Charles Shiflett Column November 20, 2005

What Would You Do?

It's a normal early Monday morning in Atlanta… nothing unusual, just a little heavy traffic. By late
morning however, Grady, Piedmont, Emory, Northside, Crawford Long, Egleston, and other hospitals
are all reporting that a significant number of people have shown up during the morning with some type
of serious undiagnosed illness. Many end up in intensive care.

The CDC promptly sends in specialists to isolate the offending pathogen. Within a couple of hours it is
determined that there is a high probability the quickly spreading illness is the result of a biological
terror attack. Governor Perdue and President Bush are notified of the developing crisis.

Medical experts working with the Department of Homeland Security and FEMA quickly analyze the
data from the CDC. The scenario they put together for Bush and Perdue is frightening. In the
meantime, hundreds more individuals seek medical attention and deaths are now being reported.

The illness is probably the result of a deadly pathogen that was released in the downtown MARTA rail
transit system. From there it quickly spread to area office towers, hotels, shops, Georgia State
University, and Georgia Tech as transit riders fanned out across the city.

There is no available cure for this illness and experts speculate that 50 to 70 percent of those exposed
will die within 24 hours of exposure. Treatment consists primarily of the administration of fluids plus
efforts to reduce discomfort.

Bush and Perdue are informed that the illness can be transmitted by contact. The men must act within
the hour if there is to be any chance of containing the quickly spreading crisis. They are presented
with a recommendation that both find abhorrent.

Martial law is to be declared immediately for all areas inside the I-285 perimeter along with a 24-hour
curfew. Only law enforcement officers or emergency personnel transporting the sick will be allowed to
move freely.

All buildings and homes are to be immediately sealed with everyone staying wherever they happen to
be at that time… in essence a mandatory citywide quarantine. All Interstate highways, roads and local
streets are to be cleared and shut down.

Officials understand they do not have the manpower to force the hundreds of thousands of people in
the city to strictly follow the quarantine rules. So Homeland Security officials ask the governor to
mobilize the National Guard and set up an impenetrable line around I-285. Anyone attempting to enter
or leave is to be stopped by any means necessary including use of deadly force.

Because some individuals who have been exposed may have already left the city, Bush and Perdue
are also asked to establish a voluntary 24-hour curfew and quarantine for the rest of north Georgia from
Macon to the Tennessee state line.

If the plan is implemented as presented, it is estimated that about 250,000 people inside the I-285
perimeter will die over the next seven days. Another five to ten thousand across the rest of north
Georgia would also perish.

Based upon incubation periods and other facets of the infirmity, the crisis should subside within ten
days. If the plan is not implemented or if it is watered down, then the total death toll could reach into
the millions as the illness spreads across the southeastern United States.

If you were the president or governor would you have the stomach to give the orders to put the above
plan in place. Could you knowingly sacrifice untold thousands in order to protect millions?

Though your actions saved millions, would you be prepared to face the families of those who were
killed trying to escape the city? Could you withstand the assault of a hostile press second-guessing
every decision you had made?

We've all watched as former presidents have aged before our eyes and it's easy to see why. The
pressures are enormous. Imagine waking up every morning knowing that you alone have the authority
to launch a nuclear attack that could destroy the planet.

Ask anyone who has ever held elected office if he or she thought serving the public had been easy…
from the lowest local office to the White House, you'll probably get a resounding no!

Shortly after being elected to the county board of education in 1994, I remember fellow board member
Tony Kincannon telling me to count my friends, because after a couple of years in office about half of
them wouldn't be my friends anymore.

Of course Tony had a smile on his face when he made the statement… he knew it wouldn't be quite
that bad, but there was truth in what he said. Public sentiment can quickly turn, leaving bewildered
politicians in its wake.

2006 is a major election year and it promises to be a brutal one. When I survey the challenges we face
as a nation in the years to come, I don't envy those who will lead us. I pray we never face anything as
serious as the bio-terror scenario I painted, but anyone seeking higher office must be prepared to deal
with unexpected crises.

More importantly, we as voters need to carefully judge those who seek our vote. Our lives may depend
on it.