I apologize if this has already been posted...no time to look through all of the threads right now...

www.worldnetdaily.com/bluesky_bresnahan/19990304_xex_government_p.shtml

********************************************************************************

PANIC IN THE YEAR ZERO Government plans for the worst in Y2K Consultant cites preparations for martial law

------------------------------------------------------------------------

By David M. Bresnahan ) 1999 WorldNetDaily.com

Plans have been made for mass evacuations, government takeover of private industries, and the use of martial law, according to a Y2K consultant to municipalities in the state of Michigan.

All the mechanisms have been put in place for mass evacuations of people to government shelters, government takeover of utilities and private industries, martial law, and a complete transfer of power from local governments to the federal government, according to Franklin Frith.

Frith is a consultant hired by Michigan municipalities to conduct workshops for state, city, and county agencies on how to prepare for contingencies related to the year 2000 computer bug, which is expected to cause disruptions.

Frith became alarmed when Michigan's many government agencies opened their documents to him. In them he claims he found compelling evidence that a greater problem exists than has been admitted publicly.

Frith conducted a workshop Feb. 11 at which Lt. Tom Mattioli, the emergency management coordinator for the Michigan State Police, gave a presentation.

Participants were given a handout which showed a FEMA/Red Cross checklist for Y2K preparedness which is available to assist the public. One of the items on the list mentions the need to store a three to five days supply of food and water.

Frith asked Mattioli if it was expected that Y2K disruptions would only last a few days.

"The three-to-five-day period for preparations is not the expected down time for essential services, rather it is the expected response time for emergency response personnel to arrive and evacuate people to shelters," Mattioli told the group.

Mattioli confirmed that he made the remarks in a phone interview with WorldNetDaily. He pointed out that the recommendation is a generic one for general disaster preparedness and has been part of the FEMA and Red Cross disaster planning for many years.

Frith is also concerned that most local cities and counties have not done anything in the way of remediation of Y2K computer problems.

"Local governments deliver essential services. Those essential services allow the industrial base and the civilian base to operate," Frith told WorldNetDaily.

"What has really thrown up a red flag for me is that these people are not ready. Many have not even begun the assessment phase. In these meetings, they're saying that there are no resources available to fix this, once they find out what is wrong. There's entire counties out here that haven't done anything," said a very concerned Frith.

He was further alarmed when the President's Council on the Year 2000 issued a report Dec. 3, 1998, which stated that the country was now moving from contingency planning to crisis management. Frith says this is further evidence that the government knows there will be severe problems because far too few computer systems will be repaired before the start of the new year.

Frith contends that the federal government knows local and state governments will not be able to deal with the problems which will occur because of the Y2K crisis. He says plans are under way for martial law and the use of mass shelters.

Some states have already begun plans to use the National Guard as part of their Y2K contingency planning; others have not yet done so.

"The bureau reported to the DoD (Department of Defense) in November (1998) ... some states are 'reluctant to become too dependent on the National Guard for disaster response because they believe that the National Guard might be pre-empted by national priorities,'" the report says, according to an article in the January issue of National Guard Magazine.

WorldNetDaily has completed an extensive series of articles about National Guard plans for Y2K. Plans include an extensive nationwide exercise on May 1 and 2.

The guard will assume that all telecommunications services are out and will use only battery and generator operated radios to communicate. They will simulate a full mobilization of the guard, something that has not been done since World War II.

Frith said the National Guard exercise is not the only evidence of plans to use the military for the Y2K crisis. He pointed out the recent Operation Last Dance training conducted by the Army Special Forces Command in some Texas towns.

Frith says the use of live ammunition and explosives in civilian areas, along with the name of the operation itself are sufficient reason for concern. He believes this "really is the last dance," before use of the military begins as a domestic SWAT team.

"Consequently, as this year progresses, we will become increasingly involved in DoD support to others," said Deputy Defense Secretary John Hamre to a Senate Armed Services subcommittee recently.

Frith points out that Hamre is "the number two guy at the Pentagon, and the Pentagon's number one guy on Y2K."

"We are in the process of refining the list of assets that have utility in military support to civil authorities (MSCA). Because Y2K is a special case of MSCA, in that many concurrent emergencies may occur, special procedures may be required to ensure the most effective use of these resources," Hamre stated in a previous hearing.

Frith says he believes the federal government has plans to take control of many private resources, perhaps with the use of the military to ensure they get what they want. As evidence of this, he points to Executive Order 12919 and a statement by the president's Y2K guru.

"In a crisis and emergency situation, the free market may not be the best way to distribute resources... If there's a point in time where we have to take resources and make a judgement on an emergency basis, we will be prepared to do that," said John Koskinen in a Dec. 3, 1998, report of the President's Council on the Year 2000.

