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Views From Your Windows
The NYPD gears up for the Republican National Convention this summer: Police officers undergo a two-day training session on chemical, biological, and radiological attacks. The NYPD received $12 million in funding for the training, and 10,000 police officers will be trained, whereas before only special units were trained. Police Commissioner Kelly says, "My sense is we’re doing a lot more than other cities. I think we have to. Our belief is that the terrorists want to come back here. We’ve been attacked twice, and had three other planned attacks, so we have to be concerned about New York being targeted." Sigh. Thanks, Commissioner Kelly, for the buzz kill. You're totally right, it's not a bad idea being prepared. But it's still creepy.
In the meantime, there is some question about whether or not Penn Station will remain open during the convention (August 30 - September 2). Even though the city's goal is to keep subways and other modes of transport up, Penn Station may close for a few hours. The Times reports that North Station in Boston will close for the entire week of the Democratic Convention. While closing Penn Station sounds like a huge hassle, Gothamist has to agree that if it's for a few hours during the President's speech, as Mayor Bloomberg suggested, it's not that bad - streets are shut down and gridlocked for hours when he visits. Gothamist is sure the city will prepare people well in advance that they should not be going into Penn Station or near Madison Square Garden during certain times. But, man, let us book our vacation for that week.
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wait, won't everyone that uses penn station be glued to their tv screens watching their beloved president address the republican fat cats?
At least they're not snobs.
I think that week should be official New Yorkers' Vacation Week. I'm certainly going to try to get out of town... hopefully before something blows up. Thanks RNC.
While Kelly is right that it's a good idea to be prepared for terrorist attacks, I think it's more than likely that the level of publicity surrounding the preparations for a potential attack around the time of the RNC is, to some extent, an attempt to discourage protesters from flocking to NYC and an excuse for a more repressive police presence during the protests that will occur.
Phil, I think your tinfoil hat may be on a bit tight. The President and VP, all those Republicans largely responsible for the war in Iraq, in NYC - it's almost like someone came up with a dream target combination for "evildoers".
Thus I find it horribly cynical -- an attempt to capitalize on 9/11 and at the same time screw the city with security costs. Many of these people are the ones who repeatedly vote against giving NYC any aid money and consider it the cesspool of the Western world. I hope it's bringing in a lot of cash for local businesses at least.
I don't think in the midst of all that protesters are way high up on the list of worries. As long as they don't start breaking things and lighting fires or pulling down fences they'll be fine.
Along with the training for "...chemical, biological, and radiological attacks" what about the training for ideological attacks?
Sorry Jen, that was an awful joke I made, and I sincerely apologize :)
Hmm... at least we're not the only ones. Boston seems to be bracing itself for the DNC: sections of the interstate will be closing during the evening, commuter rail trains will be stopped outside the city leaving riders to take buses in, and the North Station T stop will be closed for the duration.
http://news.bostonherald.com/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=3149
I especially liked this part: "Mayor Thomas M. Menino and others said the city's best hope might be to frighten people with tales of nightmare traffic jams so many commuters leave town on vacation or call in sick during the Democrats' summer parley."
I'll be here protesting. Screw vacationing. How else are we supposed to convey our disgust with the administration using the city as a playground for photo-ops? And with all of the press dealing with with the RNC and protesters, I bet it's high-up there on the list of something to be concernted about. Check out: http://www.rncnotwelcome.org/media.html for a whole list of media articles dealing with the RNC and protest groups.
TG,
Despite your desperately unoriginal comment about tinfoil hats, I'd like to know why you think it's such a jump from the notion that the Bush administration seeks to capitalize on 9/11 by holding the convention in NYC to the notion that they would attempt to use the threat of terrorism to deter people from arriving to protest that exploitation. After all, isn't it the same threat they used to justify the war in Iraq?
I'm not saying that the threat of terrorism is non-existant, but I don't think the Bush administration is any more hesitant to exploit people's fear of another 9/11 than they have been to exploit the attacks that did actually occur.
The Bush administration is obsessed with PR and image production. They very well may be more worried about terrorists than protesters, but are you really going to argue that the GOP is not interested in quelling voices of dissent in the run-up to this election?
Oh, and the idea that it's going to bring in money for local business is garbage. The people making money off of this event are the service industry corporations who have secured contracts with the GOP. Delegates are not going to be buying pretzels on the street.
Tina: "How else are we supposed to convey our disgust with the administration using the city as a playground for photo-ops?"
Vote.
I totally agree with Phil-
How many times can they cry wolf about security before we call them on the PR spin? I'm glad there haven't been more terrorist attacks, but if all this rediculously expensive security has stopped even one plot, please show me the evidence, so we can level praise where deserved. Yes, yes, I've heard innumerable times that the heightened security hype is in itself an indirect deterrant, but hype is not an end unto itself.
RNC terror hype serves to scare people into buying all the neocon defense BS. 1984 in '04...
Oh come on everyone loves the tinfoil hat cliche. It's a self-contained joke. OK, I'm lazy.
I agree 100% that the Bush administration is obsessed with PR and image production.
So - with that obsession, wouldn't it make more sense for them to go on about how SAFE it is, since they are our fearless leaders in the WOT? Them admitting it's dangerous is admitting they are not capable of handling the threat. That is off-message for them.
Of course they don't want protesters causing a ruckus - neither would Dems - but not to the extent that they'd sabotage their main re-election platform.
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/02/nyregion/02memo.html
WASHINGTON, April 1 - As Congress attempts to finish an extensive spending bill for road, highway and mass transportation projects around the nation, New York finds itself in a bleakly familiar spot: on the sidelines.
This should be brought up loudly in the media as well when this circus comes to town.
you remember that idea to "house" all the delegates on a cruise ship docked on the West Side? I say we were too quick to shoo away that idea. Let's put all the Rethugs on the cruise ship, move the convention to the cruise ship as well, and then cut the anchors and let them drift out to sea.
I agree with Sterling: the fine people of NJ are not snobs. And I disagree with tien: NJ is firmly a blue state. I would imagine about 40% of its residents consider W. in any way "beloved." If you're looking for fat-cat lovers, I suggest you pick on Grand Central, which serves CT and Westchester.
Can't speak for those LIRR riders, though.
oudemia, i was actually talking about long island, since i was thinking lirr not nj transit.
I think we need to seriously think about what will happen if another terroist attack happens either during the RNC or shortly before the general election. Look at what happened in Spain. For better or worse the Madrid attacks influenced the election.
I am nervous that an attack in the US will cause another "rally 'round the president" scenario, rendering serious politcal debate irrelevant. Of course, the other scenario in the wake of such an attack would be that people finally realize that Bush has not made anyone safer and they boot him out of office.