GETS = Government Emergency Telecommunications Service
There is a toll-free number and you are given a card with a 12-digit PIN and you are prompted to enter your destination number (ie: the number you are trying to call). Your call will be routed through a private network separate from the Phone Company's and your calls can get through even when the public system is overloaded. Needless to say, not just everyone can get a GETS card. They are restricted to five broad categories of users:
- National Security Leadership
- National Security Posture and US Population Attack Warning
- Public Health, Safety, and Maintenance of Law and Order
- Public Welfare and Maintenance of National Economic Posture
- Disaster Recovery
What prompted this bit of info is my finding out that none-other than our friends, the Council on American-Islamic Relations tried to get some. Needless to say:
The Council on American-Islamic Relations submitted an application last week, arguing that it should have access to GETS because it is the largest American Muslim organization in the United States and it was a major point of contact with the American Muslim community after the 2001 terrorist attacks.
The request was denied in less than three hours. The government contractor explained that the group does not qualify for priority over lifesaving, law enforcement, the military, the National Guard, the Federal Emergency Management Agency and other members of the national-security emergency-preparedness community.
The story can be found here: Lawmakers reminded that they should have emergency calling card
CAIR has frequently shown themselves to be sympathetic with if not directly supportive of terrorist activities both abroad and in the USA. Can you imagine what a team of terrorists could do with these cards if they were pulling off another 9/11...
