No Icons, No Monuments Worth Protecting

It doesn’t say who authored this report, but clearly he/she needs to be promoted. Outstanding analysis.

Yeah, well… too many goddamn Democrats in NYC, hmmm?
JF

This is as shameful as it is unsurprising. What would have been very obvious to your readers five minutes after the attacks of 9/11 is beyond the grasp of this Administration, five years after that tragedy. I wonder how much money is being spent to protect the Alamo, the Grand Old Opry, Falwell’s Thomas Road Baptist Church, and the Dallas Cowboys. Not to mention major Republican campaign contributors.
One could make the case that a sizeable majority of at-risk sites are in blue states or blue areas. But those aren’t places Republicans would seem to be eager to protect.

I don’t know who put this report together, but don’t blame “the middle of the nation”. Some of us care very much about the East and West coasts sinking into the ocean (we’re generally opposed to the idea).

Is there anyone, anywhere in the DHS who has a clue about what they are supposed to do and how to do it? Such absolute incompetence is beyond belief.

For Eric:
1. Where does ‘The Buck Stop’?
2. Where is Texas located?

It also failed to report that NYC did not support the reelection of Bush, and when the RNC held its convention coincidentally in the same city as the 9/11 WTC attacks, the cityfolk did not welcome the conventioneers with open arms. Nor was the port of NY available for private RNC parties.

Gee, just guessing here, but could the fact that this city is just chock full of Democrats have anything to do with this?

I don’t think “heckuva job” even covers it. This is a truly inspired job. I feel so safe today in my 40 story office building in the middle of the NYC financial district. Thanks guys!

Is the statue of Paul Bunyon out west on the list? I just want to know how to measure this administration’s priorities. How about the world’s biggest Walmart?

What happened to “We are all New Yorkers?”
New Yorkers vote Democratic, so the DHS money has to go toe Florida!

Clearly, whoever authored this report is doing a heckuvajob.

Sitting here in NYC, with the Brooklyn Bridge in view, I simply don’t know what planet this administration is on if they don’t think this city has landmarks.
I’ve long thought the reason the 9/11 attackers didn’t hit the Statue of Liberty is that they didn’t dare hit the most internationally beloved national monument in the whole country.

There is a key hidden factor in the Bush administration’s formula used to distribute these funds: the party affiliation of the city or state’s population. You see – a Democrat is worth only 3/5 of a Republican.
Assuming that the population of NYC is almost entirely made of up Democrats, you’d assume that NYC would receive 3/5 of the funding that they received last year. Some simple math (124.4M/207.5M) confirms that the city will receive is almost exactly 3/5 of the previous year’s budget.
Where did this number come from? There was much political wrangling at the White House. After heated debate on both sides of the issue, they reached a compromise, which they call – the 3/5 compromise.
—-
OK this is obviously not true, but NYC’s budget really is about 3/5 of what it was last year. The part of me that loved the DaVinci Code wants to believe that this is true. The other part of me that reads the news every day knows that the administration isn’t smart enough to pull off something this coordinated.

The fact that NY has been a target of terrorists twice already (compared to Omaha, Cleveland, Chicago et al.) is not sufficient proof of a higher risk? Short term memory and inability to read history (not to mention to understand its implications).
Now that would not have anyhthing to do with the fact that the two senators from NY are Dems and that there is good chance that the Governorship may become Dem.?

New York City should secede, then build a fence to keep out illegal immigrants from rural America.

What a bunch of incompetent boobs. The Bush Administration will go down as the most incompetent in history. Next, they’ll tell us there are no governmental offices in Washington, DC; no lakes in Minnesota, no mountains in Colorado, and I could go on and on and on but you get my drift.
Next time, let’s not elect the class clown President, OK?

Hey, perhaps they can get the “Presidential Medal of Honor”
Heck of a job guys!

chertoff is doing one heck of a job…NEW YORK, THE NUMBER ONE TARGET OF ‘TERISTS’…whatever lies and propaganda fit the bill of the day for robbing the country blind.

This certainly proves the “dumbing of America” theory.

Instead of cutting the Homeland Security Funds from any city, maybe the people that came up with the formula should take a pay cut and that money go towards Homeland Security. Every city, town, and landmark in this nation are a threat and should be protected.

