Whatever threat, U.S. is better prepared

Anyone who had any doubts that the terrorists who hate us are intelligent should no longer have any questions. The terror threat level has been raised from yellow or "elevated" to orange or "high," at the International Monetary Fund and World Bank headquarters in Washington, the New York Stock Exchange and the Citicorp building in New York, and the Prudential Financial building in Newark, N.J.

The alert came as a result of information found on the computer of a Pakistani al-Qaida suspected wanted for the 1998 of two U.S. embassies in east Africa.

The information was "alarming in both the amount and specificity" of details, according to Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge.

According to the documents, al-Qaida conducted surveillance on fine points such as the location of security desks and cameras in the buildings, traffic and pedestrian patterns, employee and vehicle routines, locations of fire departments, police stations, libraries and schools, and types of explosives that would do the most damage to the structures.

And we mean specific. For instance, afraid that explosives might not be hot enough to melt the steel structure of one building, the terrorists planned to use explosives that would hit 2,700 degrees. They also outlined specific points for building surveillance, where to meet building employees and days when security was at its lowest.

We hope that now their plans have been exposed, none of these attacks will come to fruition. We also hope this doesn't serve as a distraction from the need for security at the Olympics.

But if and when the next attack comes, it will not have the same impact as the original September 11 attacks. It could be just as horrible, or worse, of course, but Americans are now aware that terrorism can happen.

And whatever the method, we are better prepared, and not just in New York, Washington or New Jersey. The recent response to the anhydrous ammonia leak in McCook was an example of preparations paying off, and some of that preparedness can be credited to federal dollars.

Homeland security funding has helped improve emergency response right here in Southwest Nebraska, through things like better communications, training and ability to deal with hazardous materials.

Today, whether the emergency is a terrorist attack or other man-made or natural disaster, we should take comfort in the fact that we are better prepared.