All through my CMNS studies at
SFU, my profs were constant reminding us how manipulative the media was and how the media only ever focuses on the negative. & whodathunk that I would join the "evil" side and become a PR practitioner!?! ;)
Anywho, there are pnts where the media can't escape reporting on the negatives. People want to know about the
terrorist attacks that happened in London yesterday. I'm also glad to be able to read about how
Translink is upping security to ensure that our public transportation system is as safe as they can make it.
What I don't appreciate reading are headlines that initiates fear and creates paranoia in society... such as this lovely headline I came across in the
Vancouver Province this morning. What we don't need are people running around the country freaking out about if and when it's going to happen...
Friday, July 8, 2005
Canada could be the next target: Only country on terror group's list that hasn't been attacked
Vancouver Province
David Carrigg and Matthew Ramsey
Canada is the only Christian country on Osama bin Laden's death list that has not suffered a terrorist attack, University of B.C. international relations expert Robert Farkasch said last night.
"There is no question it's a matter of when, not if," said Farkasch.
"If it occurs on the West Coast our ferry system will be a likely target."
Farkasch said Canadians should not consider themselves safe because there are no troops deployed in Iraq.
"We are in Afghanistan," he said.
Farkasch said that in 2002 Osama bin Laden listed five Christian countries that would be targetted by al-Qaida.
"Canada is the last country on that list," Farkasch said.
In April 2004, U.S. researchers revealed an online Arabic manual for the al-Qaida terrorist network, called al-Battar Military Camp, explicitly supported assaults on Canadians. It said Canada is the fifth most important "Christian terrorist" target, coming after Americans, Britons, Spaniards and Australians.
The U.S. was attacked on Sept. 11, 2001; Australian tourists were targetted in the October 2002 Bali bombings; Spain in March 2004 when trains were bombed in Madrid; and the British were hit in the subways and streets of London yesterday.
Most troubling, Farkasch said, is that al-Qaida has a reputation for doing what it says it will do.
David Harris, former chief of strategic planning for CSIS, said he fears the London attack "presages" a similar event in Canada.
"I rate the risk for Canada as very high," he said.
Public Safety Minister Anne McLellan urged Canadians to remain calm, but also vigilant.
"There is no specific threat to Canada and Canadians at this time, but you have to be prepared and take all precautionary measures," she said.
"We need to be constantly evaluating the situation, constantly evaluating the risk assessments that we get and we share with others and receive from our allies. And we need to understand as much as possible how modern terrorism operates and what we need to protect our citizens."
B.C. Solicitor-General John Les also called for vigilance.
He said he was notified of the bombings at about 4 a.m. by the provincial emergency program. PEP then notified B.C. transportation infrastructure providers and airports.
"We have to be vigilant on an ongoing basis," Les said.
At the British consulate in Vancouver, acting consul-general Andy Newlands said he'd been in touch with the RCMP to "ensure full protection."
"We've increased our state of vigilance," Newlands said. "Our thoughts are with all of those people who may have had a friend or loved one hurt or injured."
Vancouver police Chief Jamie Graham said he was unaware of any threats to the city but has asked officers to be increasingly aware.
"No one is safe from terrorists," Graham said. "It is sometimes easy for us to feel we are somehow immune or above the fray when these incidents happen so far away but we know that is not the case."
Graham said the terror strike has not initiated a re-examination of the safety and security plan for the 2010 Olympics.
Olympics officials declined to comment on anything associated with the bombings, saying the two events are not connected.
