D.C. HOMELAND DOPE BACK$ OFF

[jimnysf]

Posted: 6/1/06 at 9:22pm

What a bunch of fools Bush and his Dept of Homeland Security are. Time to run them out of office before they do more harm.

"New York has no national monuments or icons, according to the Department of Homeland Security form obtained by ABC News. That was a key factor used to determine that New York City should have its anti-terror funds slashed by 40 percent--from $207.5 million in 2005 to $124.4 million in 2006...

The formula did not consider as landmarks or icons: The Empire State Building, The United Nations, The Statue of Liberty and others found on several terror target hit lists. It also left off notable landmarks, such as the New York Public Library, Times Square, City Hall and at least three of the nation's most renowned museums: The Guggenheim, The Metropolitan and The Museum of Natural History.

"I think the facts are clear," Bloomberg said. "What they've really done is taken what was supposed to be threat-based and just started to distribute it as normal pork."

The form ignored that New York City is the capital of the world financial markets and merely stated the city had four significant bank assets.".


http://blogs.abcnews.com/theblotter/2006/06/no_icons_no_mon.html

Updated On: 6/3/06 at 09:22 PM

[wexy]

Posted: 6/1/06 at 9:28pm

Chertoff should be in prison for the hurricane debacle. I have no faith in anything Homeland Insecurity does.

[PalJoey]

Posted: 6/1/06 at 9:56pm

This was the question I posed in the thread called "Today's Question for the Board Republicans": Why do Bush and Homeland Security think New York is NOT worth protecting?
Today's Question for the Board Republicans

[kelzama]

Posted: 6/1/06 at 9:56pm

I'm not sure how Homeland Security determined that NYC has no national monuments. Nor am I sure how ABC determined this to be the key factor for cutting the budget. ABC's link displays only NYC's report page. Another news source implied that it was because other cities (e.g. Oklahoma City) required a more proportionate slice of the pie. I'd like to see the rest of the report.

[PalJoey]

Posted: 6/1/06 at 10:13pm

You can read the idiot report right here, Kelzama, in a PDF file from Homeland Security.
New York City Area

[Anakela]

Posted: 6/1/06 at 10:50pm

Does anyone else plan on doing this postcard campaign? I mean I know it'll accompish probably nothing, but I just feel like I have to do something.
Senator Clinton and Congressman King's postcards to Secretary Chertoff

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 6/1/06 at 10:53pm

Do you get the feeling that the Southern Strategy, ignoring its inherent racism for the sake of this discussion, is really about having a Southern US only?

[jsrocks]

Posted: 6/1/06 at 11:16pm

I like to call him Michael "Sh*toff"

IDIOT!!

Updated On: 6/1/06 at 11:16 PM

[Rose_MacShane]

Posted: 6/1/06 at 11:22pm

So...what, does Homeland Security think the Empire State Building, the Statue of Liberty and the UN are in New Jersey or something? Why is our country being run by morons?!

[kelzama]

Posted: 6/1/06 at 11:25pm

PJ, that's the link to NYC's page. Where are the other 45 cities among which the funding is being distributed?

From what I've found:
Total of $710 million to be distributed among 46 cities. NYC was awarded the lion's share, $124 million. DC: $46 million. New Orleans: $4.6 m. Ft. Lauderdale, $9.9 million.

NYC is getting 18% of allocated funding, the nation's capital gets 6%, and the other cities mentioned get fractions thereof.

I don't know, but it seems logical that, after a few years of higher funding, some procedures and startup costs should be in place, reducing the overall cost of NYC's homeland protection.

Oh, but I'm talking like a responsible business owner. And this is about government.

Updated On: 6/1/06 at 11:25 PM

[jsrocks]

Posted: 6/1/06 at 11:25pm

Well techically the UN is international territory so it's not really in New York, so...

Yeah I agree. New York is chalk full of monuments and important places!

[Yawper]

Posted: 6/1/06 at 11:31pm

NYC has gotten a ton of $$ over the years since 9/11. All the systems that needed updating have probably been done. In the meantime all these other locations that also need updating haven't received anywhere near as much proportionally. The only thing that really sticks out is all the funding flowing to Jeb's Florida.

Monuments and icons are nice, but they are not as important to secure as, say, a nuclear power plant or municipal water supply.


Major urban areas to get Homeland Security grants

[PalJoey]

Posted: 6/1/06 at 11:32pm

You may be talking like a responsible business owner, Kelzama, but the Republicans who have been running the country have been talking like meth heads with stolen credit cards, spending money irresponsibly and not taking care of the important things.