Wal-Mart in Cheney’s Casper, Wyoming, probably needs the money more, considering all the al Qaeda attacks there.
—Leslie, Democrat in NYC

from a picture of boy pointing at the statue of liberty and shouting “it’s HER!” from the deck of the ship he’d been traveling with the hundreds and hundreds of people to come and live in their dreams in this new land to a picture of thousands people lining up around the downtown NY to donate their blood for the victims of 9/11, NY is one of the iconic cities in America in my eyes and my heart. I do not have any more anger left to express amd do feel doomed. God help us all.

It’s becoming clearer and clearer that the President and the people in his administration just don’t care! They don’t care about New Yorkers, they don’t care about young men who are dying or are maimed in Iraq, they don’t care about poor people who used to live in New Orleans, they don’t care about older Americans who have to struggle with the Medicare drug plans, they don’t care about the younger Americans who have to drive to work everyday and pay outrageous gas prices and, finally, they don’t care about the world population who will have to endure the dire consequences of Global Warming.
If there is one thing that characterizes this administration, it’s the total lack of empathy. It’s very sad!

Every American has a stake in the defense of New York and Washington. Guiliani was the real leader in a time of crisis. Bush was an opportunist who used the crisis to manipulate us into a catastrophic war. And now he’s using homeland defense funds for election time politicking. Makes me truly sick.

In addition to the omissions already mentioned: Brooklyn Bridge, the George Washington Bridge, Central Park, the HQ for all of the TV networks and other media companies, Grand Central Station, Pennsyvania Station (AMTRAK), Madison Square Garden, Yankee and Shea Stadiums, the airports, Ellis Island, etc.
Also, its just Gabelli Funds.
Would like to see comparison of other areas of the country that do have “national monuments or icons.” What about Jackson Hole or The Alamo, I bet they count.
NYers already know that they’re on their own with this rotten bunch, but it’s still shocking to see it as official policy.

I couldn’t open the document link, but I would like to see where the money went that was cut from the budget of NYC’s.
Otherwise, this article comes off as a bitter NYC-centric whining & moaning. NYC isn’t the center of the universe folks.

Guess OBL didn’t get the memo.

By reporting this you are helping the terrorists. Find the leaker!!

maybe montana and wyoming really are greater terrorist targets.they haven’t had their funding cut.we should all be thankful that our glorious leaders are so much smarter than we are.

This is hardly surprising. It’s an election year, and it’s hardly news by now that the Bush Administration values style over substance – they’re pandering to the fear-addled people in rural America (their “base”) while leaving the people who actually need protection to twist in the wind. This is the same song they’ve been singing for five years; it’s just in a different key.

This dramatically shows the caliber of the people we have working for us in the federal government. I sure feel safer.

New York Harbor is one of the most recognizable scenes in the world.
Since I was a kid, I have known what New York looks like, recognizing the landmarks mentioned above as well as the City Court Building and the Brooklyn Bridge. I can remember climbing the Statue of Liberty when I was a boy as well as visiting the top of the Empire State Building. I remember vividly the views of the city from the Circle Line Tour I took two years prior to 9/11. I also remember the awful day 9/11, seeing on television the destruction and chaos caused by evil rotten fanatics. Living in Hampton Roads, VA, I can remember seeing the crippled USS Cole being repaired in Newport News Shipyard after damage inflicted by al-Qaeda drones. I am sad to hear of this report. The cynic in me wonders if another PDB hit the President’s desk detailing another New York City attack. I can’t forget the lessons of history such as the Reichstag fire. Those who ignore history are doomed to repeat it. The day the Statue of Liberty is ignored is itself an attack on America.

It’s nice to see that the “Heck of a job, Brownie” moments continue in this administration.
It’s a good thing that they’re in charge of protecting us.

I’d be curious to see the “national landmarks” noted in other cities deemed more worthy of protection– and how many of these landmarks happen to be in red states.

This is hardly an issue of the middle of the country vs. New York/California, Eric. The real question about this shockingly bad decision by the DHS is motivation. It would be interesting to track political contributions from the cities that received the largest bumps in anti-terror funds.

My question is why should ANY prosperous city get funds?
Why should not the cost of defending a city be born by its citizens? Cops, Firemen, sanitation, corrections are all things that should be paid for by the City. If a nuclear reactor is situated outside of a City then perhaps the State or Federal Government should get involved, but day to day expense money should not be funneled to Washington only to be parceled out with the usual vig taken by the Feds!
It seems funny that the same politicians that complain when taxes are reduced for the “rich” are now complaining that funds are being reduced to one of the richest Cities! NYC has just had its bond rating raised to an all-time high…..I think that they can afford to protect themselves :-)
edge.

