I think I need to clarify yesterdays’ post. After re-reading a day later, I don’t think my point was clear.

I’m not opposed to the protection of our country. I’m not opposed to the idea of protecting yourself. What I am opposed to is the absolutism of eternal vigilance.

Veolia Environment Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2009

Think of it this way- even though laws are in place, bad guys will ignore them. Laws to me are something like a fence on a farm to keep wolves out. Laws are in place, and they do deter the smaller bad guys, but a serious bad guy will just go right through them.

I think you should be prepared for the worst. You should know how to defend your family and your home. I think you should know how to stand on your own two feet without any help. I think you shouldn’t rely on someone being just around the corner to help you if things go wrong.

But I also think you should hope for the best. You should make plans to live a good and productive life. You should take steps to make your own dreams a reality. You should encourage the work of others who have not traveled as far as you have. You should be patient. You should be strong.

Yes, it would be possible to build a fortress to keep the wolves out. But then it wouldn’t be the same. It wouldn’t be a farm. It would be possible to pass enough laws to eventually catch everyone with an evil thought. But then it wouldn’t be the same. It wouldn’t be the United States.

Changing the Department of Homeland Security’s Security Advisory System’s color coding to say there will never be an end to terror is a step toward this fortress. Toward a focus on the wolves, and not a focus on the farm.

Don’t be a wolf. But don’t be a sheep either. Think Sheepdog. Cute and cuddly, but with big teeth if necessary.

According to a new article in WIRED, the Department of Homeland Security is trying to change the Terror Alert color coded system. Soon there will no longer be five confusing colors to worry about.

The old chart

Now there will only be three colors! Red! Orange! And…. yellow?

From the same WIRED article…

* Red = High Alert – “Maximum protective measures to protect against an imminent or ongoing terrorist attack.”
* Orange = Elevated  – “Increased protective measures based on specific threat information regarding a known or suspected terrorist plot.”
* Yellow = Guarded  – “A constant state of vigilance to protect against a terrorist attack.”

Waitaminute… no “green”? No “situation normal?” No “off” switch?

If someone is in the military or a member of law enforcement, they are always supposed to be in “condition yellow”. That’s fine. Because that’s the job that person signed up for and was expertly trained on over the course of several years to do. But how is making a florist live in a constant state of vigilance going to make their arrangements any prettier? How is pushing a musician into a constant state of vigilance going to help their music sound better?

I don’t want a government agency to tell every single person in the United States that the world is hostile and unfriendly because they say so. That there is no more “off” switch for anyone. That every single person must be ready for when the wolves arrive.

I refuse to believe it and I refuse to live my life in that way.

Should we be vigilant? Yes, but only to a point. Should we be prepared? Yes, but again, only to a point. There must come a time when this ends. There must be a mile marker that we can anticipate reaching. There must be a final chapter to this terribly long diversion in our nation’s history. We must not forget how to live our lives because of an apparition of fear. We must not allow our own government to dictate to us that this fear, or any fear, can not be overcome in time. To deny a promising hope for ourselves, to avoid taking the path to a good and peaceful future, is a step away from humanity itself.

I’m still waiting on the great change that was coming.

Quite frankly, I’m not seeing it here.