America on "Orange" Alert -- Americans' B.S. Detectors on "Red" Alert

New York, Newark, and Washington are on Orange Alert. What that means is that we're no longer on Yellow Alert--whatever that meant.

After 'crying wolf' in the past, the Department of Homeland Security released an amazing amount of details to justify this cry.

But this latest cry of wolf turns out to be based on information that's three years old. The info that led the Department of Homeland Security to raise the color alert to Orange, or Mango, or Partridge Family School Bus Psychedelic, was actually compiled back BEFORE the September 11, 2001 attacks.

So is there really an imminent threat of attack -- as there was with Iraq?

Or is our government just getting around to something they should have been concerned about in August, 2001, instead of August, 2004?

A Healthy Dose of Skepticism?

You've gotta believe there's plenty of healthy skepticism about what is really behind Sunday's sudden announcement.

Do you know the first words out of Secretary Ridge's mouth after his customary greeting when he made the announcement? It wasn't "America faces a threat," or "Terrorists are planning attacks," it was "President Bush."

That should get your attention.

If it doesn't, less than halfway through his appearance, there in the middle of Ridge's scripted announcement, was the kind of blurb better suited to a campaign ad than for soothing Americans' minds:

"But we must understand that the kind of information available to us today is the result of the President's leadership in the war against terror. "

Timing is Everything

The alert came on a slow news day, a Sunday.

Sundays are when newspapers are looking for anything to put in Monday's issue, when Good Morning America and Today are looking for guests after a weekend off, a day when anything big gets big media attention for two days.

It came immediately after the Democratic National Convention, at the beginning of the first full week of the fall election campaign.

The alert affects Washington, DC and New York City -- the two largest media centers in the nation, home to most network's broadcast centers or their largest bureaus, home to some of the most widely read newspapers ACROSS the country.

The traffic checkpoints, the tightened security at federal buildings, the machine gun totin' guards on the subways and street corners don't simply make life tougher for terrorists.
They also serve as a constant display to the reporters, editors, and photographers who work in those markets and may paint their impressions of coverage.

And how long will this subtle imagery be in front of journalists on their way to daily story meetings?

Both DC Police Chief Charles Ramsey and Capitol Police Chief Terrance Gainer say the alert will last through the election in November.

And if this turns out to be all just a show of the administration's resolve, you've just made a campaign contribution. Gainer figures it'll cost taxpayers $3 million a month in overtime every month until the terror alert color changes again.

The Spin Doctor is In

So is this alert a bad thing?

'Crying wolf' doesn't mean a wolf won't eventually show up. That's the way the story ends, remember.

But maybe the administration has something else in mind.

Sure, it makes people skeptical. Skepticism is healthy. And with 40 million Americans unable to afford health insurance, maybe this is the Administration's idea of a health care plan.