An oil tanker exploded near Staten Island this morning. Authorities say there is no evidence of terrorism. Take a look at the lower left corner of this screen capture from MSNBC's coverage:

Apparently they feel it necessary to remind people of the High terror alert as they show footage of what might have been, but wasn't, a terrorist attack. This comes on the heels of the unveiling of the new 'Be Ready' campaign from the Department of Homeland Security. Their oh-so-helpful website has some strange images that make little sense, and offers advice that completely contradicts common sense. As mocked on the Daily Show, if you are on fire, don't run. If confronted with a giant aerosol can, stop, think for a minute, and walk away. The TV commercials are even better, when members of the NYPD and FDNY talk about 'getting through this' (getting through what?) and Tom Ridge tells us that every family should be prepared for a terrorist attack (likened to hurricanes in Florida and earthquakes in California).

Why? One possible explanation, though it may sound like a conspiracy theory, is that the government wants to keep the public afraid, so that they're more willing to support things like the 'Patriot' 2 act. It was fear that got the first act passed, and I'm more than willing to bet that an artificial threat created by our government will create fear amidst which this bill will be introduced.