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| Fifth Column |
| Terror threat overblown... Really. |
| 2002-08-11 |
| The response of U.S. policymakers to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks is based upon an overestimate of the threat of terrorism, and ignores the lessons that can be gained from an interdisciplinary approach to the problem, according to some think tank experts who are analyzing the issue. "I basically think we are really overreacting to this in a fairly large way," said George Mason University economist Roger Congleton. "I think it would be useful for the press and the government to be reminded that the risks are not as gigantic as we seem to have been encouraged to believe over the last year." "What's an occasional nuclear blast here or there? Collapsing skyscrapers? Thousands dead at a shot? And plagues? Subversion? Murder? No problem. It's all in the way you look at it. They missed me, so what's the problem?" In an essay entitled "Terrorism, Interest-Group Politics, and Public Policy: Curtailing Criminal Modes of Political Speech," in the summer edition of the Independent Institute's Independent Review, Congleton argues that policymakers should be taking a closer look at just how great a risk is posed by terrorist activities, as well as how much effort and money should be committed to address that threat, versus the other risks faced by society. Congleton says that the risks of dying in more ordinary crimes or accidents -- being run over by a car, killed in the traffic accident while driving, or even being murdered -- are much higher than those of being killed in a terrorist act... "The damage terrorism's actually caused on a relative scale hasn't been crippling so far, so it won't ever be in the future." But critics of Congleton's quantitative approach to antiterrorism policy argue that although a multi-disciplinary view is required to address the thicket of policy concerns raised by terrorist threats, a qualitative review is a much better means for developing an effective policy response. "Hmmm... No-o-o-o-o. I wouldn't call him stupid. Not exactly, anyway..." |
| Posted by:Fred Pruitt |
| #1 I wonder how Mr. Conga-ton would react if one of these not so gigantic risks were to fall directly upon his head . . . |
| Posted by: Steve 2002-08-12 09:28:08 |