Mar 4, 2003 | Q
Generally, I’m pretty content with the understanding that there are probably quite a few threats to peace and security in the United States about which the lay public never learns. (After all, it’s the premise of the most basic spy thrillers, including most of the Bond movies — a brewing plot to destroy civilization as we know it is undone at the last second by secret agents, and life continues unaware of how close it was to coming to an end.) That being said, I’d love to know why there have been around a half-dozen National Guardsmen, armed to the teeth, in the subway station underneath the hospital the last few times that I’ve arrived for my overnight shift…
i agree. i always think, “there should be a way for me to know. *i* am safe. *i* am judicious in sharing information.”
next thing, i’ll be thinking i’m james bond.
• Posted by: holly on Mar 5, 2003, 12:00 AMThe great thing about having so many heavily armed soldiers around is that they are such an effective deterrent against terrorist attacks. Bullets are very effective in stopping explosive, chemical, and biological attacks, right?
Of course, we know that soldiers would never be used to deter convential crime, like robbery, because that would be a violation of the Posse Comitatus act. Our civil liberties are safe with the current government. :-)
• Posted by: Sam Greenfield on Mar 5, 2003, 12:32 PMHow would like to see SAM in front of your daughter’s school?
• Posted by: Jeff on Mar 5, 2003, 12:59 PMWe took our car through the Battery Tunnel on an “orange alert” day. Nothing. We did the same the other day and saw police stopping vans and trucks.
No explanation of why the “ho hum” on a supposed high alert day, then the full monty on a “regular” day.
Agree that armed guards are good theatre, but more likely to trip over each other than to actually stop a terror attack. By the way, do the guards carry ammo for those firerarms?
• Posted by: Pulyer Soxup on Mar 5, 2003, 3:26 PMAs I understand it from a discussion of the NG posted at major airports, the weapons are loaded, but safed. There have been reports of national guardsmen posted, for example, at the Maine-Canada border, but not issued firearms even though the border guards they are supplementing ARE armed. That was last year, though, and there are more guards now.
• Posted by: Dan Hartung on Mar 8, 2003, 2:09 AM