"The statements made by Hamre and Koskinen, along with the existing FEMA Federal Response Plan confirms the intention to invoke Executive Order 12919 and that the possibility of a national emergency being declared with the potential for martial law to follow is probable and should be planned for," warns Frith.

Among other things, EO 12919 delegates power and authority to various federal agency heads to take control of private property.

"(EO) 12919 gives FEMA coordinating power over all federal agencies and everything those agencies have jurisdiction over. They also have coordinating power over all free market resources," explained Frith.

"When you start looking at all these pieces, they are adding up. They are adding up," he stated.

Frith has an agenda to spread distrust of government and create fear, according to one Michigan Y2K emergency planning official.

"There's this tendency for people to think that there's something hidden somewhere in somebody's files, or some secret discussions going on," said Mike Prince, Michigan State Police Emergency Management Division, public affairs officer in a phone interview with WorldNetDaily.

"That's certainly not our feeling. Most of that is hype and most of that is people trying to generate mistrust, and people trying to generate fear, and people trying to profit or benefit from spreading misinformation and that kind of fear," he explained.

Frith pointed out that he does not sell anything. He is paid as a consultant. He does not sell Y2K related books, or preparedness supplies.

Also see www.worldnetdaily.com/bluesky_bresnahan/19990305_xex_whistleblowe.shtml

********************************************************************************

PANIC IN THE YEAR ZERO Whistleblower-consultant under fire Michigan distances itself from Y2K policy critic

------------------------------------------------------------------------

By David M. Bresnahan ) 1999 WorldNetDaily.com

A Y2K consultant to municipal government agencies in the state of Michigan is now under fire for his charges that plans are being made for mass evacuations and use of the military as a police force.

Franklin Frith has been hired to present Y2K workshops to elected officials and government agencies throughout Michigan. He began last October and is still conducting meetings where he speaks with officials for the state of Michigan and uses state produced handouts.

When WorldNetDaily published a report yesterday about the claims being made by Frith, a state official called to complain.

"He is not working for the state of Michigan, I can tell you that because I am here in the Year 2000 office and that is represented incorrectly in your article," said Kelly Chesney, public information officer for the Office of Management and Budget, responsible for Michigan's Y2K preparations.

Indeed, Frith is not a consultant to the state of Michigan. He is actually a consultant to the various municipal governments of Michigan. They pay him for the workshops. He is not paid by the state, even though he uses state-produced materials and works with state employees to conduct the workshops.

"We do not agree with his philosophy. It's totally contradictory to what we are proposing here at the state," said Chesney. "I'm not exactly sure what Mr. Frith has given you or showed you, but it's not accurate. I know that he feels very passionately about his viewpoint."

Frith said most of the government people he has worked with have not taken the time to read the vast amount of information produced by federal agencies on the pending Y2K crisis. He said that he believes they are making judgments without examining the evidence that he has found. They have also not invited him to explain how and why he has arrived at his conclusions.

"Some of those people are very nice people, and I have no bones to pick with them," said Frith. "But what has happened is people are so busy doing their jobs, they really aren't privy to what the real plans are. Are they bad people? Not necessarily. Most of the people I have run into there are very nice, but they're misinformed and they're misguided."

Frith provided WorldNetDaily with copies of actual federal government documents to support his claims that plans are being made to have FEMA take charge of local government agencies when they inevitably fail to handle Y2K related emergencies. He claims improper planning, as well as failure to prepare by many local governments, will lead to failures which are expected by the federal government.

He also provided documents to show that FEMA is planning for emergency evacuations and the use of the military for domestic police actions.

"I never speak my own mind," said Frith. "I show their documents. When I say "their" I'm referring to NERC, the President's Council, FEMA, various utility associations. I never use my own opinions because my opinion doesn't mean anything to strangers. This is factual information. This is for real."

Frith has worked side by side at workshops with Jerry Williams, one of the authors of the "Year 2000 Toolkit for Michigan Local Governments and School Districts." The toolkit is used by those who attend the workshops Frith conducts.

Frith says the vast majority of people who attend the workshops and have the 3,000 toolkits distributed since November have done little or nothing to prepare.

As proof that communities are taking action, Williams says recipients have faxed back an assessment form from the toolkit. All the forms that have come back were positive in nature, but the number that have come back is very small compared to the number of people who received them. Williams would not be specific as to the exact numbers.

Asked about the claims made by Frith that the federal government should be doing more to inform local governments of their actual plans, Williams said, "No comment."