Well, you gotta admit: it ain’t the home of hte Grand ‘Ol Opry… and it if ain’t the home of the Grand ‘Ol Opry, it ain’t got anything.

The only surprise is that they didn’t list the FOX NEWS HQ in NYC as an important monument or icon.

Four significant bank assets: (1) the Federal Reserve (bunch of gold underneath; see Die Hard with a Vengeance (or, for your sake, just take my word for it).
(2) Citicorp Center?
(3) World Financial Center (Merrill Lynch, etc.) Fairly clear target right now, given that the buildings around it were demolished starting in 2001.
(4) I’m not about to figure out who to offend by leaving off, say, One Chase Plaza or Metrotech in Brooklyn (where much of the S&C processing for Chase, etc., is done) or the Citi facilites in Long Island City or the buildings that house major investment and foreign banks or the NYSE or the Merc or…

Skeletor should be laughed out of his job. I feel real sorry for any area in the U.S that gets hit by a hurricane this year.

It all boils down to politics. NYC did not vote for these knuckleheads so screw ‘em. Just like letting California wallow in the ‘energy crisis’ driven by Enron and Kenny Boy.

You whinning libs need to wake up to what is going on.
You want to rag on Homeland Security for saying New York has no national momuments, and you are quick to point to the Statue of Liberty.
Are you idiots not aware that that statue was removed by the Bush Administrition from the list of National Momuments because its name has the word “LIBERTY”?

For more than 100 years, New York City and the Statue of Liberty have stood as a beacon to freedom. Millions of oppressed people all over the world sacrificed everything to come to the United States through New York and live out the American dream of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. New York and those of us who live here represent America in a way no other city in this country does, second only to Washington, DC.
But hey, I’m sure Omaha, NE would make a fitting replacement.

Wow.
This isn’t even a “librul” blog – I can’t f@#$&%$ wait for November…

Is Homeland Security kidding? New York City has NO SIGNIFICANT LANDMARKS? I’d love to see what landmarks some of the cities that received an increase of funds have on their lists.

I guess Georgie’s HSD folks made their point with all you liberal New Yorkers this time! You’ll get the cash when the Republicans get the votes and not before! Otherwise, they’ll spend your millions “protecting” some WWII memorial plaque on a rock in Muleshoe, Texas.
Maybe it’s time for us American citizen types to have our own protest marches across the country.

No national monuments?! Did they even check with our National Park Service? Federal Hall, Castle Clinton, Teddy Roosevelts Birthplace, Grant’s Tomb and the Statue of Liberty all immediately jump to mind. What of the UN? What of the Empire State Building, the Chrysler Building, what of the reconstruction going on at the World Trade Center itself, already hit twice?
Morons, to a man.

Nothing surprises anymore. America is a dream from which the monster of the Corporate-State long ago awakened.
“We, the people” continue to slumber.
It is dead-of-night in America; the only sound is a wailing siren, diminishing to a memory as it flees the scene of the crime.

I see, it’s another report Authored by the Lone Star Chamber of Commerce.
Now you know why we need to ask how smart you have to be to move cows around.

Did they rehire Michael Brown? They let New Orleans go to **** and now New York? What is the matter with these TOTALLY incompetent losers?!

RELAX, everyone! Look at the link to see the original document. NYC is listed as having over 6000 assets, over 4000 of which are “commercial” which would likely include bank building, the Empire State Building, libraries & museums. NYC is identified as being in the highest risk group, the top 25%. There is probably a very narrow DC-limited definition of “icons and national monument”.

So it’s icons we’re trying to protect. Gee, who would have thunk!

Kinda reminds me of Baghdad Bob: compare: “there are no tanks in Baghdad. The Americans have been all wiped out.” with “there are no monuments in NY.”

The Statue of Liberty is not in New Jersey. “Liberty Island is federal property located within the territorial jurisdiction of the State of New York.”

I guess for a President who calls our Constitution “a g–d— piece of paper”, the Statue of Liberty is just some oversized piece of bad sculpture.

