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Are you afraid of terrorism

09:48 / 21.03.03

Yesterday I was flicking through a copy of the evening standard on the train and came across an advert that went something like this

'Terrorist attacks!
'pocket face masks', 'protect you and your family from Ricin and Anthrax for just £15

I'd put down the fear of terrorist attacks, as mere propoganda that's drifted over from America where they seem to be scaring their citizens in order to justify war against Iraq. Does anyone feel like there is a geunuine threat from terrorists? Should I be afraid?

09:52 / 21.03.03

also wondering if in some way the fear of terrorist attack is in some sort of subconscious mechanism to justify war to ourselves, that if we are at war with another country, subconscious guilt gets displaced and becomes fear of being attacked when it seems quite clear to me that we are perfectly safe. I mean Saddam Hussein said he was going to fight the war in all countries but I assumed that was just all talk.

We're The Great Old Ones Now

10:11 / 21.03.03

Is there a genuine terror threat? I would think so. Will a £15 face mask protect you from biochemical attack? No.

For nerve agents, you need Atropine - although be warned; taking the drug without being exposed to a nerve agent could kill you. I very much doubt it's freely available and strongly suspect that trying to buy it would draw the attention of the intelligence agencies at speed. At least, I bloody hope it would.

For biochemical attacks, bend at the waist, place your head between your knees, and kiss your ass goodbye.

This is a bit like everyone's favourite one-liner about paranoia - "I'm not paranoid, you're all just saying that". Yes, there seems to be a tendency to inflate the danger (though you could call that laudable caution) and use it to keep people in line. I can't think that telling everyone to buy duct tape and plastic sheeting was anything other than a PR exercise - neither would keep out a biochemical attack particularly well, and in any case if you seal a house perfectly, you've got an oxygen problem...

At the same time, there is a danger. There was someone making ricin, a poison for which there is no antidote, in the UK. Presumably Al Qaeda, who did destroy WTC (for which may they tor in hells as yet unnamed), would love to make another ghastly statement.

Saddam Hussein probably was just talking. He has at various times also stated that Iraq will triumph, that he is the direct descendant of the Prophet (blessings be upon him), and that Iraq did not possess nerve gas.

But are you perfectly safe? No. Should you be afraid? Probably not. But it wouldn't hurt to be wary. I wouldn't go kicking any unattended suitcases.

10:33 / 21.03.03

I guess if we weren't afraid of it, it's be 'contentmentism'.

I don't think we're ever "perfectly safe" but for much of the time we're able to avoid thinking of the multitude of risk factors at play in our daily lives (terrorist explosive/gas/biological attacks, traffic accidents, assaults, heart disease, cancer, spontaneous combustion). I'm pretty sure there are propagandist reasons for governmental emphasis on certain risks at certain times but that doesn't necessarily mean a) those risks are clearly present/not present, or b) avoidable.

Buy a gasmask. Not particularly because it'll help you in any way in the event of an attack; buy one because they're strangely sexy...

11:28 / 21.03.03

Personally no. There are too many other bad things that are much more likely to happen, why waste the fear? Cars kill many more people than Terrorism, as do heart attacks. At least you can do something constructive about them, fear of something you can't affect is wearing and pointless. And being terrified encourages terror attacks.

13:33 / 21.03.03

I'm not really scared on a day to day basis, I don't worry about bombs as I walk about, going to work and so on. But having said that, I do jump extra high if I hear thunder or a car backfiring -- somewhere in my brain there's a bit that's more worried than normal.

I think that's a common feeling across the city. When there was a tube crash in January, I've heard that people panicked much more than they normally would because they assumed it was terrorism and were expecting flames and gas to pour in at any moment.

Tryphena Absent

14:15 / 21.03.03

I have no fear of terrorism at all... no scrap that- I've always been worried that a bomb would explode on the tube or in a bin somewhere while I was walking past. I'm not nervous about bio or chemical warfare or cluster bombs hitting us or planes or nukes or any of the big stuff. It's the everyday that worries me, sitting on a train and seeing an abandoned bag or even a bag that could be abandoned makes my eyes narrow with suspicion. All of it is in the back of my mind though and I don't get nervous, it's just there, I'm used to it.

14:46 / 21.03.03

do these gasmasks come with three feet of silver hair, or is that extra?

14:58 / 21.03.03

Speaking as someone who's been through an anthrax attack, it's not fun, but it's not the fear as much as dealing with people who are afraid for you. That, and the disruptions in routine.

Well, and Cipro really makes you feel worn out.

So, to answer the question, no. Not really.

06:31 / 22.03.03

Grant, I was afraid of you long b4 the 'thrax hit you guys.

Me, I wuz scared 'till I read this. I dunno how reliable it is, mind, I'm not qualified to judge, but it's made me a little calmer.

STOATIE LIEKS CHOCOLATE MILK

07:16 / 22.03.03

I got bored of being scared of terrorism soon after moving to London while the IRA were still doing their shit. (Although I was fairly worried one Saturday when I'd convinced myself that the nailbomber's next target would be Stamford Hill's Jewish community. When he hit Soho I was more worried than scared, worried because I was about two minutes' walk away from the place and I knew people who would have been around the area at the time.)
I think there's a very real threat- but if I spend my whole time looking at the sky for hijacked planes I'm drastically increasing my chances of getting hit by a bus.
I still want all the emergency supplies, gas masks and stuff- partly because, as I said, I do think there's a very real threat, and partly because, as 'nesh says, some of that stuff is so damn cool. (Though I think we may have different reasons for judging them thus.)

17:18 / 22.03.03

terrorist explosive/gas/biological attacks, traffic accidents (Look both ways/defensive driving/Volvo/MPV syndrome), assaults(Self Defence), heart disease(Gym), cancer(Health/ier eating), spontaneous combustion(ummm?)).

Okay, disregarding SHC, everything above you can take action to at least ameliorate the problem other than terrorist attack, thats the worst part, there is Nowt you can do.

Solitaire Rose as Tom Servo

20:36 / 22.03.03

I lived in the midwest of the US, and to be honest, I don't think I personally have anything to worry about. I worry about friends in LA, Vegas or New York, but here in the middle of America...most of the people in the US don't pay any attention to us, let alone people who want to make statements.

Although, if terrorists wanted to strike a mighty blow, all they would have to do is pick out a small town in, say, Iowa, of about 300 people, and destroy it. THAT would bring the country down much more rapidly than another strike on a major city, because at that point, no one would be able to feel safe.

21:24 / 22.03.03

what scares me is the thougjht that someone like me might be planning these attacks, but someone with more balls and a certain touch of moral ambiguity that i lack. i can come up with some really nasty ideas for hurting people, and i can only hope that those predisposed to terrorism are also not too creative.

19:08 / 24.03.03

I'm pretty realistic about things, like when walking home alone late at night, I'm not afraid cos on of the reasons I chose my neighborhood was specifically cos it's safe enough. I know my chance of getting attacked is really rare. (I stay *aware*, though, cos I know it *can* happen.)
Having said this, however, I am afraid of terrorist attacks when I think about it. The Sears Tower (aka the tallest building in the USA if you don't know) and the Chicago Board of Trade are about 4 blocks from each other. And me? I work in just between them. I wasn't so scared when I didn't have a job, cos I live about four miles north of downtown, but now I am.

20:20 / 24.03.03

When I stop to think about it, no, but I keep having very intense panic attacks in public places.