Dr. Sacrebleu Posted July 12, 2006 Share Posted July 12, 2006 Do you right wing nutsackers need YET ANOTHER reason why republicans should never be allowed to run anything EVER? It reads like a tally of terrorist targets that a child might have written: Old MacDonald’s Petting Zoo, the Amish Country Popcorn factory, the Mule Day Parade, the Sweetwater Flea Market and an unspecified “Beach at End of a Street.” Skip to next paragraph Threats & Responses Go to Complete Coverage » Inspector General's Report (pdf) Readers’ Opinions Forum: National Security But the inspector general of the Department of Homeland Security, in a report released Tuesday, found that the list was not child’s play: all these “unusual or out-of-place” sites “whose criticality is not readily apparent” are inexplicably included in the federal antiterrorism database. The National Asset Database, as it is known, is so flawed, the inspector general found, that as of January, Indiana, with 8,591 potential terrorist targets, had 50 percent more listed sites than New York (5,687) and more than twice as many as California (3,212), ranking the state the most target-rich place in the nation. The database is used by the Homeland Security Department to help divvy up the hundreds of millions of dollars in antiterrorism grants each year, including the program announced in May that cut money to New York City and Washington by 40 percent, while significantly increasing spending for cities including Louisville, Ky., and Omaha. “We don’t find it embarrassing,” said the department’s deputy press secretary, Jarrod Agen. “The list is a valuable tool.” But the audit says that lower-level department officials agreed that some older information in the inventory “was of low quality and that they had little faith in it.” “The presence of large numbers of out-of-place assets taints the credibility of the data,” the report says. In addition to the petting zoo, in Woodville, Ala., and the Mule Day Parade in Columbia, Tenn., the auditors questioned many entries, including “Nix’s Check Cashing,” “Mall at Sears,” “Ice Cream Parlor,” “Tackle Shop,” “Donut Shop,” “Anti-Cruelty Society” and “Bean Fest.” Even people connected to some of those businesses or events are baffled at their inclusion as possible terrorist targets. “Seems like someone has gone overboard,” said Larry Buss, who helps organize the Apple and Pork Festival in Clinton, Ill. “Their time could be spent better doing other things, like providing security for the country.” Angela McNabb, manager of the Sweetwater Flea Market, which is 50 miles from Knoxville, Tenn., said: “I don’t know where they get their information. We are talking about a flea market here.” New York City officials, who have questioned the rationale for the reduction in this year’s antiterrorism grants, were similarly blunt. “Now we know why the Homeland Security grant formula came out as wacky as it was,” Senator Charles E. Schumer, Democrat of New York, said Tuesday. “This report is the smoking gun that thoroughly indicts the system.” The source of the problems, the audit said, appears to be insufficient definitions or standards for inclusion provided to the states, which submit lists of locations for the database. New York, for example, lists only 2 percent of the nation’s banking and finance sector assets, which ranks it between North Dakota and Missouri. Washington State lists nearly twice as many national monuments and icons as the District of Columbia. Montana, one of the least populous states in the nation, turned up with far more assets than big-population states including Massachusetts, North Carolina and New Jersey. The inspector general questions whether many of the sites listed in whole categories — like the 1,305 casinos, 163 water parks, 159 cruise ships, 244 jails, 3,773 malls, 718 mortuaries and 571 nursing homes — should even be included in the tally. But the report also notes that the list “may have too few assets in essential areas.” It apparently does not include many major business and finance operations or critical national telecommunications hubs. The department does not release the list of 77,069 sites, but the report said that as of January it included 17,327 commercial properties like office buildings, malls and shopping centers, 12,019 government facilities, 8,402 public health buildings, 7,889 power plants and 2,963 sites with chemical or hazardous materials. George W. Foresman, the department’s under secretary for preparedness, said the audit misunderstood the purpose of the database, as it was an inventory or catalog of national assets, not a prioritized list of the most critical sites.The database is just one of many sources consulted in deciding antiterrorism grants. The inspector general recommends that the department review the list and determine which of the “extremely insignificant” assets that have been included should remain and provide better guidance to states on what to submit in the future. Mr. Agen, the Homeland Security Department spokesman, said that he agreed that his agency should provide better directions for the states and that it would do so in the future. One business owner who learned from a reporter that a company named Amish Country Popcorn was on the list was at first puzzled. The businessman, Brian Lehman, said he owned the only operation in the country with that name. “I am out in the middle of nowhere,” said Mr. Lehman, whose business in Berne, Ind., has five employees and grows and distributes popcorn. “We are nothing but a bunch of Amish buggies and tractors out here. No one would care.” But on second thought, he came up with an explanation: “Maybe because popcorn explodes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Savage Beatings Posted July 12, 2006 Share Posted July 12, 2006 Bean Fest is not a terrorist target... it's a terrorist weapon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wiegie Posted July 12, 2006 Share Posted July 12, 2006 “I am out in the middle of nowhere,” said Mr. Lehman, whose business in Berne, Ind., has five employees and grows and distributes popcorn. “We are nothing but a bunch of Amish buggies and tractors out here. No one would care.” Berne, Indiana is terror-central Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Sacrebleu Posted July 12, 2006 Author Share Posted July 12, 2006 The HSD's process of alotting anti-terrorist funding has been a big story for the last two weeks in NYC, because 1) funds for New York were slashed dramatically at the expense of other states and 2) the process was some so Byzantine in it's applications of various formulae. What is shocking however is how little the story is playing nationwide (and by nationwide, I mean of course, thehuddle) Formulas are all very well and good to try to get a fair system, but since 1) the formula is being designed with what WE perceive as threats to our American way rather than what THEY perceive