[t]his article comes off as a bitter NYC-centric whining & moaning. NYC isn’t the center of the universe folks.
The poster who left this pearl of wisdom above should have seen the WTC fall (as I did), work in downtown Manhattan in unsafe conditions after 9/11 (as I did), and live with a major terrorist target (the Brooklyn Bridge) outside his living room window (as I do). Then perhaps he might reconsider his opinion. Or maybe not. Some people seem to think this Administration can do no wrong — although even their blind faith must be sorely tried by the endless stream of disasters and incompetents unleashed by the Bushies.

No wonder they couldn’t find out whether Saddam had WMD. They couldn’t find a national monument in New York.
We should have outsourced this to the French. They seem to have much better intelligence that we do.

Its such a joke on us. Cut funds and increase the attraction by the terrorists of another attack. How else will Bush and his cronies keep control of this country? lets just leave all the doors unclocked.

Of course NYC got cut. All this terror money has quickly evolved into standard issue pork to be handed out to states which elected the majority party in Congress. As a Democrat I’d like to think our party would do it in a more sensible strategic fashion, but who knows?
Given the record of the Bush administration and its spineless majority in Congress for the past five years, how can we be surprised at this turn of events?

I realize that NYC may be the center of the universe, but would like to point out that DC took the second largest cut of more than $30 million. I believe we have a couple of landmarks of our own worth protecting.

Joel-Dont let your bitterness cloud the issues

-New York was given more anti-terror funding than any other city in the country (which it should).
-And if the govt gave NYC 5 billion, you all would be complaining how Bush is running up deficits and is “hyping” the terror threat.
-MONEY WILL NOT PROTECT YOU.

This is priceless. If they want to slash funds from the city, couldnt they think of a better alibi than “No Monuments.”? Sheesh.

The venom that is spoken is frightening. Honest debate is no longer in vogue, I suppose. The ‘you’re always wrong/bad/evil and we’re always right/good/godlike’ mindset has taken over. Truly frightening.

No doubt Mount Rushmore, being out there in one of the red states with more sheep than people, got counted as four national monuments.

I saw the report tonite, and they mentioned Omaha NE as getting additional funding. I understand that may sound stupid but the President came here on 911 to the airforce base and stayed many hours. It stands to reason we also should get a share of that money.

They want to commit more to protecting Diebold Headquarters and the Crawford pseudo-ranch.

Congrats New Yorkers, Washington you are no longer a threat for terrorism. Nice to know Bush is looking out for you isn’t it??

Yeah. You mean they are stripping all protections from NYC in the hopes that terrorists will slip through to attack again and give the Republicans votes in 2008.

K,
With all due respect, wouldn’t you think that the Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz, Haight and Ashbury, Castro, Port of San Francisco (biggest west coast port other than Seattle’s), among others, would get priority over say, Fishermans Wharf or the Embarcadero?

So wasen’t GEORGE WASHINGTON inaugurated as the first PRESIDENT of the UNITED STATES of AMERIA on the steps of the old treasury building on Wall ST!!!! And isn”t ALEXANDER HAMELTON not buried around the corner on Broadway!!!!
If these are not essential elements of American history then I am truly an ignorant moron, not deserving to be a citizen.
So exactly who are our politicians.
I guess ORWELL had it right. All people are equil, but some people(our elected officials) are more equil than others.
So bow down to BIG BROTHER, they are NEVER WRONG!!!

We must start an immediate campaign to have Madison Square Garden declared a national monument. After all, it’s where Bush was nominated for his second term.
He addressed a fundraising event at the Sheraton at 53rd and Seventh, so that should also be a national monument.

Well, the statue of liberty seems to be more difficult to demolish with thermite … pattern of explosives more tricky, I guess.

To those who voted for Bush, Two and a half more years of this? Thanks Alot.

Dear United States of America,
Re: The re-election of Bush
We told you so.
Yours truly,
The rest of the world.

Don’t know if anyone else posted on this but… In that list of financial resources they have Chase and J.P. Morgan as two entities. Ah, No, they are the one company now — J.P. Morgan Chase Bank. The merger finalized about 5 years ago. Gee, no wonder they can’t get things right, they don’t even know the facts.

