Who is really keeping us safe?

 

 

"Sometimes the worst case is so awful, nobody wants to think about it nor plan for it..."

Well, even though it is getting late in the winter, there is yet another storm which is bearing down on the southeast and then up the east coast. The weather gurus in Atlanta are calling this one "historically catastrophic", whatever that means. As soon as the warnings went out, there was a "run" at the grocery stores (again). Somebody was even shot at one of them. Why? Despite all the warnings, most Americans continue to live their lives unprepared.

This storm will come and go. There will be some localized disruptions, and maybe even some fatalities. However before long, life will return to normal. Even with the widespread damage from Sandy, most (but not all) things have returned to normal.

As of late, I have hearing and reading more and more about the real and potential attacks on our nation's electrical grid. How bad would it be if our grid went down nationwide? Some planners think that 75% of our population would die. Die from exposure, thirst, hunger, disease, no medication, and yes, homicide by their own neighbors. It would be a scenario straight out of the science fiction books. And yet - it is preventable.

It has just been reported that last April in California, a major substation by Sacramento had transformers shot out by what is thought to be a highly trained sniper. Most substations are in remote locations and have very light security. This is a threat we have not considered. We have been worried about cyber attacks on the grid, not physical. And as far as EMP is concerned, we hear nothing. 

Back in the 80's I worked at Control Data Corporation. One of the programs I was on offered disk storage devices to the United States Navy. There were three type - CADS (Commercial Advanced Disk System), RADS (Ruggedized Advanced Disk System) and MADS (Militarized Advance Disk System). The Navy wanted the MADS robust enough to withstand a nearby nuclear blast on a carrier task force. In other words, they wanted them to be "Rad hardened". No problem. It cost a bit more, but we did it. We had them tested and they could withstand an EMP burst as well.

That same type of technology could be used on our grid. Been around, been tested, it is ready to go. The cost of doing our entire grid would be less than 1/3 of our stimulus package which gave us NOTHING in return. This is a one time fix. Do it, and you never have to worry again about a natural or man made EMP event. Don't do it, and we live in continual risk of being thrown back into the 1800's.

So the question begs to be asked - who is really looking out for us? This scenario is so awful, so catastrophic, and yet we hear nary a peep from lawmakers. I want action on this, and I want it now. Even the most ardent survivalists won't be able to stock up enough to make it though an major EMP event. I am reminded by the well respected saying, "failure to plan is planning to fail." On this, we can't afford to fail.