[wordup] Chicken Little ...

[Adam Shand]

in reference to the second article ... it's funny i was just thinking
about this the other day.  what ever happened to the king leading the
troops into battle.  kinda gives you the feeling that "war sure is
important ... but don't expect *me* to be anywhere near it".

From: http://www.radiofreenation.net/article.pl?sid=01/10/30/1443217&mode=thread&threshold=

Chicken Little Media
posted by Editor on Tuesday October 30, @09:42AM

moose writes "The hysterical all-anthrax-all-the-time coverage by the
media seems to be missing what is going in an America. As WSJ columnist
Thomas Bray notes in his column "Squaking Heads"(column archive here )
'there seem to be two Americas emerging - one obsessed by risk, the other
learning to adjust to new realities. On the one side are politicians,
bureaucrats and media people, who seem to be verging on hysteria. On the
other are the vast majority of average Americans who get up every day, go
to work, eat their lunch and don't cancel their trips to Chicago, Florida
or Italy. [...] The media have given scant attention to the bigger
picture: that the anthrax attacks have largely failed. So far only three
people out of scores exposed have been killed - a reason for public
outrage, but hardly cause for panic. [...] A society that spends its time
and money chasing phantom risks will have little left over to deal with an
actual risk when it materializes."

From: http://www.opinionjournal.com/columnists/tbray/?id=95001360

Chicken Hill
BY THOMAS J. BRAY
Tuesday, October 23, 2001 12:01 a.m. EDT

Politicians are supposed to run for Congress, not from it.

The House is taking its lumps for adjourning last week in the face of the
anthrax scare. WIMPS, summarized the New York Post last week. Not quite
fair, perhaps, but the reaction reminded us that one of the long-neglected
attributes of leadership, courage, may need some dusting off.

The first came up in the hours after the World Trade Center and Pentagon
attacks by reports that Air Force One, rather than returning directly to
Washington, was flying around the countryside in search of a safe haven.
There were more murmurings when Dick Cheney vanished to a "secure
location" as fears of new attacks mounted.

There are perfectly good reasons for leaders to take protective measures
in times of emergency, of course. And both President Bush and Vice
President Cheney have now communicated a sense of resolve that polls
indicate is greatly reassuring to the public. House Speaker Dennis Hastert
and Minority Leader Dick Gephardt could also claim to have done the
prudent thing on behalf of the thousands who work in the Capitol--though
they might have set a better example by staying at their posts while
sending their staffers home.

But after Sept. 11, it's clear that we are all on the front line. It will
be particularly important for political leaders to show a certain amount
of personal bravery in the face of a common threat. This is not the
distant combat of the 20th century, when even a draft-dodging president
could work himself into a patriotic lather and send the boys off to fight
for freedom in a far-off land. This time, the war is up close and
personal.

... <snip> ...