I was born in New York City and have lived here all my life. I was working in the financial district on 9/11/01. I walked through the ashes late that day (no public transit was running) to get home. I walked back through the ashes to get to work for the rest of that week. The sights, sounds, and smells especially in those first few days are seared forever in my mind. That second week, I stopped near my home for a cup of coffee. As I watched out the window, a flat-bed truck with the largest construction “claw” I have ever seen went down 7th Avenue. On the cab of that truck was a paper sign affixed under the driver’s window. It read “New York bound.” My eyes grew wet when I thought of the great distance that truck and trucker might have come on some interstate highway or other to help my broken city. I just KNEW that anybody seeing that sign flashed headlights and honked horns. For the first time in my entire life, I felt that the rest of the country really did care about my city. I will never forget the notes, signs, flags, flowers, and ribbons that were posted on the fence of St. Peter’s Church, across from what had been the World Trade Center. I made sure to share that with out of town guests, to tell them how much it meant to me and my fellow New Yorkers. I too remember the Gerald Ford “Drop Dead” headline in one of our local papers decades earlier. It saddens me deeply to see my fellow Americans taking this opportunity to criticize and attack EACH OTHER. I have travelled throughout this great nation. It is a beautiful, diverse country that has accomplished such great things when “united we stand” and when we agree to disagree in a CONSTRUCTIVE way.
In those first days after 9/11, I waited for eloquence from Washington. I was not yet born when Pearl Harbor was attacked. But I know what the President told the nation at that time. What I finally heard from the man in the White House in 2001 was, “We’re gonna git ‘em. We’re gonna smoke ‘em out. We’re gonna git ‘em dead or alive.” Nearly 5 years later, we have done neither. What we have done is to violate the sovreignty of a nation. We turned our back on the world community. We have fostered an atmosphere of anti-American sentiment rarely before seen. We have managed to orchestrate the deaths of thousands, some of them our very own native sons and daughters. To what end?
On Election Day 2004, I was one of the first voters to appear at my poll. I promptly voted against Bush and then ran home, sending e-mail to friends abroad, advising them that I had tried to remove the liar from office. On a subsequent trip abroad, I was introduced to some as, “She’s American but she did not vote for Bush.” And some of those people were old enough to remember the great things our country did during World War II and afterward. In fact, there was still a very old Marshall Plan tractor nearby that had just a few years before been retired from service, with regret and profound thanks.
Although I very much feel and see that the present administration in Washington neither understands or cares about New York City, very much the way it has always felt in my lifetime, I refuse to believe that most of my fellow American citizens share that view.
The terrorists probably do not care what monument or landmark matters to which American located where. What the terrorists seem to care about is public relations: the maximum shock effect (and glory? and on-camera suffering?) the terrorists can obtain in the WORLD community. The World Trade Towers were recognized worldwide, as is the Eiffel Tower, Big Ben, and the Statue of Liberty. There is a reason the World Trade Towers were attacked and not the nursing home in which my centenarian aunt lived, where staff slept on air mattresses on the dining room floor after the city went into lockdown mode on 9/11 and all vehicular traffic in and out of Manhattan was halted. The day shift could not go home. The evening and night shifts could not come into Manhattan. I do not wish to diminish any statues, landmarks, monuments, or cultural centers elsewhere. The railroad station in Ogeden Utah is magnificent! The WPA concrete dinosaurs in Rapid City, SD, are fantastic! The World War I doughboy statue in Hackettstown, NJ put a lump in my throat. But for maximum effect on Al Jazeerah, it will probably be something better known that the terrorists will next try to destroy, along with my brave and innocent fellow New Yorkers, Washingtonians, or Los Angeleans. Would the “bad guys” cheer if Willie Penn were knocked off his perch in Philadelphia? I have my doubts. I, on the other hand, would be devastated for my fellow Americans.
This latest report and budget out of Washington is despicable. We must not lose sight, though, of the true evil and that which is good and strong in us. “We the People of the United States…”

THE GOV IS LETTING DOWN OUR GUARD WATCH WHAT HAPPENS LORD! PLEASE HELP THIS COUNTRY ID LIKE TO SEE MY GRAND KIDS

Since NY is a Democratic stronghold, it’s just another attempt by the Bush empire to eliminate as many Democrats as possible in the next attack. If some Republicans are also eliminated, that’s just “collateral” damage.

Another interesting factoid in this story….Homeland inSecurity Has 180,000 employees on the public payroll?
Doing what, might I ask? 19 Saudis were in the planes on 9/11 and Bush holds hands with the Sheiks.
I think we stepped into the Twilight Zone.
- written in sight of the Statue of Liberty.

