CIAO DATE: 11/2009
October 2008
Sooner or later, somewhere or other, another natural disaster will strike America, be it a hurricane, a tornado, an earthquake, or a flood. Sooner or later, somewhere or other, terrorists will attempt to strike America again. Indeed, many experts believe that the threat of another attack is rising.1 Al Qaeda is resurgent, having reconstituted itself along the Afghan-Pakistan border.2 And, recent history shows that terrorists are especially prone to strike during the transition from one administration to another or early in the term of a new government. Adding to our vulnerability, the nation is now bogged down in two wars and groaning under mounting debt, while our economy is sinking from the greatest financial crisis since the Great Depression. While another powerful act of nature and another attempted attack are both inevitable, catastrophic death, injury, and economic damage need not result. If we have learned from the epic tragedies of Hurricane Katrina and 9/11 the lessons we should have learned from them, we will be able to minimize the effects of any future natural or man-made potential catastrophe.
Resource link: New York City's Preparedness for Terrorism (and Catastrophic Natural Disasters) [PDF] - 1.3M