Is there a point at which preventing terrorist attacks isn't worth the cost?

[RB TexLa]

I think there is. At some point we have to say we've spent enough money and the lives saved don't justify the costs.





Is there a point at which preventing terrorist attack isn't worth the cost?

[el_bryanto]

1. I suppose it depends on how valuable you consider people to be

There might be a point of diminishing returns, I suppose.

Bryant

[vadawg]

2. more likely it depends on if the poster is the victim or not

or if its ttheir family or friends who are killed or maimed... i think of it this way you would be willing to give everythig you have to save your kids but mayby not so willing to save someone elses kids.... its human nature...

[Xipe Totec]

7. Or whether there are alternative forms of transportation

And, ultimately, one has to wonder whether flying is such a good idea, considering the amounts of fuel consumed.

Lastly, consider how the world will be after oil is gone. Will there be any need for us to be in the Middle East? And, if we're not there, will they still want to kill us?

[vadawg]

honestly, there will always be people who will want to kill other people

thinking anything else is just utopian claptrap, as long as you have someone with something someone else wants or people who look different or any of a multitude of differences there will always be people willing to kill other people... its another part of human nature...

[Xipe Totec]

10. You have to ask: What is the motive?

I generally don't wake up every morning asking myself: Gee, who do I really hate today?

Instead, I wake up worried about how to make it through another day.

Maybe you're different. I don't know.

[vadawg]

13. i guess if you are brought up in a culture that is under attack every day

or even seems that way then you know that there are people who would kil you simply because of who you are.. I think it is very hard for people in the US to even fathom how tribal and clannish some cultures are. People kill each other over what you might consider wierd shit, but they probuably think the same of the things that you would kill for...

[Echo In Light]

17. Speaking of clannish, many Americans would be incapable of identifying such traits among themselves

[vadawg]

20. i think once you get beyond a couple of generations americans dont carry the same triats

at least to the extent that people who are in the old country do.. but there definetely is a disconnect when it comes to people in the US talking about the tribal peoples of the middle east and other parts of the world, i keep seeing the question why do they hate us come up, for some its simply due to the fact that you are a different religion, for others its due to stuff from the distant past, others its just the fact that you are different. People hate each other for all sorts of wierd shit...

[Echo In Light]

21. True. What I'm suggesting is, our Corp culture has its own telltale traits/characteristics

And many who embody those aren't cognizant of those elements, or how they've personally adopted them w/o question ...which actually speaks to what you're getting at re being insular.

[Hangingon]

3. Echos of the Ford Pinto?

[Echo In Light]

4. Phony War$. Yes, there are actual smalltime terrorists, unlike the BIG ones in Washington

However, too many don't seem to want to face that, yes, this WoT is a contrived, phony "war" that is actually a very real war on many, including our domestic populace.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

8. +1

[leftstreet]

9. +1

[laughingliberal]

14. +1000 nt

[OneTenthofOnePercent]

5. Everything has a worth... even people.

If we all went around with attitude of "if it saves just one life... it's worth it" then we'd be locked at home in the dark wrapped in bubble wrap.

[asdjrocky]

6. Land of the FREE, home of the BRAVE.

[timeforpeace]

11. Absolutely not. Never give up.

[defendandprotect]

12. Yes . . . the point when you actually realize who the real terrorists are ...!!

MIHOP

[backscatter712]

15. Yes, when the cost is flushing our dignity, privacy and civil liberties down the toilet.

When we turn our airports into prisons, that's when the cost is way too high for an event that takes place once every 16 million flights.

[Echo In Light]

18. Bear in mind there are powerful forces working diligently to ensure just that

And those 'terrorists' wear wing-tip shoes.

[Sebastian Doyle]

16. I can't possibly say this any better than Ben Franklin did

They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.

[Quantess]

19. The whole TSA is a pathetic joke.

They crack down on shampoo and baby formula in carry-ons for average travelers, yet they often can't figure out how to keep explosives off the plane.

Thousands of good citizens are wrongly on the No-Fly list, yet someone on the terror suspect list easily boards a flight?

[Feron]

22. There's no such thing as foolproof security.

I'm all for reasonable security measures, but it is impossible to prevent every attack. It's one thing to spend money wisely on something like a reinforced cockpit door, it's another to waste an employee's time by banning bathroom trips the last hour of the flight.

[ZombieHorde]

23. Of course, we shouldn't sacrifice 10 people to 1 person. nt

[vadawg]

24. depends on who that one person is i suppose :)

[ZombieHorde]

25. Gary Gygax is already dead, so I don't know who else would be worthy of 10 lives. nt

[vadawg]

26. well i would vote that im worth at least ten, in my opinion :)

[ZombieHorde]

27. Maybe 10 or 20 babies, but not 10 adults. nt

[vadawg]

30. rofl i think the opposite way, i value the babies more :)

cultural differences come up in the weirdest way....

[ZombieHorde]

31. Babies are more valuable as an ingredient, but you need an adult to prepare the meal. nt

[vadawg]

32. lol worst answer of all time, and coincidentally the best as well...

[moondust]

28. Of course there is but...

"reasonable" safety measures should not be compromised because they inconvenience passengers and somebody's (airline) profits are taking a hit as a result.

[RoadRage]

29. I guess it depends on if it's MY fucking family member on the plane or in the sky scraper...

What a stupid poll or question.

So we as a party are eager to push through Healthcare reform to save the lives of about 1% of the population who die each year due to lack of health insurance... but then think at some point we need to stop spending money to SAVE AMERICAN LIVES from Terrorist Attacks?

Now, you can argue that there is plenty of money WASTED on tactics that don't actually save lives - and that i'll agree with. But, if we're spending $1,000,000 on something that will actually save a life - then YES, I do think it's worth it.

But, of course the problem is that there is no way to prove anything. You can't prove that the $1,000,000 you just spent on airport detection saved a life. You can't prove that by NOT spending an additional $1,000,000 you cost a life - because EVERYTHING is debatable depending on your political leanings and what you want to prove.

[Edweird]

33. No one here gets out alive. Sooner or later, one way or another, you will die.

So will your loved ones. Maybe you can take some consolation in knowing that people you don't like will also die. In any event, it's inevitable. Even the most surveilled place I can think of (the UK) has terrorist attacks. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/7_July_2005_London_bombings
If people want to attack you, they WILL find a way. I have nothing against reasonable precautions, but I refuse to live in a prison. Fear does not control my life.

[Name removed]

34. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[1]

35. +1

[Echo In Light]

37. Wow. I've never heard anyone wish for the death of another's mother over difference of opinion

Little wonder that sentiment comes from someone who disagrees w/the OP

[RB TexLa]

38. Your hope will always remain just a hope.

Sorry

[TheKentuckian]

36. At some point it isn't worth the cost but those cost aren't so much monetary

but rather the costs of surrendering freedoms and civil rights for the illusion of freedom and the tragic expense of becoming what generations have sacrificed to fight against.

[IndianaGreen]

39. Until we deal with the root causes of terrorism, we will never get a handle on it

Hello Israel and Palestine conflict!

Hello oligarchs in the Middle East, especially you Saudi Arabia.

Hello hunger, poverty and injustice.

Hello warlords.