Fiber Optic Cuts Show Our Dependance on Technology
If Carl Sagan is looking down at us right now from the cosmos, he is probably saying "told you so". In his book and video series titled Cosmos, he expressed concern of the fragile nature of technology in our world. That is not unlike a house of cards. The cutting of the fiber optic cable in Silicon Valley 9 April certainly revealed this.
It is easier to state what stayed working, rather than what stopped working. Anyone attempting to communicate with smoke signals was probably successful. Everything else wad down and out.
This includes ATM's, credit card purchases (that would include the gas pump), 911 calls, and cell phones. Oh. The Internet too. All out.
This is because someone with the knowledge and tools opened underground access points in four locations and cut the fiber optic cables.
Even the cell phones went down because the towers couldn't 'hand off' the radio signals driving the wireless phone network. (That is why they are called cellular phones).
While most of the fiber optics cut belongs to AT&T, Sprint took a hit too. Fiber isn't cheap to install. So the carriers re-sell capacity to other carriers. The loss of the fiber meant *everyone* and everything went black.
We lose fiber everyday. Typically, it is a back hoe that didn't call before you dig. Our infrastructure is designed for that. Losing 4 points in a rather small area is not something the design calls for.
My goal is not to create some mysterious mood or hysteria. I do hope you will either review or begin your emergency preparedness plans. Have food and water in your home to be prepared for three or four days of interruption. Because in the end, it won't matter earthquake, snowstorm, or a man-made disaster. When you cannot buy food or water, your going to come up on the short end of the stick, and you won't be happy.
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