Paper on "Dirty Bombs" and RDD Threat

["Bruce Bugg" <obbugg@dmvs.ga.gov>]

http://www.heritage.org/Research/HomelandDefense/bg1723.cfm



Dealing with Dirty Bombs: Plain Facts, Practical Solutions



by James Jay Carafano, Ph.D., and Jack Spencer

Backgrounder #1723



January 27, 2004 



Most assessments of America's vulnerabilities include some mention of the nation's susceptibility to attacks by radiological dispersal devices, or "dirty bombs." The threat is often portrayed as a homogenous danger, but it in fact covers a spectrum of risks, not all of which are equally serious.



Because the nature of the threat is often misconstrued, there is no shared appreciation of the problem or how best to address it. The reality is that the threat of a dirty bomb attack by terrorists is a credible one, although the psychological and economic consequences would likely far outweigh any casualties or physical destruction. To be better prepared, the United States should:



Develop national standards for emergency response, 

Create a national system-of-systems emergency response structure 

Focus federal resources on developing national surge medical capacity, 

Centralize oversight of federal emergency medical response in the Department of Health and Human Services, 

Enhance federal expertise in emergency medical care, and 

Establish better coordination with the private sector. 



^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Capt. Bruce Bugg

Special Projects Coordinator

Law Enforcement Division

Georgia Department of Motor Vehicle Safety

P.O. Box 80447 

Conyers, GA  30013-8047

voice:	678.413.8825

fax:	678.413.8832

e-mail:	obbugg@dmvs.ga.gov



"Making the simple complicated is commonplace; making the complicated simple, awesomely simple, that's creativity." -- Charles Mingus (Musician, 1922- )



************************************************************************

You are currently subscribed to the Radsafe mailing list. To

unsubscribe, send an e-mail to Majordomo@list.vanderbilt.edu  Put the

text "unsubscribe radsafe" (no quote marks) in the body of the e-mail,

with no subject line. You can view the Radsafe archives at

http://www.vanderbilt.edu/radsafe/