Tom Ridge Proves Dean's Case

Dean has come in for very strong criticism from all sides because of his statement that the capture of Saddam had not made America more safe. Today Tom Ridge, the Tsar of National Insecurity, has raised the "threat" level from yellow to orange in response to a:

"substantial increase" in the volume of intelligence pointing to "near-term attacks that could either rival or exceed what we experienced on September 11."

This, by the funny "up is down" logic of this administration must mean that we are safer, right? That must be so, since the appropriate response to the increased threat level, according to Ridge, is:

to proceed with holiday plans despite the threat.

Gee, thanks a lot for the advice. Do any of us really think the Department of Homeland Security has done a damn thing to make us more secure?