Chesney told WorldNetDaily that she has not read the documents cited by Frith, nor does she know what all his claims are.

"I cannot comment on his statements," she said. "I can only tell you that he is not employed and we do not have a contract with him and we do not advocate what he's advocating. I think some of the stuff he is advocating is a little problematic from our standpoint, obviously.

"It just alarms me when I think about some of this -- ugh," she said in frustration. "It perpetuates some of the information that we're combatting daily."

Lt. Tom Mattioli of the Michigan State Police also participated in a workshop with Frith.

"We have a family preparedness program for the state of Michigan for families to be prepared in any disaster, and that's basically the same as Y2K," Mattioli explained. "We're suggesting that families take the same precautions for maybe three to five days without essential services.

"It may take that long before emergency services could get to a particular home and get you to a shelter," Mattioli told WorldNetDaily.

Frith says the fact that government agencies are telling people to store only three to five days of food and water is a plan for failure. He claims they know that more should be stored but are not telling anyone. The fact that plans are being made to move people to shelters is evidence that the public should be given an oportunity to prepare so they can remain in their own homes, he added.

Chesney claims the agencies of the state of Michigan are 94 percent compliant right now, which means they should be well prepared for a major Y2K exercise Sept. 9, 1999 in at least 15 of the state's counties.

Frith says that particular date is listed by FEMA as a major concern for possible computer failures in many critical systems. He said it is not a coincidence that many government organizations and utilities nationwide are conducting readiness drills on that date. He says they expect problems that day and are not warning the public.

The date 9/9/99 was used by programmers in years past as a code to shut down computer programs. The problem is so pervasive that FEMA has listed the date as a day of great concern.

Another Michigan State Police officer contacted WorldNetDaily to express concerns about Y2K preparations. He says that members of his emergency management team were told in one of their planning meetings that the Y2K economic consequences alone "will last up to five years." He said the officers were told to plan for total chaos.

"You could hear a pin drop in that room," he said. "The point is this, the State Police are preparing for much more than they are letting people know."

-- Roland (nottelling@nowhere.com), March 08, 1999

Answers

What do we know about the author?

-- Watchful (seethesea@msn.com), March 21, 1999.

Howdy again Watchful :=)

In the article, the government "official" stated: Chesney claims the agencies of the state of Michigan are 94 percent compliant right now, which means they should be well prepared for a major Y2K exercise Sept. 9, 1999 in at least 15 of the state's counties.

If one isn't very good at math, that doesn't seem like a very odd statement. If they were (cough, ahem) 100% compliant wouldn't that put them at having about 21 or 22 counties? How many counties are there?

Mr. K
***getting geography book***

-- Mr. Kennedy (up@night.here), March 21, 1999.

Visited yahoo, and over 80 counties were listed...oh well, so much for knowing my own state. Here's the link

http://dir.yahoo.com/Regional/U_S__States/Michigan/Counties_ and_Regions/

-- Tim (pixmo@pixelquest.com), March 21, 1999.

Chesney claims the agencies of the state of Michigan are 94 percent compliant right now, which means they should be well prepared for a major Y2K exercise Sept. 9, 1999 in at least 15 of the state's counties.

I will now borrow a professional spokespersons famous phrase: "Ha, Ha, it is to laugh" [dripping with sarcasm] -- Daffy Duck

Thanks for the link to the state/county listing Tim. Even if the state is 94% ready, it is a pitiful, pitiful statement that "at least 15 of the state's counties should" be prepared for a major exercise....when? September 9th? That's not even a quarter of the counties. I'm afraid that my state, and my county aren't fairing much better, if any at all.

Mr. K
***will miss NU64 the most***

-- Mr. Kennedy (tshtf@midnight.dong), March 21, 1999.

I've spoken to the author's wife and they seem to be good people. They came forward because, quote: "We are Christians, and we believed it our duty to warn people."

Now,--Bresnahan-- made an error in publishing that the author was contracted by the state of Michigan. Actually, he is hired by various municipalities in the state to do workshops.

Apparently, some of the author's observations were quoted in the recent Senate report, but I am still trying to verify that.

I do know that some of his observations are the same ones made by nearly everyone who has researched this issue--not necessarily specific to Michigan.

For those who live in this state though, you might do well to check out the Michigan State Police site. 'Though difficult to locate, there is an advisory there to citizens. If "you know what" were to hit the fan, the MSP is the designated emergency response organization in this state. As I recall, some of their recommendations are similar to those of the Red Cross. And the MSP DOES advise doing research on the Web about this!

By the way, who--among the above posters--actually lives in Michigan, and approximately where? Just curious.

-- VLS (onthelakes@aol.com), March 21, 1999.