AUGUST 30, 1999

EDITORIAL

DOD is right to sit out Y2K

http://www.fcw.com/pubs/fcw/1999/0830/fcw-editorial-08-30-99.html

[Fair Use: For Educational/Research Purposes Only]

Although it may seem callous, the Defense Department's formal dictum this month that it would not help cities and counties if the Year 2000 bug caused widespread havoc or food and water shortages is the right decision.

It is easy to react to DOD's decision, spelled out in a message sent to all the armed forces by the Army's Director of Military Support, as yet another example of a government agency not coming to the aid of its citizens. After all, don't Americans' taxes support the military? Why then shouldn't it help in a time of domestic crisis?

DOD's mission is contained in the oath every man and woman who enters military service must take. They solemnly swear to "support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies foreign and domestic." As far as DOD is concerned, the Year 2000 problem becomes an enemy only if nation-states or terrorists use it as an opportunity to attack U.S. interests. Certainly, the Year 2000 problem presents a domestic threat that could cause serious social problems. But it clearly is not a domestic enemy.

Congress has created other agencies or assigned disaster-relief responsibilities to agencies to respond to these threats. The Federal Emergency Management Agency, the National Guard and the Environmental Protection Agency are just some examples. These agencies' missions clearly describe the domestic emergencies they must respond to, including any Year 2000 problems. It was not happenstance that the Clinton administration created the Year 2000 Information Coordination Center, which, come Dec. 31, will watch for Year 2000 mishaps worldwide.

Even many state and local information technology managers believe that DOD should step aside and allow local authorities to handle Year 2000 disasters, if they materialize. They say it is up to local civilian authorities to keep streets safe, while DOD's responsibility is to look outside U.S. borders.

Of course, DOD has not completely ruled out offering a helping hand to its own in case of dire emergencies, but restraint is the better course to follow.

-- Diane J. Squire (sacredspaces@yahoo.com), August 31, 1999

Answers

For reference, see...

DOD: Face Y2K On Your Own (Federal Computer Week--Other Navy Comments Too)

http://www.greenspun.com/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg.tcl?msg_id= 001HzV

-- Diane J. Squire (sacredspaces@yahoo.com), August 31, 1999.

Any guesses as to what constitutes... "dire emergencies?"

Diane

-- Diane J. Squire (sacredspaces@yahoo.com), August 31, 1999.

Slick Willy's BigMac supply being threatened?

-- Linda (lwmb@psln.com), August 31, 1999.

As stated above...

...allow local authorities to handle Year 2000 disasters...

Missed this one...

NEMA Y2K Survey Results

Washington, August 18, 1999 -- The National Emergency Management Association, in cooperation with FEMA, conducted a survey of the Y2K preparedness of State and territorial emergency management. Details...

http://www.fema.gov/y2k/ y2k818.htm

Complete Results...

http://www.fema.gov/ y2k/nemasrvy.htm

See also...

National Eergency Management Association

http://www.nemaweb.org/ index.cfm

Emergency Services Sector 3rd Quarterly Report (Koskinens President's Council on Year 2000 Conversion)

http://www.y2k.gov/ new/3rdquarterly.html

-- Diane J. Squire (sacredspaces@yahoo.com), August 31, 1999.

Also be sure to read "Y2K Defense" at this link:

http://www.fcw.com/pubs/fcw/1999/0830/fcw-intercepts-08-30-99.html

-- Linkmeister (link@librarian.edu), August 31, 1999.

Heck. Who needs 'em? I pay them to keep other countries out of my back yard. Let the military do what it's supposed to do. We really need to start taking responsibility for ourselves. And, this goes hand in hand with being responsible, we need to be treated like we are, and are expected to be, responsible for ourselves by our government. Of course, most of us here are taking responsibility for ourselves. I wonder how many would have if two years ago the goverment announced that personel stockpiling is advisable in leiu of the unpridictable nature of the Y2K problem, and the wrold in general.

Dream on.

Watch six and keep your...

-- eyes_open (best@wishes.net), August 31, 1999.