America Not Prepared for Disaster

The inspector general of the federal Justice Department, issued a statement in late May, saying the department is not prepared to ensure public safety in the days or weeks after a terrorist attack in which nuclear, biological or chemical weapons are used. That is certainly a fine state of affairs for a country that has had nine years after 9/11to prepare for a terrorist disaster.

"The Department is not prepared to fulfill its role . . . to ensure public safety and security in the event of a WMD incident," says the 61-page report. Justice has yet to assign an entity or individual with clear responsibility for oversight or management of WMD response; it has not catalogued its resources in terms of either personnel or equipment; it does not have written plans or checklists in case of a WMD attack. A deputy assistant attorney general for policy and planning is quoted as saying "it is not clear" who in the department is responsible for handling WMD response. Workers interviewed said the department's operational response program "lacks leadership and oversight." An unidentified Justice Department official was quoted: "We are totally unprepared." He added. "Right now, being totally effective would never happen. Everybody would be winging it."

It is true that the federal government has done a good job in prevention of future attacks; and we hear not infrequently how individual terrorists have been apprehended. But…what will we do if one of them deploys a biological, chemical WMD or if one of them should fire off a dirty bomb, spreading nuclear material all over a large metropolitan area. Such a weapon can be carried in a suitcase and exploded in New York’s Central Park.

Many are of the opinion that it is absolutely unthinkable that anyone in their right mind would ever deploy one of these WMD in America. How naïve!! Ronald Reagan has been quoted as saying, “Man has never had a weapon he didn't use.” The question is not whether a terrorist would use such a weapon against the United States. The question is, rather, WHEN.

The above report from the Justice Department needs to be brought to the acute attention of our legislators in Washington. Write to them now and ask them if they are aware of the dangers we face from WMD. If we have another 9/11 all Americans will suffer. Our Congress and Senate are in the worst state of public opinion that has ever existed. If a disaster such as the deployment of a WMD happens, they will all be kicked out of Washington.

This blog post was excerpted from an editorial by Peggy Noonan of the Wall Street Journal 11 June 2010.