# There is a glitch in the matrix.. at Homeland Security telling New York to drop dead. **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [June 1, 2006, 9:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-glitch-in-the-matrix-at-homeland-security-telling-new-york-to-drop-dead/358994 "2006-06-01T09:25:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![UncleBeer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/977dab/32.png) [@UncleBeer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleBeer)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2006, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-glitch-in-the-matrix-at-homeland-security-telling-new-york-to-drop-dead/358994/61 "2006-06-02T14:03:18Z")
[QUOTE=What Exit?] NYC was cut in one year to 80 million from 200 million. [/quote] Better check your figures again. Yeah, NYCis takinga huge cut, ostensibly for some lame reason, but it ain’t as much as that. ---
**Author:** ![Waverly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/57b2e6/32.png) [@Waverly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Waverly)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2006, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-glitch-in-the-matrix-at-homeland-security-telling-new-york-to-drop-dead/358994/62 "2006-06-02T14:05:55Z")
[QUOTE=UncleBeer] Rank 'em wherever the fuck you want. I’ll do the same. [/QUOTE] OK, but you are going to need to bend over and relax in order to appreciate the full effect of my ranking. ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2006, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-glitch-in-the-matrix-at-homeland-security-telling-new-york-to-drop-dead/358994/63 "2006-06-02T14:10:50Z")
[QUOTE=Nava] we’ve heard of El Alamo but think it’s the name of a movie (was John Wayne in it?). [/QUOTE] It’s a place in Egypt where Davy Crockett died while fighting off the Jap tank invasion. ---
**Author:** ![Count\_Blucher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Count\_Blucher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_Blucher)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2006, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-glitch-in-the-matrix-at-homeland-security-telling-new-york-to-drop-dead/358994/64 "2006-06-02T14:15:02Z")
[QUOTE=Brain Wreck] It’s a place in Egypt where Davy Crockett died while fighting off the Jap tank invasion. [/QUOTE] Leave my Subaru outta this… 😃 ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2006, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-glitch-in-the-matrix-at-homeland-security-telling-new-york-to-drop-dead/358994/65 "2006-06-02T14:25:23Z")
[QUOTE=UncleBeer] Better check your figures again. Yeah, NYCis takinga huge cut, ostensibly for some lame reason, but it ain’t as much as that. [/QUOTE] :smack: Thank you. I went back to the [NY Times article](http://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/02/nyregion/02security.html?hp&ex=1149307200&en=498eb719611a43db&ei=5094&partner=homepage) and I do have my numbers crossed. It is a 40% cut. > [@](#): > > New York City received $124.5 million from the Department of Homeland Security, about 40 percent less than the $207.5 million it received the year before. Many smaller cities around the country, like Charlotte, N.C., saw their shares increase sharply. I think the rest of my point is still valid, despite seriously screwing up the numbers in my head and in my post. Jim {Posting without double checking the facts is very stupid, I am very sorry} ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2006, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-glitch-in-the-matrix-at-homeland-security-telling-new-york-to-drop-dead/358994/66 "2006-06-02T14:38:38Z")
[QUOTE=JohnBckWLD] As a point of uncynical fact; blue cities such as Jersey City, Newark, Atlanta, Chicago and LA all received HS fund increases. [/QUOTE] I understand LA needing more. What with Jack being out of commission on a Chinese freighter and all. ---
**Author:** ![UncleBeer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/977dab/32.png) [@UncleBeer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleBeer)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2006, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-glitch-in-the-matrix-at-homeland-security-telling-new-york-to-drop-dead/358994/67 "2006-06-02T14:39:46Z")
[QUOTE=Waverly] OK, but you are going to need to bend over and relax in order to appreciate the full effect of my ranking. [/QUOTE] Just be sure you use a liberal slathering of [Bore Butter](http://www.gamaliel.com/cart/customer/product.php?productid=2768&cat=1031&page=1). They make a pine scent that’s rather nice. ---
**Author:** ![Waverly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/57b2e6/32.png) [@Waverly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Waverly)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2006, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-glitch-in-the-matrix-at-homeland-security-telling-new-york-to-drop-dead/358994/68 "2006-06-02T14:47:19Z")
[QUOTE=UncleBeer] Just be sure you use a liberal slathering of [Bore Butter](http://www.gamaliel.com/cart/customer/product.php?productid=2768&cat=1031&page=1). They make a pine scent that’s rather nice. [/QUOTE] I’ll use a moderate amount, if it makes you happy. ---
**Author:** ![UncleBeer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/977dab/32.png) [@UncleBeer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleBeer)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2006, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-glitch-in-the-matrix-at-homeland-security-telling-new-york-to-drop-dead/358994/69 "2006-06-02T16:23:02Z")
Thank you. You concern for my own pleasure is quite touching. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2006, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-glitch-in-the-matrix-at-homeland-security-telling-new-york-to-drop-dead/358994/70 "2006-06-03T02:20:30Z")
