106
submitted 1 year ago by L4s@lemmy.world to c/technology@lemmy.world

FEMA and FCC Plan Nationwide Emergency Alert Test for Oct. 4, 2023. Messages Will be Sent to All TVs, Radios and Cell Phones::FEMA, in coordination with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), will conduct a nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System (EAS) and Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA) this fall.

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[-] lemann@lemmy.one 3 points 1 year ago

Unpopular take: I disabled emergency alerts on my device.

If I was in Japan or some other country where natural disasters are expected, there is a clear benefit to a mobile EAS.

But why exactly are governments starting to show an interest in EAS systems, in places where they seem to not be necessary or needed?

[-] jasondj@ttrpg.network 36 points 1 year ago

Well, one reason is that they’ve been utilized for Amber Alerts. Granted a lot of cities/states haven’t been able to figure out how to practically scope the announcements, but they are helpful.

Another is the ever-changing climate. My region (Southern New England) rarely ever gets tornados. We had three a few weeks ago. One was in my hometown, and another was a couple of blocks from my bosses house. So while you may not be “prone” to natural disasters, that is likely to change.

That said, if there ever were a reason to activate a National EAS, we would probably feel a lot better not being warned. That situation would likely be for confirmed launch of several nuclear munitions, or an eminent meteor strike, or something else cataclysmic that a few minutes warning would really do nothing except fill our last moments with fear.

[-] mustardman@discuss.tchncs.de 7 points 1 year ago

That said, if there ever were a reason to activate a National EAS, we would probably feel a lot better not being warned.

Nukes coming, stay safe bro. Lol

[-] lemann@lemmy.one 6 points 1 year ago

That bit about being prone to natural disasters in future does make sense, considering how climate change is resulting in increased in sea levels and affecting other things too.

Thanks for your perspective!

[-] thecrotch@sh.itjust.works 2 points 1 year ago

How helpful are the amber alerts really? I'm not going to call the cops every time I see a green Hyundai, and if I see a kid in distress I'm going to call them with or without the alert

[-] draughtcyclist@programming.dev 10 points 1 year ago

I don't think it's as unpopular as you think. I've also disabled them due to frequency.

Too many alerts for everything at all times. Alert fatigue is real. I hate that I've done it, as I may miss something important.

[-] RoyalEngineering@lemmy.world 7 points 1 year ago

I have also disabled alerts.

That noise fills me with anxiety when I hear it.

[-] FurtiveFugitive@lemm.ee 2 points 1 year ago

While you can disable moist emergency alerts, I don't believe you can disable the national level alerts.

this post was submitted on 07 Sep 2023
106 points (94.9% liked)

Technology

58706 readers
4597 users here now

This is a most excellent place for technology news and articles.


Our Rules


  1. Follow the lemmy.world rules.
  2. Only tech related content.
  3. Be excellent to each another!
  4. Mod approved content bots can post up to 10 articles per day.
  5. Threads asking for personal tech support may be deleted.
  6. Politics threads may be removed.
  7. No memes allowed as posts, OK to post as comments.
  8. Only approved bots from the list below, to ask if your bot can be added please contact us.
  9. Check for duplicates before posting, duplicates may be removed

Approved Bots


founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS