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In the United States, the Homeland Security Advisory System is a color-coded terrorism threat advisory scale. It was created by a Presidential Directive in order to provide a "comprehensive and effective means to disseminate information regarding the risk of terrorist acts to Federal, State, and local authorities and to the American people." The different levels trigger specific actions by federal agencies and state and local governments, and they affect the level of security at some airports and other public structures.
This system was unveiled by Tom Ridge, the Assistant to the President for Homeland Security on March 12, 2002, in response to increasing fears of terrorism following September 11, 2001. It consists of 5 threat levels which are color-coded. Risk includes both the probability of an attack occurring and its potential gravity. Low Condition (Green) is declared when there is a low risk of terrorist attacks. Guarded Condition (Blue) is declared when there is a general risk of terrorist attacks. Elevated Condition (Yellow) is declared when there is a significant risk of terrorist attacks. High Condition (Orange) is declared when there is a high risk of terrorist attacks. Severe Condition (Red) reflects a severe risk of terrorist attacks.
There are no published, objective criteria for these threat levels, and thus no objective way to tell whether the currently announced threat level is accurate. In addition, the evidence cited to justify these threat levels is stated vaguely (see below) and its sources are seldom published. This makes the system vulnerable to manipulation by government officials. These attributes have been openly ridiculed by cartoonists ([1] (http://www.balloon-juice.com/archives/002120.html), [2] (http://209.157.64.200/focus/f-news/1089947/posts), [3] (http://www.classbrain.com/artteensb/publish/article_338.shtml)), journalists ([4] (http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/0804/p01s02-usgn.html)), entertainers ([5] (http://www.imao.us/archives/000651.html)), civil libertarians ([6] (http://www.opednews.com/wade_071904_warning.htm)), and security experts (Do Terror Alerts Work? (http://www.rakemag.com/features/detail.asp?catID=46&itemID=19950)). Some observers have also pointed out that two of the colors are out of correct sequence, as green is between yellow and blue, but the system places blue between yellow and green. Another group of people, such as many federal officials, take the system seriously, deploying resources differently and altering their conduct based on the current threat level.
The specific government actions triggered by different threat levels are often not publicly described. Some actions which have occurred (such as systematic forced searches of otherwise innocent automobiles near airports [7] (http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A27518-2003Feb18?language=printer)[8] (http://www.doverpost.com/PostArchives/04-02-03/war/statethreatlevelrai.html)) have been held in earlier court decisions to violate the United States constitution. No court has yet ruled on a specific search triggered by this threat advisory system. The published terror alert notices have also not included enough information for ordinary citizens to do anything useful in response.
The U.S. Attorney General is responsible for developing, implementing and managing the system and the decision whether to publicly announce threat conditions is made on a case-by-case basis by the Attorney General in consultation with the Secretary of Homeland Security. In January 2003, it began being administered in coordination with the newly-formed Department of Homeland Security.
In December 2004, the Homeland Security Advisory Council voted to review the color-coded system, with a panel member suggesting that it has outlived its purpose. ([9] (http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2004/12/15/news/top_stories/19_42_4412_14_04.txt)) Outgoing Secretary of Homeland Security Tom Ridge said that the system has invited "questions and even occasional derision." ([10] (http://www.freep.com/news/nw/ridge15e_20041215.htm))
To date, the threat level has stood at yellow (elevated) for the majority of its time in existence. It has been raised to orange (high) six times:
- September 10 - September 24, 2002, around the first anniversary of the September 11, 2001.
- February 7 - February 27, 2003, near the end of the Muslim religious holiday Hajj. Intelligence reports suggested the possiblity of terrorist attacks against "apartment buildings, hotels, and other soft or lightly secured targets."
- March 17 - April 16, 2003, around the beginning of U.S. and Coalition military action in Iraq.
- May 20 - May 30, 2003, "The U.S. Intelligence Community believes that Al Qaida has entered an operational period worldwide, and this may include terrorist attacks in the United States." - Tom Ridge
- December 21, 2003 - January 9, 2004, citing intelligence information suggesting large-scale attacks around the holiday season.
- between August 1, 2004, and early November for specific financial institutions, citing intelligence pointing to the possibility of a car or truck bomb attack, naming specific buildings as possible targets. [11] (http://abcnews.go.com/wire/US/ap20040801_723.html)
Other official terrorism warnings issued without raising the threat level above yellow: - May 28, 2004, citing "credible evidence" of terrorist intent to affect upcoming elections.
- July 8, 2004, still citing "credible evidence" of terrorist intent to affect upcoming elections.
The threat level has never been raised to red (high), nor has it ever been lowered to blue (guarded) or green (low).
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