Ok. So I can understand budget cuts, but cutting budgets that support the work of law enforcement officials who are already struggling to carry out their normal duties and protecting the public is deadly. Officials are working beyond their means to protect us and Washington says that New York is not a significant target? We have to remember though, Uncle George feels that listening to Aunt Bea talk about her latest hair appointment with her good friend Gertrude on their cell phones, in case they are really security threats, is more important than spending money to insure that the safety of our streets. 2008 cannot get here fast enough.

Dear Osama
Please remove NYC off of you “places to bomb” list. Apparently according to the DHS, we have nothing worth destroying so you would be wasting your time. Apparently there are some very nice places in Omaha to bomb.
Thank you very much for your consideration.
The people of New York

Other cities do have national monuments: The Golden Gate Bridge; the Space Needle; the Sears Tower; the St. Louis Arch; Mount Rushmore; The Lincoln Memorial, etc. — The major difference is that New York’s non-icons are internationally known. Terrorists are not stupid. It will impress their buddies much more if they blow up the Empire State Building, or the Statue of Liberty, the U.N., the Stock Market, Times Square or any other of our non-icons that are reconized world wide then if they blew up downtown Nashville.

NY City had to submit a form to Homeland Security and the Mayor did not put any NY landmarks on the list. You should be blaming the NYC Mayor, not Homeland Security.

The Decider is a Divider. Now the nation is squabbling over cash, just charming. This administration goes out every day with its’ wrecking ball and tears at the fabric of what President Lincoln worked so hard to preserve. Our nation. The common interest we all share in protecting ourselves as a nation has now become mired in State interests. It is exactly the kind of political maneuvering one has come to expect from this administration. Hey, it might not be smart or good governance, but I bet the President thinks it is good politics. Too bad about what Lincoln recognised, “a house divided against itself, cannot stand.” We are in grave jeopardy and no longer seem able to work for the common good. When we look toward Washington do we see an effort to put forward an agenda that recognizes the voices of all citizens? The issue of homeland security dollars is, or at least should be about where they will best serve the country as a whole. I guarantee you that if the markets in NY did not make a heroic effort to get up and running three days after 9/11 the effects would have been devastating nationally. If NY’s citizens had not gone back to work in the cloud of pollution, the country would have been in deep trouble financially. Let’s agree to serve the entire national eterprise by using our tax dollars wisely – let’s protect the nation’s financial markets that happen to be based in NY, but serve the interests of the entire nation. Gee, even the terrorists seem to get that if you hit NY, you have a good chance of crippling the nation’s economy.

lol..they didn’t put washington D.C. on the list for funds did they?? Nothing of importance there, corruption,religious zealots dismantaling the Constitution and taking over the government,(hmmm sounds like terrorists there already)

Media Hater, it appears to be legit per DHS: http://blogs.abcnews.com/theblotter/2006
/06/dhs_explains_it.html
So I get the part of it where they explain the bridge and teh ESB are not “monuments” cuz they’re counted elsewhere… still don’t get how NYC gets this funding reduction. Maybe DHS figgers the terriss are tard of attackin noo yo-work.
As GWB says, “Terriss, the – you see, the terriss – changed ever thing on 9/11. Up is black! Down is right. You see? We woan get fooled again.”

So Homeland Security has been politicized and its funding used to buy off Bush’s ever-dwindling base. And the best joke of all is that the taxes of New Yorkers fund this nonsense over and over. Only pennies on the dollar ever come back to New York from Washington on a good day. Attention New York Assembly and New York Senate: You need to pass legislation next week barring any state, city, or municipal funds from being used to guard or protect any federal government official from Washington while they are in our state. OK, Bolton at the UN? How does that sound?

Sorry John. You saying it over and over does not make it any more true. Though Liberty Island and Ellis Island are physically closer to NJ, they are considered to be in the state of New York. The below quote is from the National Park Service, which runs the sites. “Liberty Island is federal property located within the territorial jurisdiction of the State of New York.” Yes, it’s true – believe it or not…

“I have a couple of questions: why is this document so illegible and what proof is there it’s legitimate?”
As a federal gov’t employee, I can assure you that forms are frequently of that quality. That one has the look of a form that has been copied, faxed or scanned multiple times. Very few government entities have gone to the “paperless office” paradigm of digital documents that never get printed.

Oh yes, the Statue of Liberty is indeed a National Monument (run by the National Park Service under the Department of the Interior)
http://www.nps.gov/stli/

I suppose since we (New York and California) are so unimportant to the rest of the country we can stop subsidizing their budgets with the income we generate.

Does anyone really believe the Statue of Liberty is more important than Carhenge?

