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Immediately after 9/11, preparation for all kinds of crises shot up dramatically, but especially for terrorism. The reasons were just as important as the increases themselves. Most executives that we talked to reported that their companies increased their preparations because, “it was the right thing to do irrespective of costs.”
One and two years later, only a tiny fraction of companies are continuing their preparations for terrorism and other crises but “if and only if they are cost effective.” Even more disturbing, preparations for terrorism as well as all other crises spiked about one year after 9/11 and they have continued to decrease dramatically. With few exceptions, we are back to the same low levels of crisis preparation that we were prior to 9/11. [Emphasis from the original article]
Mitroff points to the Northeast power failure of August 2003 as evidence that businesses remain complacent about crisis management. However, he does credit those companies that are taking crisis planning seriously and are being proactive.
We live in a top-down society, where information is power, and where those at the top have most of the information and hold most of the power. This is true within the institutions of government, political parties, the media, corporations, and the military.
But something dramatic is happening: A giant wave of change is gathering more force each day. Power is shifting to the bottom, spawned by advances in technology and the decentralized bottom-up nature of the Internet...
If information is power, then the Internet which distributes information democratically to anyone who has access to it, is no longer distributing just information— it's distributing power. And in a top-down society, it's empowering the bottom. Put more simply—in America, it's empowering the American people...
Today’s "USA Today" includes an interesting story on how technology and the Internet is affecting our knowledge about the war in Iraq: “With cell phones and the Internet, the military’s ability to censor what is reported home (by our troops) has sharply diminished.”
"I visit 30 countries a year and the country most blasé about IT is the one I'm in now," Barrett said. "Even the French believe in the Internet." Barrett added America lacks the "enthusiasm" for technology that he so often sees in Asia, Eastern Europe and even Africa...
To get back in the game, the federal government should increase the $5.57 billion budget of the National Science Foundation, which researches infrastructure, Barrett said, and reduce the approximately $25 billion in agricultural subsidies...
"We're still in denial," he said. "The U.S. is good at ignoring the incremental messages, and eventually we'll wake up and realize we need to compete."
Whoever wins the tight presidential election, which is less than two weeks away, there is bound to be significant change of personnel in the US Government.
Even if President George W. Bush returns to power, there would be movement in and out of the Administration. If Senator John Kerry wrests the White House, his administration could take months to settle down. In that event, little political business between New Delhi and Washington would be conducted before next summer.
Under Kerry, there is the prospect of a comprehensive review of the Bush policies. Given the intense polarization of American politics today, delays in expanding high-technology cooperation under a Democratic Administration must be expected in New Delhi.
Perhaps things will change as the campaign moves into its final weeks. Much will depend, though on how hard the candidates stump in tech-heavy states. So far, much of the emphasis has been in the so-called "swing states" where the candidates are talking about preserving non-technology jobs. Discussing technology too much may be seen as a risky move because it bring up the spectre of job elimination through outsourcing and automation
"I think you're a lot more fun on your show," said Tucker Carlson to Crossfire guest Jon Stewart this afternoon. "And I think you're as much of a **** on your show as on any other," Stewart shot back. It wasn't the faux avuncularity we've come to expect from Stewart on The Daily Show but there, of course, he's playing a role. Here he was himself -- and he wasn't buying any of it.
From the moment Stewart sat down he made no secret of how repugnant he found the show. In fact, he said to Carlson and co-host Paul Begala that he had been so hard on the show he felt it was his duty to come on and say to their faces what he has said to friends and in interviews. What he said was that their show was "hurting America," and he was being only slightly hyperbolic. Stewart told them that when America needed journalists to be journalists they had instead chosen to present theater.
What's truly remarkable about the incident is not that it happened, but people's reaction to it, particularly on the Net. Downloads on iFilm and BitTorrent reportedly exceeded the ratings for the original episode on CNN. Users with low bandwidth aren't left out either, as the transcript of the exchange has been posted on websites. Bloggers who focus on media and marketing have sharply criticized CNN for missing a golden opportunity to promote itself by offering free downloads of the clip through CNN.com (though I can imagine the suits at CNN being horrified by the whole thing).
While Tim Lynch is wading through traffic on the way to his New Canaan, Conn., corporate consulting job, he may be the only person on the Merritt Parkway wearing a grin.That's because he's a kind of radio pirate. And with the iPod, Apple's innovative digital music player, all it takes to hijack the airwaves is a car and a bumper sticker.
Lynch, 31, is one of a handful of iPod owners using the device to transmit FM radio stations from their car. He uses a bumper sticker on the back of his fender that reads "iPod @ 89.1 FM" to let passers-by know how to tune in...
"I go on this road trip with a friend of mine," he said. "I'm driving along, listening to my iPod and for a goof I was thinking, 'I wonder, if it's so strong, I wonder if it's leaking outside my car.' "
In order to test the theory, Lynch did what any good scientist would do.
"I put on some profanity. Comedy, R-rated comedy, Chris Rock's early stuff. Then I called [his friend] up on his cell phone and he was two cars behind me. I said, 'You're not going to believe this, but somebody up here is broadcasting swear words! Tune to 89.1FM.' He turns to the station and he's like, 'I can't believe I'm hearing this!' It was a big joke for a few minutes."
The pirate wields a lot of power. He never has to listen to anyone else's music.
"Its great if you're stuck in traffic next to someone who has a big booming stereo or something," said Rik Myslewki, editor-in-chief of MacAddict magazine. "You can just override his frequency if you have a powerful enough iPod antenna and have like little birdies singing or something. It's fun to be a little bit smarter than the guy next to you."
Source: Boing Boing
