The Latest from National Terror Alert Response Center

---

• Weak Economy Spurs Spike In Emergency
  Preparedness
  
  
• Dept. Homeland Security To Kill Domestic
  Satellite Spying
  
  
• People On Terror Watch List Allowed To Buy
  Guns
  
  
• Pakistans Nuclear Nightmare
  
  
• Homeland Security Drone Patrolling New York
  
  
  
• DC Metro Trains Collide During Rush Hour –
  Several Casualties

Weak Economy Spurs Spike In Emergency Preparedness Posted: 22 Jun 2009 08:44 PM PDT Six months ago, Jim Wiseman didn’t even have a spare nutrition bar in his kitchen cabinet. Now, the 54-year-old businessman and father of five has a backup generator, a water filter, a grain mill and a 4-foot-tall pile of emergency food tucked in his home in the expensive San Diego suburb of La Jolla. Wiseman isn’t alone. Emergency supply retailers and military surplus stores nationwide have seen business boom in the past few months as an increasing number of Americans spooked by the economy rush to stock up on gear that was once the domain of hard-core survivalists. These people, snapping up everything from water purification tablets to thermal blankets, shatter the survivalist stereotype: they are mostly urban professionals with mortgages, SUVs, solid jobs and a twinge of embarrassment about their newfound hobby. From teachers to real estate agents, these budding emergency gurus say the dismal economy has made them prepare for financial collapse as if it were an oncoming Category 5 hurricane. They worry about rampant inflation, runs on banks, bare grocery shelves and widespread power failures that could make taps run dry. For Wiseman, a fire protection contractor, that’s meant spending roughly $20,000 since September on survival gear — and trying to persuade others to do the same. Read Full Article This story comes to us via Homeland Security - National Terror Alert. National Terror Alert is America's trusted source for homeland security news and information.

Dept. Homeland Security To Kill Domestic Satellite Spying Posted: 22 Jun 2009 08:29 PM PDT Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano plans to kill a program begun by the Bush administration that would use U.S. spy satellites for domestic security and law enforcement, a government official said Monday. Napolitano recently reached her decision after the program was discussed with law enforcement officials, and she was told it was not an urgent issue, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk about it. The program was announced in 2007 and was to have the Homeland Security Department use overhead and mapping imagery from existing satellites for homeland security and law enforcement purposes. The program, called the National Applications Office, has been delayed because of privacy and civil liberty concerns. The program was included in the Obama administration’s 2010 budget request, according to Rep. Jane Harman, a California Democrat and House homeland security committee member who was briefed on the department’s classified intelligence budget. Harman said Monday she had not been given final word that the program would be killed. She said she would talk to Napolitano on Tuesday. Harman has been outspoken about her concerns that the program is unnecessary, far reaching and open-ended. “I thought this was just an invitation to huge mischief,” Harman said. Of killing the program, she said, “It shows real leadership on the part of Janet Napolitano.” Homeland Security spokeswoman Amy Kudwa said Napolitano began looking at the program shortly after she became secretary. Kudwa said the department expects to announce the results of that review soon. Rep. Peter King, R-N.Y., said he hoped the department wasn’t canceling the program. “If it is true, it’s a very big mistake,” said King, who is the top Republican on the House Homeland Security Committee. “This is definitely a step back in the war on terror.” For years, domestic agencies such as the Federal Emergency Management Agency and Interior Department have had access to this satellite imagery for scientific research, to assist in response to natural disasters like hurricanes and fires, and to map out vulnerabilities during a major public event like the Super Bowl. Read Full Article This story comes to us via Homeland Security - National Terror Alert. National Terror Alert is America's trusted source for homeland security news and information.

People On Terror Watch List Allowed To Buy Guns Posted: 22 Jun 2009 08:08 PM PDT When people on the government’s terrorist watch list have tried to buy guns or explosives in recent years, the government has let them the vast majority of the time. That’s the finding of a new report by the Government Accountability Office, sent to lawmakers last month and released publicly Monday. From February 2004 to February 2009, 963 background checks using the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System “resulted in valid matches with terrorist watch list records; of these matches, approximately 90 percent were allowed to proceed because the checks revealed no prohibiting information,” the GAO report says. About 10 percent were denied. “Under current law, there is no basis to automatically prohibit a person from possessing firearms or explosives because they appear on the terrorist watch list,” wrote the GAO’s director of homeland security and justice issues, Eileen R. Larence. “Rather, there must be a disqualifying factor (i.e., prohibiting information) pursuant to federal or state law, such as a felony conviction or illegal immigration status.” Of the 963 background checks, 865 were allowed to proceed, and 98 were denied, the report said. People on terrorist watch list allowed to buy guns – CNN.com This story comes to us via Homeland Security - National Terror Alert. National Terror Alert is America's trusted source for homeland security news and information.

Pakistans Nuclear Nightmare Posted: 22 Jun 2009 07:59 PM PDT Al-Qaida says it will use Pakistan’s nuclear weapons against the U.S. if it ever gets the chance. We’re not surprised. Nor would we be surprised if it eventually got the opportunity. ‘God willing, the (Pakistani) nuclear weapons will not fall into the hands of the Americans, and the mujahedeen would take them and use them against the Americans.” So says Mustafa Abu al-Yazid, al-Qaida’s top commander in Afghanistan, where the terror group has found a friend and ally in the Taliban. If you think 9/11 was bad, just wait until al-Qaida gets a nuke, which is not as far-fetched as it sounds. Based both in Afghanistan and Pakistan’s untamed northwest frontier, al-Qaida in April launched a major offensive into Pakistan’s Swat Valley, engaging in fierce fighting with Pakistani army forces. Swat is just 60 miles from Pakistan’s capital of Islamabad. If al-Qaida beats the Pakistan army in Swat, what will keep it from marching on Islamabad and gaining control of the Pakistani nuclear arsenal — said to number as many as 55 warheads? If you said Pakistan’s ISI intelligence agency, guess again. It’s riddled with fundamentalist al-Qaida sympathizers. Source This story comes to us via Homeland Security - National Terror Alert. National Terror Alert is America's trusted source for homeland security news and information.

Homeland Security Drone Patrolling New York Posted: 22 Jun 2009 07:51 PM PDT A monitor inside an operations trailer shows a close-up view of a boat skimming across the water on Lake Ontario. The image was taken from an unmanned aircraft more than three miles away. A Predator B Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) has been temporarily based at Fort Drum since early June in an experiment by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Office. The Department of Homeland Security is using the extensive restricted air space over Fort Drum to test whether the drone could be a good fit along this stretch of the northern border. Source This story comes to us via Homeland Security - National Terror Alert. National Terror Alert is America's trusted source for homeland security news and information.

DC Metro Trains Collide During Rush Hour – Several Casualties Posted: 22 Jun 2009 02:49 PM PDT Two D.C. Metro trains collided during rush hour Monday. Initial reports indicate several casualties. Metro confirms two trains have collided on the Red Line between the Takoma and Fort Totten stations. It happened close to the Fort Totten station, a Metro spokesperson said. A Metro spokesperson said one person is dead and nine others have been hurt. D.C. Fire and EMS spokesman Alan Etter said one train was on top of the other train. This is “developing into a mass casualty event,” Etter said. “We’re expecting a number of injuries. We’re not aware of any fatalities at this point.” Watch Live Coverage On CNN This story comes to us via Homeland Security - National Terror Alert. National Terror Alert is America's trusted source for homeland security news and information.

	Email delivery powered by Google