Report recommends blacking out cell phone use at LA landmarks to foil terr

[54anickel]

Report recommends blacking out cell phone use at LA landmarks to foil terrorists

http://www.heraldtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040509/APN/405090588

LOS ANGELES --
Calls made to cell phones at Los Angeles International Airport, the Rose Bowl, Universal Studios and other high-profile landmarks could be jammed during terrorism alerts, under a proposal being formulated by Southern California authorities.

Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca, who is part of a team drawing up the plan, said such jamming helped prevent an attempted assassination of Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf last December.

"We have to look at this very realistically," Baca said. "Public safety is more important than public convenience. We want to take the responsibility head-on and do the best we can, protecting people against terrorist attacks."

The Los Angeles Police Department's counterterrorism bureau chief, John Miller, met with Baca recently to discuss the proposal.

more...

[Aunt Anti-bush]

1. Well, what the heck?

Let's just cut off ALL phone service in America and while we're at it we might as well ban all news, etc...

This is outrageous!

[bahrbearian]

2. 1st black out the New's then the Cell=Phones, that way

no one will notice.

[Barrett808]

3. Wonder about the big protest in NYC n/t

[unblock]

4. i'm sure terraists would never figure a way around THIS!

they couldn't possible make all the calls they needed to outside, say 1,000 ft from a landmark.

they couldn't possible switch to walkie-talkies that close to a landmark.

and they could never, NEVER figure out a plan that didn't require last-minute cell phone use.


remember how many cell phone calls the 9/11 hijackers used!

[TreasonousBastard]

5. I guess they're paid to think up shit like this...

but besides it probably being useless, wouldn't it wipe out communications with emergency workers after the terrists got around it and blew something up?

[LiberalFighter]

16. I'm much smarter than any terrorist...

therefore whatever I come up with they would never be able to figure a way to counter cell-jamming.

[mb7588a]

6. public safety is not necessarily more important than keeping our rights.nt

[Chico Man]

7. I think cell phones could help thwart a terrorist attack

I mean, what else would I do if I saw something extraordinarily odd?

[HereSince1628]

8. I understand the issue of interrupting phone service is troubling

And I recognize there is an opportunity for misuse and mission-creep

At the same time cell phones are a popular remote control device for detonating a bomb.

Assuming no misuse, during periods when there is high risk, I guess I am OK for cells to be jammed at obvious targets.

I lived most of my life without cell phones. Although the pay phones have largely disappeared I know life can be lived without talking to someone on your cell while you visit high-profile landmarks.

[tinanator]

11. popular remote control detonator?

popular with who? As if there arent a million ways to skin that cat.

[mike1963]

12. "remote control detonating"??? Shit, for 20 bucks you can buy a

toy truck at Radio Shack that has all the electronics you need to blow up a device.......
:eyes:

[HereSince1628]

14. Both true...although cell phones work over greater distance

than radio controlled toys.

I know there is tremendous eagerness for many DU'ers to be orthogonal to the "current administration" (in a way that is rather reminiscent of the days of my youth when it was the 'establishment' everyone distrusted).

I still stand by my statement. If not misused, jamming cellphones (and radio controlled tonka trucks, for that matter) in the "radio range" of likely targeted potential landmarks is an inconvenience I can live with. It might even be something I would expect "reasonable people" to do...as opposed to sitting by and doing nothing.

But then I don't have a cellphone implanted into the side of my head. I actually go driving and shopping without calling an SO for advice. Although I suppose the lack of SOs could be considered a confounder to a rigorous evaluation of my position.

[BiggJawn]

17. They biggest fly in the ointment of your argument...

And you KNOW it's a fly, else you wouldn't have mentioned it is: "if not misused"...

How do you feel about a cavity search before going to a ball game? After all, "if it's not misused"...

Do I have to remind you of what Ben Franklin once said about swapping Freedom for the illusion of safety?

[HereSince1628]

19. Well, I don't want to get into technical issues about building bombs

but, cellphones, because of telephone numbers, are rather much more secure...they solve rather cheaply the problem of being accidentally activated by a signal on the same frequency (or a harmonic from an alternative frequency)...

Granted the mendacity and misbehavior of this administration our confindence is very much eroded.

Nonetheless, and as a counterpoint to potential claims of future LIHOPs, I have no problem (in the absence of abuse) to the jamming of cell phone calls in the proximity of high profile landmarks during periods of high risk. The alternative of doing nothing doesn't seem very attractive to me.

Could such steps be circumvented by determined terrorists? Sure.

But, if one injury was avoided, if one life of misery or a death was saved I think I would be willing to go without a cellphone during a visit to landmarks in the LA area.

[Democat]

9. When cellphones are outlawed...

Only outlaws will have cellphones!

[moondust]

15. LOL!!

Or walkie-talkies, or short wave radios, or CBs, or ...

[UCLA02]

10. Shit, I live 1.5 mi from Universal Sudios

Time to start checking craigslist.org again...

[JoFerret]

13. I just kmew this war on terra had to have some

beneficial side effects. Can we ban them everywhere?

[mn9driver]

18. This would be effective---except it would be better

if we didn't PUBLICIZE it first. This is just more eywash to make the public feel "safer". Now that the news is out, if they want to remote detonate they'll use a pager or wi-fi or something else.