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It's impossible to say how much potential "highly ambitious" terrorism has been deterred by these measures, but reasonable to assume at least some amount. A te
by jimmaswell 6y ago
It's impossible to say how much potential "highly ambitious" terrorism has been deterred by these measures, but reasonable to assume at least some amount.
A terrorist attack also has a much wider chilling effect for psychological reasons - it represents an existential threat, unlike a natural disaster.
- tweetle_beetle 6y agoThe article is about one-off preparedness grants, which are probably unlikely to have any impact on "highly ambitious" terrorism. But you're right, we'll never know. As a child, I was very aware of the psychological effect of terrorism - the IRA set off a bomb very close to my home and it was covered extensively in all the media of the time: TV, radio, newspapers. However, I would argue that putting security theatre into public life has an equally profound psychological effect - it confirms that you are constantly at risk. As a child, seeing more police officers with submachines guns (very unusual at the time) and the removal of rubbish bins and the closing of some roads to cars around where I lived only increased anxiety. As an adult, I'm aware that this too has a chilling effect, but with little benefit gained. I'll have to politely disagree on natural disasters not being an equivalent existential threat in a world where climate change is increasing their frequency and potency.