Homeland Security to New York City and DC - Go to Hell

Shortly after 9/11, while red-hot zones of destruction and death in New York City and Washington, DC were still smoldering, something absurd began happening and it has gone beyond being just pathetic - it has become a national disgrace.

Local politicians and communities far removed from any viable terrorist targets out of an irrational fear or sheer greed, began clamouring for federal funds from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to protect themselves from perceived possible attacks that are never - NEVER - going to occur.

Yesterday, funding levels for protecting Americans and our vital national interests were announced and the levels were reduced for cities that are likely targets and increased in states that conveniently are aligned with close Congressional and Senate elections in the fall. Incredibly, the Statue of Liberty is not even included in a list of important national landmarks. How disproportionate are they? Rhode Island got $4.5 million, Wyoming $4.4 million, South Dakota $4.4 million - Washington, DC $4.3 million.

"Although the District is home to the White House, the Capitol, FBI headquarters and many national monuments, it received a smaller state grant than Montana, Hawaii and Utah, each of who has received $4.5 million".

The Bush administration has frequently played politics with protecting Americans from terrorism and it is deep-rooted in the Department of Homeland Security. Once again, objective analysis is reconfigured to achieve a political goal and any data to support their skewed analysis is deemed "classified" and unavailable for scrutiny.

While the mixture of greed and politics may be the rule rather than the exception, one would think that most Americans had hoped the cause of defending citizens on our own soil was a cause noble enough to rise above such pettiness. We learned differently, and ominously, during the 2004 election.

Bush and Cheney circled the heartland creeping out the populace over the threats posed by terrorism right there in their small communities, their schools, their churches, their farmland. These communities have no moral basis for trying to slither into the spotlight of the antiterrorism debate on protecting likely targets and should only feel nothing but shame for stealing, yes STEALING, funds needed to protect those living in areas who are in danger of being a likely target - in the center of a bullseye.

If you are scared and you live in South Dakota, how anxious can you possibly be when you know in your heart that the areas most likely to be attacked are far, far away from you? That many of the "red" states have hijacked protecting our country from terrorist attacks for political fear mongering when they are so far removed from the cross-hairs is disgraceful.

As someone who lives in the nations capital - prime target #1 or #2 - I know of what I speak. Before you take the DHS funds out to your far flung communities can you answer any of these questions with a "yes"?

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  Every day of your life when you go to work, do you go through metal detectors, have to carry an ID badge at all times, pass through security cameras at every entrance and exit, and get greeted in the lobby with posters announcing the daily threat level?" Every day of your life when you ride the subway do you see machines on the platforms monitoring the air for harmful chemicals, does your heart race a bit if the subway car stops in the middle of a tunnel before starting again not knowing whether it is a normal delay or an explosion in the tunnel, do you walk past explosive-sniffing dogs?
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  Every day of your life does walking around town include the extra steps needed to walk around security blockades, bollards along the sidewalk installed to stop a possible truck-bomb, and endless security checkpoints? Is it frustrating for you to mail a letter or throw out a candy wrapper because all of the mailboxes and the trash cans have been removed from the streets for fear that they could be used to hide a bomb?
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  Despite trying to live a normal life by consiously trying to avoid the "security enhancements", can you not get through a single day without seeing a visual reminder that your safety, your life, are always at risk?

For those morally weak politcal leaders, and others who stand beside them for personal gain, who are diverting money needed to protect those who live in the most targeted areas, your actions will come with a debt to be repaid. For if there is another terrorist act on our soil at a major metropolitan center whose funding you reduced for political benefits elsewhere, though you may call for water to wash your hands and proclaim your innocence, blood will be on your hands.