Let us Remember

Even though I normally do not post on Tuesdays, I could not let today pass without some remembrance of what happened on 9/11. I don't know when the sharp memories will fade. Perhaps when we are longer past the event. I don't know. I still have vivid memories of where I was and what I was doing when Kennedy was shot, and when Martin Luther King was shot, and the mass shooting at Columbine.

I think such tragedies imprint themselves on our brains and the image never fades. I'm sure it is the same for Holocaust survivors and every man and woman who ever served in combat and saw terrible things that people should not have to see.

So when I remember 9/11 I pray for all the families who were directly affected through the loss of a loved one. I pray for the first responders who displayed such courage and compassion throughout the aftermath of that fateful day. And I pray that somehow, someway, there could be an end to this terrorism that plagues the entire world.

If we could only live in peace.

Homeland Security - Are we Safer?

I read an interesting op/ed piece by Anne Applebaum titled Homeland Security Hasn't Made us Safer. In her article she makes the point that since Homeland Security was established following 9/11, it has operated without much fiscal scrutiny, and it continues to cost more and more each year, "presumably because Americans think they are being protected from terrorism by all that spending."

That is so typical. The American response to so many problems is to throw money at them. The more money being spent, the better the program. Right?

Not necessarily.

The Department of Homeland Security has sent millions of dollars to remote areas of the country that would probably never be on any terrorist's radar. Small towns with populations less than 3,000 have received hundreds of thousands of dollars for "emergency preparedness." Even my small town volunteer fire department has benefited, and while it is nice that they have some updated equipment, I highly doubt there will ever be a terrorist attack here.

Until I read this article I did not know that  "Every U.S. S\state, no matter how landlocked or underpopulated, receives by law, a fixed percentage of homeland security spending every year. " So I guess if it is up for grabs, we ought to grab. Right?

The article concludes with "The events of 9/11 did not prove that the United States needs to spend more on local police forces and fire brigades; they proved that Americans need to learn how to make better use of the information they have and apply it with speed and efficiency."

Applebaum urges that more money and more attention needs to be focused on identifying terrorists and sharing information on a global level. Nationally, security could focus on cities and buildings that are actually at risk.

What a novel concept.

Millions of dollars are spent annually for airport screenings, yet there is no proof that screeners have actually stopped a would-be bomber. And when airport safety procedures are tested, the screeners have missed fake bombs that the TSA has planted to test their skills.

Virtual Book Tour

Chugging right along on my tour. Today I am at http://zensanity.blogspot.com/ for an interview. When I started this tour, working with Pump up Your Book promotions, I wondered if the interviews would get redundant after a while, but the blog hosts have been wonderful about asking different questions, so there is something fresh each time. Whew! I would hate to think they were all like having a canned response. Sort of what we sometimes get with political candidates. :-)

And I just can't let this important day pass without mentioning 9/11 and sending out good thoughts to people who are still feeling the pain of loss from that day. And in a way, that touches all of us, because we all lost something that day seven years ago.