If they had come up with a *mathematical* reason to divide the money they way they did, it would be understandable.

But, instead, they came up with a false reason to take away money from New York and DC and give it to some "red states"--just like they've been doing since Bush took office: graft, payola and cronyism.

Thank God the American people are going to throw the whole gang of thieves out of office.

Then let the investigations begin...

[Yawper]

Posted: 6/1/06 at 11:33pm

methinks NYC is just getting greedy on this one

[jimnysf]

Posted: 6/1/06 at 11:34pm

"I don't know, but it seems logical that, after a few years of higher funding, some procedures and startup costs should be in place, reducing the overall cost of NYC's homeland protection.".

Huh? Has Omaha or Fort Lauderdale been hit by terrorists? NY has been, twice. Why are those other cities getting any money? Could it be because they are in Red States and NY is not? I think that is more than likely the reason for this. It's like when another Republican President, also never elected by the people, would not help NYC when it was in financial trouble. "Ford to NYC: Drop Dead".

[PalJoey]

Posted: 6/1/06 at 11:34pm

You would, Yawper.

[Anakela]

Posted: 6/1/06 at 11:40pm

I don't know, but it seems logical that, after a few years of higher funding, some procedures and startup costs should be in place, reducing the overall cost of NYC's homeland protection.

Someone was convicted just *last week* of plotting to bomb the NYC subway system/Herald Square/Macy's etc station. That on top of what has already happened, and what else has been plotted but not happened, here. When was the last time Omaha was the subject of a terrorist threat? Enough of a threat so as to *increase* over last year the amount of money from DHS that Omaha received?

[kelzama]

Posted: 6/1/06 at 11:43pm

jimnysf, by your definition, then, Oklahoma City should probably come in line with DC, ahead of LA, San Fran, Seattle, Chicago.

Port cities/tourist destinations such as Ft Lauderdale probably ought to receive security funding.

"why are those cities getting any money?" Because, contrary to popular belief, the rest of the country (and the terrorists) realize that NYC isn't all there is to the USA.

[Yawper]

Posted: 6/1/06 at 11:50pm

You're damn right PJ. And I live in a blue state that has the bluest city based on it's voting history, but is also the most impoverished in the country, is the largest US city on an international border, has the busiest international land trade crossing in the country, and, if you care to profile, hosts the largest Middle Eastern population in the country. Yet our statewide security funding got cut 20%.

So, yeah, I think NYC is greedy on this one.

[C is for Company]

Posted: 6/2/06 at 12:12am

I guess you can't get funding of that sort forever, but honestly have any of their states had planes driven into a major, recognizable landmark? Seen their people jumping from buildings in flames, literally being vaporized inside the buildings, or any of the medical after-effects that thousands of firefighters still to this day are suffering from?
Our state has seen the most devastating modern day foreign terrorist incident in American history. I think they should keep that in mind before cutting 40% within a one year span.

Posted: 6/2/06 at 12:19am

they sure liked nyc well enough to tie it in knots with their republican convention.

[Yawper]

Posted: 6/2/06 at 12:31am

that's all fine and good, but NYC is substantially wealthier than most in this country - and the rest of the country deserves adequate protection, response, and emergency support, too

I'm sure the people in OK City didn't enjoy seeing their Federal Bdlg get blown apart either

or the people of New Orleans see their city drown

even going back to the Northridge quake where it was just dumb luck the freeways weren't yet packed with commuters

or what if the plane that went down in PA had hit a shopping mall like the original reports said?

enough of the self-pity party - there are others Bush is making targets, too

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 6/2/06 at 12:39am

Here we go again, falling into that profoundly American trap of believing that there is a limited amount of pie and we all have to fight over slices. There is PLENTY of money available, it seems, to throw away to pet corporations like Halliburton, (how much CASH has vanished on their watch in Iraq, just, poof?), but now money has to be taken away from the primary target of terrorism in the US because "there's just not enough for everybody"?

This is how they do it to us, every single time.

[jimnysf]

Posted: 6/2/06 at 1:01am

You are correct. They like to cause division. "I'm a uniter, not a divider.". One of the many, many Bush lies. He has done nothing but try to divide the country. A poll came out today showing him to be the worst President in the last 60 years. Even Nixon fared better.

[donna_darko_23]

Posted: 6/2/06 at 1:05am

Let's just send an open invitation to the terrorists to come back and attack us, shall we?