the rix mix

I live under ten miles from one of the most dangerous potential terrorist targets in the United States - a chlorine processing plant in Kearny NJ. So says an article in today's New York Times. This plant, with its unprotected storage tanks, is located almost directly beneath an elevated highway, in an area known as "chemical alley," which includes a busy airport, a major shipping port, & a refinery. Of course, all of us who live around here already know this. We also know that the State of New Jersey has done a pretty good job setting up anti-terrorist & emergency response programs, mostly with State money. Because here, within view of an empty piece of sky that used to hold the Twin Towers, we've been woefully short-changed by the Federal government. It doesn't help that the City of Newark - adjacent to Kearny - is mis-spending its own National Security funding, but that's to be expected from such a corrupt city administration. The biggest security risks have to be protected by regional & state agencies, not municipalities. I wouldn't mind putting a few more miles between me & those chlorine tanks.