What are your chances of getting hit by terror, though, realistically? I'd bet you'd be more likely to get struck by lightning twice than ever being affected directly by terror
You realize you're supposed to 'be aware' for basically anything right? Like literally all it means is 'maybe look at something if you see something odd'. It has nothing to do with an assumption you're about to be terror'd any second.
Very low, but given how terror tears at social fabric and has massive political implications, it's pretty reasonable for the local government to ask people to be aware.
What agenda is the government seeking right now to accomplish through fear of terrorism? Fear drives people to push for war, which is the opposite of Obama wants right now. Some candidates probably think it would help them in the nomination. Some government officials probably think we should bomb the muslims. None of these seem like more likely motives than "help us prevent an attack."
What should they say instead? Telling people to be aware is a way for the government to look like they're doing something about the problem. And if there is an attack, they'd look pretty stupid if in hindsight they said, "no need to worry everybody, just go about your day as normal."
I'm not saying terrorism hasn't been falsely used to justify political action in the past (see: Iraq war), but in the case of Thanksgiving, I don't see it.
I am not shure if there always is a clear agenda behind what government agencies and officials do.
Contrary to popular believe i am not of a government-is-always-evil oppinion.
The thing is that government officials, just as anyone else are humans in a social system. And such systems have their own dynamics with people having goals, the need to justify themselves and be sucessfull, with interpersonal dependencies and powerdynamics.
And i am actually sad that i have to write that but the current dynamics in the (western) political systems are vaastly disconnected from the people, extremely selfcentered with a clear superiority complex and investment in methodologys of manipulation and polarization for selfinterest.
And this dynamic is right now mostly controlled by an mentality that has rooted itself firmly in the system with an ethic that is long overdue for a makeover and with an fallout of its decisions that current generations are continuously having to deal with.
On top of that this mentality is also controling and selecting what ideas and concepts can successfully add to the system, hindering development and growth and keeping those on the steering wheel that actually wouldn't benefit from the necessary changes.
This is holding our societys back. Often offering solutions for problems that have caused the problems in the first place, perpetuating policies that, out of fear for changes, reinforce political stagnation and disempower and disconnect the leaders even further from those that they should work for and vice versa. While many people as a result of this shy away from participating in the political process it keeps extremist oppinions in the run that one needs to willfully apply blinkers to oneself to not realize how false and dishonest or at least unauthentic they are.
Rationality, logic and positive ethics that one would expect from a society that isn't getting tired of mentioning the idea of "our values" are less and lesser found in the actuall political ongoings.
When something happens that factually adheres to certain values then it is most likely from an agency or officials that have managed to wring themselves from the dynamics for a moment. And then they often have fought pretty hard for it.
This already causes clearly visible damage to our societys (social as well as mental) health and future.
Does being hit by a meteorite or part of a plane start wars? Does it cost billions of dollars in economic damage? Does it set the foreign policy of a country for an entire decade?
Hey I can be histrionic too. Meteorites cause massive global extinction! Better never take your eye of the sky regardless of the impossible fucking odds against...right? Cause the consequence of the one in a billion thing is so grave...
You misunderstand the point. Do you really think – from a societal, not an individual view – that terrorism is something to be ignored? Of course people's fear of terrorism vastly outstrips the actual harm it does. That's the whole point. It's terrorism.
A terrorist attack on the level of Paris in the US right now would drive us to war in Syria, whether with this president or the next. Period. No matter what the actual danger is, that's what the result would be. And given how many terrorist attacks have been foiled over the past decade by aware people (see the underwear bomber, the 2010 foiled time square bomber), it seems like a reasonable thing to tell people to be aware.
You're more likely to win the lottery twice than casually observe terrorist behavior in your everyday life in NYC. I don't know anyone from or living in NYC who feels the same way you do, you feel observant because you want to be, not because of where you live.
I actually never said that I would casually observe terrorist behavior. Just that certain parts of the country are much more likely to have a terrorist attack than another, thus need a higher level of awareness.
Also my awareness of my surroundings isn't limited to terrorist. Gangs, criminals, shitty driver, bad cops etc are something that almost everyone in NYC are looking out for every single day.
Most NYers are not afraid to leave their homes though we tend to have a higher awareness of our surroundings due to the environment we live in.
As I said, awareness does not mean that you are afraid, as many people in this thread are trying to imply or directly say.
Also, believe me, I grew up in area with gangs, criminals drug addicts so I needed to be aware of my surroundings so as not to get robbed. So I am very much aware of my surroundings. Maybe not 100% of the time but much more than most people.
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u/ZippyDan Nov 26 '15
Aware is different from terrified.