Anthrax contamination, which a month ago seemed a hypothetical danger, has become another front in the expanding threats to the United States. It will not likely be the last. Whether from terrorists or warped individuals using the current crisis as an opportunity to disrupt, the public can expect further menace in the weeks and months to come. The priority must be for authorities to get ahead of the game and for people to rein in anxieties and to hold their poise. Anthrax may be just
the first bio-threatThe issue: The spread of the
bacteria through the mail
heightens public anxiety.Government officials must anticipate rather than react. It took authorities days to gear up after the first anthrax case appeared Oct. 4 in Florida, dismissing it at first as an isolated case. In the aftermath of Sept. 11, officials should have been more keenly tuned to the possibilities of bioterrorism, but not until the following week was there further investigation and preventive measures begun.
Although not related to the anthrax threat, the spread of dengue in Hawaii illustrates the need for authorities quickly to evaluate and minimize threats to public health. Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy G. Thompson and Tom Ridge, the new homeland security director, certainly have their work cut out for them.
The open nature of American society leaves the public vulnerable on so many levels that envisioning the most improbable and worst-case scenarios would not be pointless. Strategic plans should be put in place to deal with the many attacks may take place. Federal authorities have yet to determine if the source of the anthrax bacteria mailed to locations across the country is Osama bin Laden's work or that of others.
However, the incidents are evidence of how random terrorism can easily disturb even the most routine of structures, in this case, the postal system. Already unsettled, people are now being asked to examine carefully letters and packages in their mail boxes. How terrible it is to have to question whether a box of homemade cookies from an aunt on Kauai is safe to open.
Nevertheless, the only way to win this battle is to stay alert. While it is difficult and wearying to lead the dual life of maintaining normal routines and keeping constant guard, people have little choice but to stay the course. A full flow of information and explanation from the federal, state and local governments would help.
During the first month of the war on terror, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld journeyed to the Middle East to line up allies. Now Secretary of State Colin Powell is visiting Pakistan and India, two critical allies, and will go thence to China to meet with foreign ministers of Asia. President Bush will top it off at a summit meeting in Shanghai at the weekend. Bush, Powell give
war a global pushThe issue: The administration
launches a fresh diplomatic offensive
abroad in war on terror.Like many ventures of this sort, the journeys are filled with opportunity and danger. Powell will have the chance to show American gratitude to President Pervez Musharraf of Pakistan for what the secretary has called "very bold and courageous steps to come into this coalition of nations that are determined to fight terrorism."
Many Pakistanis are anti-American and pro-Taliban, as witness the daily demonstrations in the streets. Nonetheless, Musharraf has permitted the United States to operate in Pakistani air space and rendered valuable political support. India, which has recently been seeking better relations with the United States has also been supportive, and is due warm thanks.
The danger is that Powell could be drawn into the vicious, emotional dispute between Pakistan and India over Kashmir, which would be a no-win situation for the United States because there is no obvious solution that would redound to American favor. Both Islamabad and New Delhi say this conflict should be settled between themselves, a position Secretary Powell should embrace.
The secretary and the president will have an opportunity to seek more backing for the war on terror when the foreign ministers of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum gather in Shanghai later in the week. Quietly, both should take the opportunity to underscore a vital message to all of Asia and especially to China, which is not to miscalculate, as Osama bin Laden's terrorists have, when dealing with the Americans.
Until Sept. 11, many Chinese military officers, scholars specializing in international matters, and some politicians asserted that the United States lacked the gumption to use military power to defend its national interests.
The bombers, fighters, and cruise missiles flying over Afghani-stan should disabuse them of that thought. If China is contemplating an invasion of Taiwan while the United States is preoccupied in Afghanistan, which has been openly speculated, the word from Secretary Powell and President Bush should be: "Don't."
Before Sept. 11, the president had planned to go from Shanghai to Beijing and then to Seoul and Tokyo. The White House has been cagey about the president's travel plan, but it looks now as if he will go straight back to Washington from Shanghai. That's rather too bad because the president will have missed an opportunity to reinforce U.S. ties with Japan and South Korea and to nudge relations with China forward a notch.
Published by Oahu Publications Inc., a subsidiary of Black Press.Don Kendall, President
John Flanagan, publisher and editor in chief 529-4748; jflanagan@starbulletin.com
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