Terror Threat Levels - whats the POINT ?

[Easy 10]

Jaqui Smith (Home Secretary) has announced the Terror Threat Level "has been reduced from "Critical" down to "Severe". Next on the scale is "Substantial", followed by "Moderate" and finally "Low" (when an attack is considered "unlikely").

Roll on "LOW" eh ? Maybe then we can all sleep easy in our beds. Except prior to the 7/7 attacks in London, I'm pretty sure the threat level was at "Low" as well...until they started blowing the TWAT out of people, when no doubt it then rocketed back up to "Critical".

Look Gordon. When we start seeing flaming 4x4's being driven into airports, and car bombs all over London, I think most people can figure out for themselves there is a tangible THREAT, without it being put into some nonsensical 'league table'. I mean FFS, is anyone going to act any differently, or be any more VIGILANT, if the official threat level is announced as SUBSTANTIAL rather than CRITICAL ?

What a load of headline-grabbing BOLLOCKS from the Home Orifice.

 

[Gritt23]

It makes me think of that scene in Red Dwarf when they are thinking of stepping it up from a "blue alert" to a "red alert".

"But you realise what that means don't you?"
"Yes"
"We have to change the ....... bulb."


Yep, it's THAT significant!

 

[Easy 10]

It makes me think of that scene in Red Dwarf when they are thinking of stepping it up from a "blue alert" to a "red alert".

"But you realise what that means don't you?"
"Yes"
"We have to change the ....... bulb."


Yep, it's THAT significant!

Nutshell.

 

[Rangdo]

To give you something to rant about?

 

[Easy 10]

To give you something to rant about?

I've got West Sham, Leeds and Hazel Blears for that.
But yes, this has just added to the pile.

 

[NMH]

It might not actually be for the use of the general public- but a way for the concerned departments to make sure that all pertinent people (and that might also include police departments, anti-terrorism detectives, border patrol, coastguard, airport and harbour immigration officials, etc) that ARE in place to attend to these ordained levels of alert, get the message - even when they are off-duty, at home with the kids, or whatever.

Like verey-pistol flares that go 'boom' and get out the lifeboats, some alert systems work most effectively when kept simple.

 

[Bry Nylon]

Yes, Terror level threats were always posted to Emergency Services and other 'darker' Government agencies, so a level of preparedness (including staffing levels / leave / resources etc) could be catered for.

In recent years, these terror levels have been made public, as part of some 'open government' initiative, I think.

 

[NMH]

....and to remind the public that they are doing something, that we are SAFE and being PROTECTED

 

[Badger]

It makes me think of that scene in Red Dwarf when they are thinking of stepping it up from a "blue alert" to a "red alert".

"But you realise what that means don't you?"
"Yes"
"We have to change the ....... bulb."


Yep, it's THAT significant!

Best Red Dwarf quote of all time

and when Cat says "Forget Red Alert lets go all the way up to brown alert"

"But Sir we don't have a brown alert"

"You won't be saying that in a minute"

 

[Barrel of Fun]

Nothing more than political propoganda. Critical and we are in fear of our lives. Then when it is downgraded to severe, we are obviously winning the war.

Having said that, if these publicised levels make more people aware of what is going on around them, then I don't see the problem.

 

[Pevenseagull]

surely they could have just copies across the 'Defcon' rules

that would have saved a lot of money and sounds much cooler


on the subject of which pubs in Hove should now be on Defcon 2 as I have the day off and am about to leave my flat

 

[NMH]

When you don't hear anything about threat levels in a while, it may not be that they are downgraded.

That these professional people are here practicing in the medical field, while plotting mayhem, is of course, astounding.
Despite the fact that these unlikely sorts worked so carefully to conceal their espionage, and were probably quite intelligent misguided people, they failed miserably. That speaks loudly for the efforts made in shutting them off and rounding them up.

 

[Icy Gull]

For the same reason that when they gave out MI5's telephone for the public to phone in any suspicious occurances, 30% of the calls received were about flat pack furniture problems.

 

[Bry Nylon]

Just got in from work.

For those that are interested, the current Terror Level is "Oh, f***."
Not that anyone will behave any differently from how they would have otherwise done. And that, I would say, is exactly as it should be.

 

[Gully]

...or to quote the mayor of Hiroshima in 1945, "what the hell was that big bang?"...