Hi X,
Re: CYA -- Yes, you make a good point there. This falls into the broad category of "plausible deniability". If another terrorist incident does occur, the Bushies have their golden "we told you so!" alibi all lined up.
Re: the irresistible attraction people have to vague Hollywood type fears, and their amazing ability to completely ignore very real and present dangers(heart disease, obesity, traffic deaths, domestic violence, etc).
A good case in point is the current fad for concern over Mad Cow disease. There was a good segment on the irrationality of our fears featured on NPR's All Things Considered last evening:
discover.npr.org
Segment: Public Weighs Mad Cow Risk -- News of the first confirmed case of mad cow disease in the United States has beef industry insiders waiting to see how the public reacts. Consumers are now considering the potential risks of beef, especially as compared with other foods. Hear NPR's Joanne Silberner.
It's quite good at describing the odds of various causes of human demise. It turns out that in England, where nvCJD was quite a bit more prevalent than in the U.S., that it was and is much more likely for a person to die from dog bites than CJD. Who knew? |
