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| Bush's Creation of New Office Raises Questions |
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Posted by FoM on September 24, 2001 at 08:10:25 PT Editorial Source: TRN Online 
The United States government's efforts at anything with a "czar" at the helm have not been stellar. Former president George Bush appointed a drug czar, and we're still fighting that war. President Bill Clinton allowed his wife to be the health-care reform czar, and look what happened to HMOs. Both were worthy efforts, fighting drugs and reforming health care. But perhaps no appointed czar will ever have a more daunting task than Tom Ridge, in charge of Bush's recently created Homeland Defense Security Office. Ridge became the terrorism czar little more than a week after this country witnessed the worst act of terrorism on American soil. Ridge has his work cut out for him. The Homeland Security Defense Office will make assignments and coordinate the efforts of more than 40 government departments and agencies. Ridge would oversee those efforts, reportedly with his own budget apart from the other 40 agencies' funding. The creation of such an office was in the works long before terrorists hijacked commercial airplanes, destroying the World Trade Center and damaging the Pentagon, killing thousands. In testimony before the Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs in March of this year, representatives of the General Accounting Office urged our leaders to create a focused attempt to combat terrorism, that the only way we can defend ourselves from such an attack would be a concerted effort with the scores of agencies working in tandem. But because no one could have imagined an assault like we experienced on Sept. 11, 2001, the pleas for such an office fell on deaf ears. Now we're screaming for protection. Let's hope the creation of this office isn't just a knee-jerk reaction to a catastrophic event, a smoke-and-mirrors attempt to redirect blame away from agencies -- law enforcement, immigration, intelligence -- that should have or could have known such an attack was imminent. Let's also hope the czar and his office don't duplicate existing services or, worse yet, overstep the boundaries of our civil liberties. The office's responsibilities should be clearly defined and its depth of jurisdiction within our rights of privacy and due process. Let's hope that, to combat terrorism, we're not all subjected to profiling, illegal surveillance and strangers digging through our trash. We need to combat terrorism. And these governmental agencies need to talk to one another without counterproductive turf battles. It's premature to suggest that appointing one person to oversee existing efforts would defend us from the horrors we've witnessed. Source: TRN Online Related Articles: War on Terrorism, Unseen Fronts May Be Crucial The End of Liberty - Salon.com What Bush Didn't Say - Salon.com Civil Liberties and the Hill Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help |
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| Comment #4 posted by dddd on September 24, 2001 at 13:42:31 PT |
| the dea,atf,fbi,,,etc,were scary,,,,well then the mother of them all,the HSDO should strike terror in your heart.I'll bet you federal ID cards will be one of the first items on their agenda.It's gonna be like the KGB. dddd [ Post Comment ] |
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Comment #3 posted by tdm on September 24, 2001 at 13:40:08 PT:
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| To anyone who read my original essay on this topic: I still have no comprehensive solution to America's situation with which I am satisfied. However, I continue to give the topic extensive thought. When I face complex challenges, I often return to the basics in order to find solutions which will stand the test of time given my current understanding of the existing context. Returning to basics provides a firm foundation on which I can build subsequent, dependent concepts. Because every step I have taken thus far has provided me with only more confusion, I have decided to start over. I have prefaced my initial comments at http://demoss.org/sep11.html with a brief explanation. I still believe taking the wrong approach could prove disastrous. As such, I encourage each of you to take stock of your own values before jumping to conclusions in the heat of the moment. Perhaps you'll find that your thought and comments have been following a defendable, well structured moral code all along; or like me, you may find that you've jumped ahead of yourself in a rush to make sense of it all. Above all, keep thinking. tdm [ Post Comment ] |
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Comment #2 posted by Ethan Russo MD on September 24, 2001 at 09:02:05 PT:
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| I sure hope that you keep talking, and that the government muzzle does not touch our jaws. If only the dissentient voices are heard now that they are needed most. [ Post Comment ] |
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Comment #1 posted by kaptinemo on September 24, 2001 at 08:48:35 PT:
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| "But because no one could have imagined an assault like we experienced on Sept. 11, 2001, the pleas for such an office fell on deaf ears. Now we're screaming for protection." Uh, buddy, excuse me, but as usual, you media people have not done your bloody homework! See the following: The Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, & Emergency Management Hearing on Combating Terrorism: Options to Improve the Federal Response http://web.elastic.org/~fche/mirrors/cryptome.org/homeland-terr.htm in just April of this year. And this: COMBATING TERRORISM http://internet.roadrunner.com/~sam1/freedom/combat_terrorism.html Report to Congress on Response to Threats of Terrorist Use of Weapons of Mass Destruction January 31, 1997 http://www.fas.org/spp/starwars/program/wmd_970131.htm How many hints did the USG need? How many times did the threat have to be made until somebody woke up? I have never made any suggestions of being Einstein's clone, but you don't have to be to figure how to turn several hundred tons of aircraft steel and jet fuel into a missile. But, noooooo, you Feds, you DrugWarriors, had to be out and about, chasing down cannabis users and ruining/taking their lives. While real monsters roamed the Earth. American made monsters. Planning the cold blooded murder by incineration and live burial. Well, Feds, the never mind the chickens; the vultures have come home to roost. And you with your short-sightedness, sounded mess call with wasting vital resources on the DrugWar when they could have been better used in protecting all of us instead of hunting those who never were a problem to begin with.
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