What do they consider to be landmarks or icons?
Hey kids, there’s Mt. Rushmore, lets divert hundreds of millions of dollars to South Dakota to protect against terrorist attacks.

I hope that a more informed person will look at the facts and restore the funding to NY otherwise this would be a disappointing start for a renewed DHS. In the words of Mr. Trump, someone will need the famous “your fired!” :-) The administration in Washington cannot stand by and let this go – or maybe they can ?

Maybe its a good thing, NY is on its last legs.

Chertoff is a traitor. It’s treason, plain and simple.

And john, the World Trade Center was an icon. Al Q chose it not only because it was accessible, but because it was a symbol of Western economic power.

I’m not an American.
I just want you to know, it’s clear that the people in power in your country are not afraid of another terrorist attack. The first one worked so well for them, I don’t think they’d mind another. Thos selfish greedy jerks are still dividing and conquering you. It’s time you all stood up, united together, stopped bickering, and got rid of them. The world misses you very much America… please come back to us.

So, let’s take the Empire State Building:
The DHS designated the ESB as an “office structure” building rather than an “icon”. Why did they do this? Because the ESB holds a lot of people on a daily basis and places designated as such in fact recieve more attention and funds than those designated as merely “icons”. IOW, the DHS is doing the right thing by funding the protection of people rather than things.
So all the ranting and raving is simply folks (and the reporter who wrote the above story) showing their ignorance.
Then there’s this from the above story:
“That was a key factor used to determine that New York City should have its anti-terror funds slashed by 40 percent–from $207.5 million in 2005 to $124.4 million in 2006.”
What ABC News failed to disclose is the fact that NY got a giant raise in 2005 to make up for a shortfall in 2004 and that the $124 million for 2006 is almost exactly NY’s 5 year average.
Once again, ABC “news” demonstrates it’s slanted, biased coverage.

As an English women, living in England I could have done a much better job. More than likely I wouldn’t have charged as much either.

I’m from Omaha, Nebraska.. and I’ so glad to be here right now. FYI..this is so typical of politicians using the numbers to fit their agenda. Look at the Dollars spent, not the increase. In total, NY will get what.. $185 million, Nebraska will get $21 million. So.. quit blaming us for your politico’s not doing their job.
AND.. fyi.. I don’t own a cow, nor do I have a cornstalk in my yard. The Omaha area was generally known as the third most important military target during the cold war; behind only DC and Colorado Springs thanks to the location of the SAC base nearby. I watched in horror from my hotel room in SF on 9/11 as the events of that day unfolded, knowing that my wife had recently eaten at the restaurant at the top of the WTC, and I understand that you are the center for what the world views as the ugly Americans, BUT this doesn’t mean that you ARE America.
ALSo, FYI the mayor of the City of Omaha, is a Democrat.. so throw that theory out the door please.
I think Mayor Bloomberg owes him and the City of Omaha an apology.
Now that I’ve had my say.. I’d better go oil up my saddle and feed and water the horses.
:)

I don’t have the time to read every single post, so maybe someone’s said this already. If so, forgive me for the repeat. But quit ragging on the middle of the country for what a small group of utter morons in DC managed to pull off! I grew up in the Detroit area–very high on the target list during the Cold War because it is, or at least was, the center of the auto (not to mention the tanks that were for a long time manufactured there) industry. You didn’t hear all of our parents whining for more Federal support/protection because us kids were practicing “duck and cover” drills at school. In fact, you didn’t hear the parents of kids in NYC whining about it back then either! It was just a fact of life. The fact that foreign weapons threaten US targets hasn’t changed over the years. The only things that have really changed are the ingenuity of the terrorists and the willingness of Americans to believe that the Federal government somehow OWES them boat-loads of money to make up for living in or near a potential target.
But before you all get all over my rear end for those remarks, let me say that I would never begrudge any amount of money that is ear-marked for the ‘protection’ of NYC. Just because I live in the Midwest doesn’t mean that I don’t recognize that NYC has a giant bulls-eye on it. And whether the things in NYC that the rest of us think of as “icons” have federal “National Monument” status or not should not detract from the fact that they are viewed as such not only by Midwestern Americans but also by many people in the rest of the world–including terrorists.
In any case, the fact that money was taken from NYC is NOT the fault of the people living in the Midwest, no matter whom they voted for. Please try to remember that, due to the wonders of the Electoral College method of electing the President, not everyone who lives in a “red state” necessarily voted for Dubya. And even if they did, it’s incredibly faulty logic that would lead you to the conclusion that this fiasco is somehow an individual voter’s fault. I’m not the one who stole the candy from the baby. So as a Midwesterner living in a ‘red state’, please get off my butt and find a more constructive way to fix this horrendous error than whining on a tv news website!

