[ExI] The Avalanche Threat

[aiguy at comcast.net]

"Avalanche prevention and mitigation involves a variety of methods. Snow fences are built to prevent the buildup of snow in starting zones, structures are built to stabilize snow. deflecting walls are built to divert avalanche flows away from buildings and even entire towns. Sheds build across roadways that pass through persistent avalanche paths can help to protect motorists from avalanches. Additionally, the reforestation of slopes with trees helps to prevent avalanches. 
Sometimes avalanche control experts actually desire to create smaller, controlled avalanches to prevent larger, uncontrolled ones. Percussion guns, explosives, and even artillery have been used to produce these controlled avalanches when people are kept away. 
Although a variety of recreationists spend time in snow-covered mountains - snowmobilers are those most often killed by avalanches in the U.S. Most avalanches in the U.S. occur during the months January, February, and March and on average, 17 are killed annually nationwide. Backcountry explorers are strongly advised to not only know how to identify avalanche hazard areas but also to carry a avalanche beacon/transceiver and a shovel in case of emergency."
http://geography.about.com/od/physicalgeography/a/avalanches.htm
Not only do we spend money to prevent avalanches but we post areas to warn people not to go there.  The few people who are killed are normally there at their own risk.
It is easy to avoid avalanches.  Just stay out of the areas prone to them. Not so with terrorists who come to you.
Also if avalanches were ignored they would not gain confidence, grow in numbers, and increase their frequency and severity of assults the way terrorists would.
While I think the money we are spending on the war now would be better spent eliminating our dependence on foreign oil as an indirect means of curtailing terrorism,  I also appreciate the danger of allowing Iraq to become a haven for terrorists or an extension of Iran with their nuclear ambitions while our energy needs still have no other viable replacement in sight.
While such inflammatory analogies may serve to further convince people who already have strong opinions against the war this site headed by one who calls himself the buffalobeast and splatters his homepage with profanity does not seem to overly concerned with his credibility.
But like other sites which attract their their share of kooks I always try to keep an open mind in the hopes of learning something I do not already know.
Interesting read thanks Emyln.
Gary
-------------- Original message -------------- 
From: Emlyn <emlynoregan at gmail.com> 

> The Avalanche Threat 
> No one is safe 
> Allan Uthman 
> 
> http://buffalobeast.com/118/avalanches.htm 
> 
> "More Americans have been killed in the war in Iraq than have ever 
> been killed by terrorism in the history of the country. A San 
> Francisco Chronicle piece puts the odds of being killed by terrorism 
> as slightly lower than dying in an avalanche. How much are we spending 
> on avalanche prevention? Why is there no counter-avalanche czar? How 
> many news stories have you seen about the threat of avalanches? Think 
> about it: "Avalanches: Are we safer than we were?" Or "Democrats: Soft 
> on avalanches?" Why does the liberal media ignore the avalanche 
> threat?" 
> 
> -- 
> Emlyn 
> 
> http://emlynoregan.com 
> _______________________________________________ 
> extropy-chat mailing list 
> extropy-chat at lists.extropy.org 
> http://lists.extropy.org/mailman/listinfo.cgi/extropy-chat 
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