Plastic Sheeting and Duct Tape: Civil Defense 2003
A government official, in other words someone who should know better, made a stupid announcement this week that stands out for foolishness. Americans were warned that terrorists could put poisons in light bulbs and aerosol cans, and that good ideas included having 3 days food on hand and covering windows with plastic sheeting and duct tape. Advise like this is counter-productive to the point of being treasonous.
The poisoned light-bulb is, of course, the stuff of James Bond movies, as is the sarin in the hairspray. Introducing these things into the factories is just too difficult to be a worry yet focusing on them detracts from legitimate concernss. As for the 3 day food supply, most Americans have refrigerators with at least that much -- forgetting how Utah's Mormons skew the average. As for the plastic sheeting and duct tape over the windows, the idea of keeping biological or chemical death out of the house is laughable. Refinishing wooden floors gives one a good idea of the effectiveness of this counter-measure.
Perhaps the announcement was meant as a palliative. Perhaps it was never meant to be spread in the media. More than likely, though, the bureaucrat who sent out his "advice" thought it was some vital knowledge that would help America through this "Orange Alert."
Instead, Americans have been told to waste time and money on measures that will not help and to beware of threats that are mathematically irrelevant. When the feebleness of these ideas is borne out by the harsh reality of a terror attack, the American government will have to face an angry population that has less faith in it than before -- at a time when the people and the government must work as one. Half-baked ideas and bad information are worse than silence from Washington.