[QUOTE=Bosda Di’Chi of Tricor] Great. U.N. Headquarters is not a terrorist target. :smack: [/QUOTE] The UNHQ isn’t actually in NYC it’s in international territory adjacent to the city. Of course that doesn’t actually matter if UNHQ is attacked. How the fuck is the Statue of Liberty _not_ a national icon? Liberty is the female symbol of America! She’s more recognizable than Orion slave girls and the Green Fairy! ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2006, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-glitch-in-the-matrix-at-homeland-security-telling-new-york-to-drop-dead/358994/71 "2006-06-03T02:41:41Z")
[QUOTE=silenus] As an aside: It seems to me that HS is missing a bet here. Has anybody bothered to do a little discrete polling of non-Americans to identify “American Icons?” **Nava** raises an interesting point here. What we think is important may not be what other people see as important. Prior to 9/11, I never would have considered the WTC to be an icon, but Al-Qaeda did. It might be wise to figure out just what other people see as a target. [/QUOTE] Who says they want icons? They destroyed the WTC because it was important center of international commerce and they could strike at a lot of those they perceived as enemies. They could have done the Statue of Liberty, but it’s only a monument – no economic importance other than tourism, and only a few hundred people inside at any given time. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2006, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-glitch-in-the-matrix-at-homeland-security-telling-new-york-to-drop-dead/358994/72 "2006-06-03T03:07:15Z")
My impression is that they are looking for high-profile targets, or simultaneous attacks on a system. If so, then we have a chance to protect things if we can figure out what they are targeting. If not, then we are royally fucked. We ran some “What If” scenarios at school last year. I “won” the contest by striking an series of extremely soft, extremely emotional targets with minimal personnel and equipment. We could figure no way to defend these targets…ever. I disturbs me that I could even think that way, but…if I can, then they can. Let’s just hope they stay obvious. ---
**Author:** ![Bobotheoptimist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/919ad9/32.png) [@Bobotheoptimist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bobotheoptimist)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2006, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-glitch-in-the-matrix-at-homeland-security-telling-new-york-to-drop-dead/358994/73 "2006-06-03T03:10:32Z")
I just skimmed through this thread again and didn’t see it, so if this has been said, I apologize. Has anyone actually looked at the reasons behind the these decisions? A) An “Icon” gets lower funding than an office building, because destroying an icon won’t result in major loss of life. If they blow up the Statue of Liberty, some people will be pissed. If they blow up the Colgate-Palmolive building, people will die. 1. The bloated dollar amount last year for NY was not typical, but included an adjustment for the year before. III) NY doesn’t exists in a bubble, protecting the power grid in Ohio helps protect the power in NY. Most of this I heard on NPR, “the Anti-Fox”. “Orion slave girls”? ---
**Author:** ![adopted](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e79b87/32.png) [@adopted](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adopted)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2006, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-glitch-in-the-matrix-at-homeland-security-telling-new-york-to-drop-dead/358994/74 "2006-06-03T04:27:29Z")
[QUOTE=kanicbird] NYC is the national icon in and of itself. Hell it’s the world icon. [/QUOTE] An icon that stands for what? What unbelievable arrogance to call NYC a WORLD icon - its not my icon in any way shape or form. Its this sort of thinking that makes America a target. Not sure if you are American or not kanicbird, but if you are, please get over yourself and learn a little about the world and escape from this sort of egocentric arrogance. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2006, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-glitch-in-the-matrix-at-homeland-security-telling-new-york-to-drop-dead/358994/75 "2006-06-03T04:33:22Z")
Like it or not, **adopted** , NYC and the Statue of Liberty stand for an ideal that a lot of people around the world would kill for. Positive or negative. Deal with it. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2006, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-glitch-in-the-matrix-at-homeland-security-telling-new-york-to-drop-dead/358994/76 "2006-06-03T04:35:32Z")
[QUOTE=adopted] An icon that stands for what? What unbelievable arrogance to call NYC a WORLD icon - its not my icon in any way shape or form. Its this sort of thinking that makes America a target. Not sure if you are American or not kanicbird, but if you are, please get over yourself and learn a little about the world and escape from this sort of egocentric arrogance. [/QUOTE] You really don’t think Cities like NYC, London, Tokyo, Peking, Paris, Rome, Istanbul, Cairo, etc. are World Icons? I think it is you that need to get over yourself. Jim ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2006, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-glitch-in-the-matrix-at-homeland-security-telling-new-york-to-drop-dead/358994/77 "2006-06-03T04:40:41Z")