No Icons, No Monuments Worth Protecting:
Q> What’s so significant about the New York City hall and the quaint little park in front?
A> It’s a Historical Icon
City Hall Park is ONE OF THE MOST SACRED SITES OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION !!
It was once called “the commons” of New York. Historians call it the gathering place of patriots and the cradle of Liberty.
_The First Blood of the American Revolution was spilled in a dispute over the Liberty Pole the Sons of Liberty erected in what’s now City Hall Park.
_When Gen. George Washington received word the Declaration of Independence had been signed. He gathered his men in the area that is now City Hall Park and had the Declaration read to them. Ya’see… the Declaration was signed in Philadelphia. . . but the soldiers who were going to back up that bold statement were in New York City.
_A statue honoring Nathan Hale is in City Hall Park. He’s the guy who said, “I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country”.

I guess my only question is: For all of you who are angry about Bush & Co. now, but voted for him even once, why weren’t you willing to listen to those of us who were telling you what an incredible moron he is, and how evil Karl Rove, Rummy, and the rest are?
I’m not a parent, but I’m getting a sense of what it must be like to be able to see the clear consequences of your child’s actions, warn your child, be ignored, then having to deal with the indignant response when your child gets burned.
By the way — they’re still evil. They’re still liars. They’re still without any moral compass. And they really, really do not care worth a damn about you. (Even less if you’re from a blue state.)
The actual realization can only come from within, America. Those of us in the rest of the world saw it many, many years ago. Please don’t ignore the warnings of your best friends when we tell you what you’re doing is wrong. It just might be that we’ve got a perspective that’s not possible from one’s own vantage point. Sometimes you’re the ant, and sometimes you’re the eagle. Ironically enough, we’ve had the eagle perspective for years, and you’ve still got the ant’s.
Thank God you’re realizing how badly you’ve been lied to. One day, America will soar with the eagles.

New York City arrogant? Hardly
New Yorkers are correct in blaming the DHS for their incompetence and blatant stupidity and Secretary Chertoff for lamely defending it.
New York City is the home for one of the most sacred sites of the American Revolution… the cradle of American Liberty.
The decision to cut New York City’s anti-terror funding is fundamentally flawed and stupid.
-DHS deciding New York City has no national monuments and landmarks.
-The decision to cut the funds was determined by a secretive and mysterious review panel.
This past Monday, Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly gave 17 reasons why New York City’s funding should not be cut.
Commissioner Kelly gave the New York City Council a list of 17 terror attacks, terror plots foiled and terrorists nabbed in New York since 1990.
Commissioner Kelly also offered a somber warning if New York City’s funding is cut. . . it will hurt lower Manhattan, the financial district and the site of the deadliest terror attack in our Nation.

Posted by: Jaime Frontero | Jun 1, 2006 1:18:16 PM
Statue of Liberty is in New Jersey
Uh, Jaime…I think you need to buy a map.

I can tell you what’s in Omaha: The huge processing facility for First Data Corporation, one of the world’s largest processors of credit card transactions (6.5 billion in revenue and global in reach). Two days after 9/11, FirstData offered up its data and the Bush administration relied heavily upon it. In his new book “The One Percent Solution”, Ron Suskind writes, “The massive data sweeps
[at FirstData]…implicated the privacy of tens of thousands of Americans…”
One of the first infringements upon our civil liberties and privacy rights by our current totalitarian regime began in Omaha – now there’s a “landmark” worth protecting by the secrecy-fueled Bush hegemony.

New York City, itself, in its entirety, is a landmark. It is unique in the whole world – there is not a city like it. I am new to New York, I don’t even like it here, and I am always appalled by how provincially self-righteous New Yorkers are, and EVEN I KNOW AND UNDERSTAND THAT NEW YORK IS A LANDMARK!!! How much more the government should know?

who needs monuments when we have skyscrapers in corperate america! do you really think they care about our heroes or memorials either? it’s “big” business and military they are after and ‘homeland security’ better keep the ports and airports safeguarded more as well as our communications, but thanks for the history lesson!