September 11th, Can It Happen Again?
Yes it can happen again, and it most certainly will, maybe not in the same way, but all the signs point to the fact that al Qaeda is certainly planning its next "big event".
What can we do to be prepared?
As US citizens, we can be vigilant in our own communities. We can be prepared for our families. That means setting up a disaster store. Homeland Security has some nice checklists of things that you should have for you home in preparation. Do I have them myself? No, but I think that I will this weekend, and especially before the anniversary of September 11th go and make my stockpile.
We can also empower our government and law enforcement agencies by not allowing lawmakers to tie their hands. No, I am not advocating illegal wiretaps and racial profiling, but there is a fine line and I think that law enforcement agencies should certainly be able to do some important things covertly.
We can have an action plan of escape for our families. My family has a plan in case of attack. Where we will meet, how long we will wait, where we will arrive out of the area; logistics in the event that something disastrous does happen.
What is being done?
Much is being done. Although I have a love/hate relationship with the Bush administration, even I was surprised to read that US Air Marshalls were on the flight to India yesterday and averted a potential attack. I thought that Air Marshalls were only on US and US bound flights. Way to go guys!
We can push to secure our borders and let our lawmakers know that this is about more than an immigration issue. Ask for their support to create fair laws for immigrants and avenues to prevent illegal immigration which terrorists exploit for entry and arms import and export.
No, we can not wave a magic wand and have our country and world become safe as it was before 9-11, but we can become proactive and supportive of the changes that our government is bringing about. Does that mean we have to tacitly accept and support all changes? No, but sometimes they simply have intelligence that we do not have to make a specific decision that will impact us.
We must be watchful and we must be prepared!
What can we do to be prepared?
As US citizens, we can be vigilant in our own communities. We can be prepared for our families. That means setting up a disaster store. Homeland Security has some nice checklists of things that you should have for you home in preparation. Do I have them myself? No, but I think that I will this weekend, and especially before the anniversary of September 11th go and make my stockpile.
We can also empower our government and law enforcement agencies by not allowing lawmakers to tie their hands. No, I am not advocating illegal wiretaps and racial profiling, but there is a fine line and I think that law enforcement agencies should certainly be able to do some important things covertly.
We can have an action plan of escape for our families. My family has a plan in case of attack. Where we will meet, how long we will wait, where we will arrive out of the area; logistics in the event that something disastrous does happen.
What is being done?
Much is being done. Although I have a love/hate relationship with the Bush administration, even I was surprised to read that US Air Marshalls were on the flight to India yesterday and averted a potential attack. I thought that Air Marshalls were only on US and US bound flights. Way to go guys!
We can push to secure our borders and let our lawmakers know that this is about more than an immigration issue. Ask for their support to create fair laws for immigrants and avenues to prevent illegal immigration which terrorists exploit for entry and arms import and export.
No, we can not wave a magic wand and have our country and world become safe as it was before 9-11, but we can become proactive and supportive of the changes that our government is bringing about. Does that mean we have to tacitly accept and support all changes? No, but sometimes they simply have intelligence that we do not have to make a specific decision that will impact us.
We must be watchful and we must be prepared!