as threats to the American way and 2) The data we are inputting to the formulae is hopelessly wrong (IIRC correctly HSD listed NY as having 0 monuments of historic importance ) It's like the story of the mathematician who needs to know the size of the emperor of china's nose. He embarks on the most elaborate census of all times, and gets the input of each and every chinaman across the great country. And he carefully adds up all the numbers, and divides it by the numbers of all chinese citizens, knowing for sure that he will get the most complete answer possible. Of course the big problem is that no one in China has ever seen the emperor. I am really surprised that this and the earlier stories about HSD's money allotment do not enter the national debate. It shows just how much power the 'fly over states' now wield and how the interests of the coastal states have become marginalized in today's political picture Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H8tank Posted July 12, 2006 Share Posted July 12, 2006 Just sounds like Republicans are smarter... hey who is William Jefferson? Who oversaw the 'Big Dig'? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
godtomsatan Posted July 12, 2006 Share Posted July 12, 2006 Just sounds like Republicans are smarter... hey who is William Jefferson? Who oversaw the 'Big Dig'? No, it sounds like Congress used this as an opportunity to pile on the pork. The Big Dig is as relevent to this topic as Pearl Harbor is to sushi. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Misfit Posted July 12, 2006 Share Posted July 12, 2006 I am really surprised that this and the earlier stories about HSD's money allotment do not enter the national debate. It shows just how much power the 'fly over states' now wield and how the interests of the coastal states have become marginalized in today's political picture Your pseudo-East Coast jingoism is showing, Sac. New Yorkers should be outraged over this, and Jon Stewart is expressing all his indignation to anyone who will listen -- and ulike the Amish, he has a TV show. But why should the people in the fly-over states, as you so eloquently put it, care in the least? New Yorkers have all the baseball players, all the TV shows, all the magazines, all the book publishers, and people pay a million bucks or more for an average one-BR apartment. Marginalized my ass. I don't think some flea marketers are gonna scream about the unfairness of not giving more money to those poor NYers. Really, Sac. Complaining about the fly-over states not getting upset over the "unfairness" to the coastal states sounds a lot like Perch complaining about people who don't have rich daddys not getting upset over the "unfairness" of the death tax. NYers need to get over themselves. Since 9/11, they've been hearing for five years that they're the greatest city in the world, filled with heroes and selfless humanitarians. Well, here's the truth: No one outside NY believes that. It was the cultural equivalent of pity sex. Heck, you guys can't even get a stupid memorial built because of the greed and egos and corruption that are NY. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Sacrebleu Posted July 12, 2006 Author Share Posted July 12, 2006 New Yorkers should be outraged over this, and Jon Stewart is expressing all his indignation to anyone who will listen -- and ulike the Amish, he has a TV show. But why should the people in the fly-over states, as you so eloquently put it, care in the least? New Yorkers have all the baseball players, all the TV shows, all the magazines, all the book publishers, and people pay a million bucks or more for an average one-BR apartment. Marginalized my ass. I don't think some flea marketers are gonna scream about the unfairness of not giving more money to those poor NYers .uhm. okay are you saying that 1) terrorism doesn't affect fly-over states (in which case you should be critical of the admin and HSD distributing tax money where it is not needed) or 2) that defending the homeland against terrorism is totally unimportant if it is not in an area of interest to you? Cause either way, you come off as a dumaz. NYers need to get over themselves. Since 9/11, they've been hearing for five years that they're the greatest city in the world, filled with heroes and selfless humanitarians. Well, here's the truth: No one outside NY believes that. It was the cultural equivalent of pity sex. Heck, you guys can't even get a stupid memorial built because of the greed and egos and corruption that are NY. And there is where the truth lies. repubs will "always remember 9/11" while accusing the left of forgetting what happened that day. But this is what you truthfully beleive I see. Nice. Reminds me of the Oklahaoma City bombings where this preson being interviewed in disbelief of the carnage said "this shouldn't happen here. This is something that should happen in NY". Which to me has always been very telling. I never thought of Oklahoma as not affecting me or as someone else's problem But really, the main point of all of this is that HSD which has one function (protecting the homeland) and some conservatives might argue that the only role the US govt should have is protecting the shores against foreign invaders, and it is doing a really really candied yamsty job of it. I don't know where you live, but you should be outraged that this government is doing such a bad job at protecting it's citizens.And wherever you live, I can guarnatee that your tax dollars are being wasted because your local government listed Fred's Tackle Shoppe as a target. That alone should annoy you. or are you such a nutsacker that all you see is a whiny NYer? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H8tank Posted July 12, 2006 Share Posted July 12, 2006 government is doing such a bad job at protecting it's citizens. Tell me one thing gov't does well? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thecerwin Posted July 12, 2006 Share Posted July 12, 2006 Tell me one thing gov't does well? Spend? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hugh B Tool Posted July 12, 2006 Share Posted July 12, 2006 Spend? this one better than all of them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Sacrebleu Posted July 12, 2006 Author Share Posted July 12, 2006 Tell me one thing gov't does well? I knew you hated our troops. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Randall Posted July 12, 2006 Share Posted July 12, 2006 New York's a blue state and not in play. No good bribery targets there. This is just like 2004 when people who didn't lose anything in Florida got much of the FEMA money. Tell me one thing gov't does well? They do many things well, they just aren't things you agree with. So I'll go with lie and bribe. This is a republian majo rity after all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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