Securing the Homeland . . . OUR homeland, Los Angeles Feb. 2003 When the US Federal Government's new Homeland Security Advisory System went from YELLOW ("elevated") to ORANGE ("high") the media pundits and officials scrambled to explain what it all meant. It all seemed pretty serious to everyone, and it was, considering the only level left is RED ("severe").

Locally there have been a variety of ramifications ...

As one LACP participant wrote, "... the eventual War in Iraq is depleting LAPD and LAFD of it's employees that are in the military reserve components (thus effecting the security and safety of the City of Los Angeles) ... [and] channel 4 reported last week about the Coast Guard reservists that were activated and sent out of our area. They were the unit that patrolled (and would defend) the Port of Los Angeles. Boy, is George W. ever making the line that protects the City of Los Angeles (our homeland) ever thinner!"

It's not only a matter of personnel. The funding that had in the past come from the Federal Government to support any number of law enforcement and community programs across the country has simply disappeared.

Billions and billions of dollars have been sucked into the black hole of Homeland Security -- a seemingly unaccountable black hole with a purpose no one has been able to adequately describe -- leaving America's states, cities and neighborhoods in the lurch.

Only post 9-11 New York City and Washington, DC, have received significant help.

And the typical American citizen feels this. At the very least, when the Federal Government fails to support the states, they in turn tend to cut back support to the counties and cities within them.

California and the Los Angeles region have not been immune. There are real problems with the infrastructure that would be needed to support our local team of "first responders" ... problems which have not been addressed. Very few of them have received more than the most simple training, and basic equipment has not been provided.

The revised LAPD has just started to gear up, with Chief Bratton bringing in John Miller to head up a brand new Homeland Security Bureau. They've still got to organize, staff and fund it. Hopefully they'll get what they need without a further depleting of LAPD's already stretched-to-the-limit resources.

Sheriff Lee Baca had his budget severely cut back last year ... by tens of millions of dollars. His Department's community programs, to which he was devoted, suffered heavily, and many of them disbanded. The Sheriff has been warned that things will likely get worse this year, not better.

The Fire Department will be hard pressed to assist in any significant attack, such as a chemical or biological one (much less a nuclear attack) because it lacks equipment and training to respond. For example, there aren't enough hazmat suits to protect firefighters themselves, much less any community members who might need them too.

Trauma centers, clinics and entire hospitals have been closed throughout the county due to budget cutbacks.

But perhaps the most serious problem will be coordinating the police, fire, EMT and hospital staffs that will be required in any significant sized emergency. This will be next to impossible because the radio system used throughout the LA area (and this is true all over the country) is not fully integrated.

All of this takes money ... significant money ... the kind of money that states and local communities will only get if the Feds decide to give back some of the billions the government has hoarded.

So, barring this, what's the Federal suggestion in case of a terrorist attack? It's for each of us to "get ready" -- which is especially good advice since, as we've explained, it's decided to not support, train and equip our local community's first responders effectively.

It seems the government is spending a small portion of those billions ...

There's a massive Department of Homeland Security media blitz going on which encourages individuals to prepare.

Besides a significant Public Service Announcement (PSA) TV and radio ad campaign, a new one-stop website has been posted, the "Ready.Gov" website, and an "800" phone number, designed to help American families get ready for even unlikely emergency scenarios (see below).

No doubt the Boy Scout Motto "Be Prepared" is apropos. And unfortunately it's up to each of us to decide how much preparedness we need do to feel comfortable.

What can we, as individuals, do?

One LACP contributor, an expert in chemical, nuclear and biological warfare, tried to put the possible threat in perspective:

How to survive Chemical, Nuclear and Biological attacks
February 17th - SFC Red Thomas (Ret), Armor Master Gunner, Mesa, Arizona

So ... how much of the talk about the "elevated" Orange Security Level is hype, and how much real? It's hard for the typical resident to tell.

www.READY.gov info phone number: 1 / 800 / Be-Ready Make A Kit the basics of survival: water, food, clean air and warmth

Here are some additional websites that may help:

Department of Homeland Security The Department of Homeland Security's home page declares, "Don't be afraid, be ready -- one individual, one family, one community at a time. The threat of terrorism forces us to make a choice. We can be afraid, or we can be ready."

Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) FEMA is an independent federal agency with more than 2,600 full time and nearly 4,000 standby disaster assistance employees who are available to help out after disasters. Orange Update - what FEMA is doing about high (orange) condition

Center for Disease Control (CDC) The CDC is recognized as the lead federal agency for protecting the health and safety of people - at home and abroad. It strengthens local, state, and national public health capacity to respond to growing threats from biological and chemical terrorism. Terrorism and Public Health - info for professionals and the public

Community Emergency Response Team Finally this may well be the best time to train yourself for a possible emergency by joining the local LA Fire Department's Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) Program. Trained CERT members can be of significant help to their neighbors in the case of any emergency, including those involving natural disasters, major accidents, and terrorism.

In the end, it seems the Federal Government's message is that our individual, family and community preparedness is what we'll all have to rely on.

Any effective security for the homeland, our homeland, LA, is going to be up to us.