

Take a look at this.

[Paul Atreides]

From what I remember, there were an awful lot of people who wanted to know about every little alert that came down the line. Well, they have it. And, they still aren't happy.

"Just tell us to go on with our lives."

"Don't tell us to just go on with our lives."

[Pubbie]

GO PAT GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOooooooooooooooooooooo!!! (Faints while foaming at the mouth.)

[doug from upland]

Of course, here is incoherent babbling from Lew Rockwell. Are they still around?

[mhking]

There will be those who will commend Mr. Ridge for keeping America informed of terrorist threats. But his words informed us of nothing.

Damned if you do, damned if you don't.

Just damn.

If you want on the new list, FReepmail me. This IS a high-volume PING list...

[EveningStar]

Pat who?

[EveningStar]

Well, someone needs to produce fertilizer.

[EggsAckley]

Well, I must admit that when the quake happened one of my first thoughts was terrorism. As in, did somebody bomb San Jose or San Francisco. That was about the time my office chair rolled over to the edge of the plastic pad all by itself. Unnerving, to put it mildly.

[Pubbie]

[EveningStar]

Sorry I asked.

[EveningStar]

I didn't even feel the quake. I'm glad I didn't or I may have thought the same thing you did.

[thoughtomator]

Why I don't give any credibility whatsoever to Lew Rockwell - Exhibit A

[kitkat]

***We were likewise told by Mr. Ridge’s 1950’s counterpart, Sen. Joseph McCarthy, of the threat of "communists" in our schools, businesses, government, the media, and neighborhoods.***

Yeah, but Joe McCarthy was RIGHT!

[Pubbie]

I'll bet you are!

:~)

[JoeFromSidney]

Okay, the alert level has gone up from yellow to orange. But what am I supposed to do differently from what I did when it was yellow? The alert level really conveys no information that's useful from a decision-making standpoint.

What's worse, Ridge acts as though it's up to the government to defend us while we stand passively by. Why not give us credit for being able to take responsibility for our own defense?

[Texas_Dawg]

GO PAT GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOooooooooooooooooooooo!!!

...far away, forever.

[prairiebreeze]

There is a concern and deep seriousness in the demeanor of administration officials these past few days that is easy to observe. IMO it's best that we are are as informed and aware as possible as to what the current situation is. Some though, will complain with either scenario...

Priarie

[dcwusmc]

Exactly. As a retired U.S. Marine, I feel FULLY capable of doing my bit, but FedGov and the several States seem largely bent on keeping us disarmed and at their mercy. Sure, there are several exceptions (VT, AK are best; TX, FL, et al, are KINDA OK but they want you to get their permission to exercise your God-Given RIGHTS...) but when you add it all up, we are supposed to kneel and beg for THEM to save us. Sorry, FedGov, but I would not kneel if I could.

[FrankR]

"I read Mr. Shaffer's article, and sent him this email."


Mr. Shaffer;

You wrote: "Mr. Ridge’s "alert" was designed for one purpose only: to keep us terrified so that the state can continue to manipulate our fears for its purposes."

Is this sort of like your latest Bush hate-piece, designed for one-purpose only, to keep some liberal editor convinced you're worth retaining as an employee/writer? It's just another piece of fluff to prop up more anti-Bush propaganda, and you know it.

Your statement just might ring true, if, every "alert" were RED...and nothing ever happened. But you obviously haven't been privvy to the definitions of the color code...or choose to ignore them because YOUR man isn't the President.

Orange is just telling us that we may get frisked a little more at the airport. It hardly bothers us at the individual level. Terrorists aren't interested in onesy-twosy's...they want the big stuff. This is a concept I had to explain to my 10-year-old granddaughter, after 9/11...but I thought all of the big, bad journalists would know it. Anyway, if I lived in one of the targeted cities, I would greatly appreciate knowing the alert status, so I could go to Hoboken to stay with Aunt Clara until it was back to Green again.

First, all we heard from the left is that Bush "...should warn us when there is possible danger"...so he put a system in place - maybe not a perfect system, but what exactly would be a perfect system?...but you folks just continue to fill your required word count bitching about it, either way.

You said: "We were likewise told by Mr. Ridge’s 1950’s counterpart, Sen. Joseph McCarthy, of the threat of "communists" in our schools, businesses, government, the media, and neighborhoods".

Like you, I remember those Civil Defense days too...what you don't seem to remember is that McCarthy was basically correct. Or does your memory go "selective" when you remember the Cold War, just to add emphasis to the point you're trying to make?

You know, looking for a German bomber in those days, it was quite obvious what they were here for, and were easy to recognize...but nowadays we have to deal with weapons like a fully-fueled, and hijacked 747 full of passengers. We have to keep it safe for passengers, WITHOUT ticking off anyone by "profiling"...(another liberal invention).

Now, just how would you go about insuring that the thousands of landings and takeoffs daily, are all safe? How about doing another article with something constructive...not just bitching?

We got into this fix by "put-some-ice-on-it" clinton, giving the terrorists eight, fear-free years to organize and grow. And like the grafitti on the White House walls, and dozens of useless Executive Orders, Bush inherited all of this from Monica's boy.

The UN can't/won't handle it, France, Germany and Russia all have their selfish reasons for bowing out...mainly hopes of more oil and millions of dollars in debt to Iraq, not to mention supplying Saddam with weapons for who-knows how many years.

I - for one - am glad they notified me the alert status has changed, but for you to write articles to try to scare people into not trusting the only system in place to help us, is totally irresponsible.

I haven't heard you, or any other Bush-basher suggest a better system. BTW, it wasn't "designed" by Mr. Ridge to keep us terrified...what an example of journalism on the full spin cycle is your drivel...it boggles the mind, especially imagining that you actually believe the crap in that article. It was designed to do exactly what it's doing...keeping us abreast of the status. STATUS...an important part of the phrase "Alert STATUS"...don't you think?

When you leave your house trailer, don't you check the "status" of everything...is the stove off? Is the iron off? Is the thermostat set correctly? That's the "STATUS" of things...sure it's motivated by the FEAR that your trailer could burn down, but knowing that STATUS makes you either feel better, OR, take preventive measures to stop your trailer from burning down.

God...[hit forehead here with open hand] what a concept!!

We every day Americans are not out here cowing in the closets and digging fallout shelters. Get out of your classroom once in a while and see America...you might be surprised. Unless of course, YOU are afraid of the Orange alert.

As for Ridge, playing guard dog for 300-million people is a daunting task, and it would always be better to err on the side of caution. We're facing a real threat, but middle-aged, adolescent journalists, looking for that first, big break into the big time - not unlike yourself - are determined to take the opposite stance on anything the President does.

Mr. Shaffer, even if the alert has gone to "Orange", my Christmas tree is still green, the Pionsettias are still red, and the snow is still white. What'sa matter...somebody didn't get you what you wanted this year, or something?

There is nothing wrong with Christmas this year, except the "nattering nabobs of negativity" in the liberal/press [oxymoron alert] ranks using it as another opine against the current administration at every chance you get. I believe you would write a hit piece if Bush got stopped for going too SLOW in a school zone.

Maybe, you should study that historical literary piece, "The Boy Who Cried Wolf".