All this talk about pork reminds me of the **Meatrix**. > **[The Meatrix](https://www.themeatrix.com/)** > > The Meatrix website offers information on the issues surrounding factory farming, as well as alternatives to conventionally-raised meat, poultry, dairy, and eggs. The website also features The Meatrix Interactive, a tool to help people learn about... [Sub]Fight Factory Farms! The award-winning flash animation movie. [/Sub] [QUOTE=Bobotheoptimist] I just skimmed through this thread again and didn’t see it, so if this has been said, I apologize. Has anyone actually looked at the reasons behind the these decisions? A) An “Icon” gets lower funding than an office building, because destroying an icon won’t result in major loss of life. If they blow up the Statue of Liberty, some people will be pissed. If they blow up the Colgate-Palmolive building, people will die. 1. The bloated dollar amount last year for NY was not typical, but included an adjustment for the year before. III) NY doesn’t exists in a bubble, protecting the power grid in Ohio helps protect the power in NY. Most of this I heard on NPR, “the Anti-Fox”. [/QUOTE] Yes, but lets not forget the bottom line: [http://www.voanews.com/english/2006-06-01-voa55.cfm](http://www.voanews.com/english/2006-06-01-voa55.cfm) > [@](#): > > Nevertheless, Chertoff did acknowledge that the overall 2006 budget for federal security grants is lower than it was last year. He said the Department of Homeland Security has tough choices to make in deciding how to allocate limited resources. Right, the administration had to find room for more tax cuts, unlike the other war against an evil axis, the funding for our defense in this war remains a joke. I’m now less concerned about this being an issue of an estate being blue or red, even Arizona had their funds cut: [http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/0602homeland-ON.html](http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/0602homeland-ON.html) However, even Republicans here are not buying the current explanations: > [@](#): > > Meanwhile, GOP Congressman Jeff Flake, who represents the southeast Valley, issued a statement pointing to the political spoils system as the likely reason for unfair distribution of anti-terrorism and public-safety money. > > Blaming no one specifically, Flake said, “The seniority or position of members of Congress shouldn’t enter the equation. We need to extract politics from this process and implement a simple threat-based formula.” I’m now more worried about the news reporting that the data was incomplete for that matrix and decisions about who gets the money are made in secret, that is ok up to a point, but the cat gets out of the bag when the plan is published, the few bits of info we have are coming from the members from HS that decided on their own to come forward, however they are making it sound worse now since one of their defenses was that New York and DC had their federal homeland security grant funding cut this year in large part because their grant applications were either incorrectly filed or poorly prepared, it seems New York came with evidence that that was not the case. As the saying goes: “Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity.” Hard to do for this administration. ---
**Author:** ![adopted](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e79b87/32.png) [@adopted](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adopted)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2006, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-glitch-in-the-matrix-at-homeland-security-telling-new-york-to-drop-dead/358994/78 "2006-06-03T04:46:26Z")
[QUOTE=silenus] Like it or not, **adopted** , NYC and the Statue of Liberty stand for an ideal that a lot of people around the world would kill for. Positive or negative. Deal with it. [/QUOTE] Statue of Liberty granted, Wall Street also granted, both are \*\*world icons \*\* and deservedly so, and I am sure there are other sites that deserve the status of icon, but to say that NYC is, in and of itself an icon is unblievably arrogant. I do view certain areas as icons, (see Silicon Valley) but what makes NYC an Icon BY ITSELF? Washington DC = symbol of democracy = icon Statue of Liberty = symbol of freedom = icon Wall Street = symbol of free enterprise = icon Manhatten = symbol of consumerism = (questionable) icon Chrysler Building = symbol of engineering excellence / technology = icon New York = symbol of what? ---
**Author:** ![E-Sabbath](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e19adc/32.png) [@E-Sabbath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-Sabbath)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2006, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-glitch-in-the-matrix-at-homeland-security-telling-new-york-to-drop-dead/358994/79 "2006-06-03T04:54:59Z")
… international territory next to… [Map](http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&sll=41.134977,-73.784484&sspn=0.127996,0.2314&q=united+nations&t=k&om=1&ll=40.750971,-73.968115&spn=0.004023,0.007231) That’s not next to the city. That’s in Manhattan, which is fully surrounded by the REST of NYC. > **[Headquarters of the United Nations](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_headquarters)** > > The headquarters of the United Nations (UN) is on 17 to 18 acres (6.9 to 7.3 ha) of grounds in the Turtle Bay neighborhood of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, United States. It borders First Avenue to the west, 42nd Street to the south, 48th Street to the north, and the East River to the east. Completed in 1952, the complex consists of several structures, including the Secretariat, Conference, and General Assembly buildings, and the Dag Hammarskjöld Library. The complex was designed by a bo... It’s a declared international zone, much like an embassy, but it is in NYC. ---
**Author:** ![E-Sabbath](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e19adc/32.png) [@E-Sabbath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-Sabbath)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2006, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-glitch-in-the-matrix-at-homeland-security-telling-new-york-to-drop-dead/358994/80 "2006-06-03T05:00:30Z")
New York City? It’s a symbol of freedom. It’s the big time. It’s where you are judged, not by the color of your skin, but the content of your character. In those few miles are the best and worst of Mankind. It is, as Rome was, the Eternal City, the shining hope of western civilization. If you can make it there, you can make it anywhere. Say what you will, but no matter the category of human achievement, you will find the best there. Museums. Theater. Music. Technology. Business. Education. Anything. That is New York. The Crossroads of the World. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-glitch-in-the-matrix-at-homeland-security-telling-new-york-to-drop-dead/358994.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-glitch-in-the-matrix-at-homeland-security-telling-new-york-to-drop-dead/358994.md?page=5)