Say Steve,
Isn't this test scheduled to coincide with the Asterioid 2005 YU55
hitting the earth???
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/04/asteroid-2005-yu55-earth-2011_n_1076838.html
I'll be Underground, Terry
On Nov 5, 2011, at 9:31 AM, Stephen Fleming wrote:
Subject: FW: Pls READ: Nationwide Emergency Alert System Test:
November 9
On Wednesday, November 9, 2011, FEMA, DHS and FCC will conduct the
first ever National test of the Nationwide Emergency Alert System
(EAS). This Nationwide test will kick off at 1:00 pm (CST) and run
concurrently across all time zones.
This system test is the first of its kind designed to broadcast a
nationwide message to the American public. In the history of the
country, nothing like it has been conducted on such a level. There
have been tests in the past, but not of this magnitude encompassing
all regions of the Nation simultaneously. The three (3) minute test
will run simultaneously on all radio and TV band stations exceeding
the previous messages broadcast which were anywhere from a 30 second
to 1 minute message.
There is concern in local police and emergency management circles
about undue public anxiety over this test. The test message on TV
might not indicate that it is just a test. The fear is that the
lack of an explanation regarding the message might create panic.
Well, in a way, this is not the first time at all. Seventy-three
years ago there was the War of the Worlds nationwide broadcast that
resulted in misinterpretation and widespread panic. It had the
disclaimers it was a theatrical presentation, but that was lost upon
or never heard by many listeners. It was a 55 minute 'test'.
Here is a Wikipedia citation with some interjection to bring a bit
of relevance to today.
The War of the Worlds was an episode of the American radio drama
anthology series Mercury Theatre on the Air. It was performed as a
Halloween episode of the series on October 30, 1938
Some listeners heard only a portion of the broadcast and, in the
atmosphere of tension and anxiety (fear) prior (concurrent with) to
World War II (the over-hyped terrorism threat), took it to be an
actual news broadcast. Newspapers reported that panic ensued, with
people across the Northeastern United States and Canada fleeing
their homes. Some people called CBS, newspapers or the police in
confusion over the realism of the news bulletins. Some claimed they
could smell poison gas or see flashes of lightning in the distance.
Within one month, newspapers had published 12,500 articles about the
broadcast and its impact. Adolf Hitler (al Qaeda) cited the panic,
as Richard J. Hand writes, as "evidence of the decadence and corrupt
condition of democracy."
It will be interesting to see how the most ignorant among us react,
especially when prior reports of things like a small plane weighing
half of a VW sent thousands of people fleeing buildings in DC in
sheer panic a number of years ago. I now refer you back to the
'concerns of local police and emergency management' above. This
could be real entertaining.
