[GreenKeys] Re Vulnerablity of today's comms systems

[Blake Bowers]

While I don't disagree, there are a few points.

The towers and repeaters were not really nuclear hardened, although tougher 
than nails.  AT&T relied more on avoidance.  From NY to LA, there were 
hundreds of ways to make that route.    Long distance switching centers were 
outside of the major metro areas, hence Mounds OK was built to withstand 
Tulsa being taken out by attack.

The cable routes were normally hardened to survive close (but not direct) 
attack.

And most (but certainly not all) cell sites have gensets now a days.




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----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Rokumon Cat" <rokumoncat at yahoo.com>
To: <GreenKeys at mailman.qth.net>
Sent: Tuesday, October 18, 2011 12:15 PM
Subject: [GreenKeys] Re Vulnerablity of today's comms systems


Sorry for the double post, my bad.

Anyway,

Maybe they have heard of EMP. I doubt that they understand it. Not many do, 
even in the radio field. I also have more than just a hunch that the bottom 
line of ATT has much more to do with their unfailing "standards" than 
reliability of their network. Such was not the case back in the days when 
our nation gave a darn about things such as this, before Ma Bell was raped 
by the anti-corporatists.

I take it that you do not have to put up with the 'new' ATT service techs. 
Oh, I should say non-service. But that is not the point here. Unless ATT has 
put all of their superbly hardened solid state computerized wonders 50 feet 
underground (I doubt it) and unless they have true backup (not just 6 hours 
worth of batteries), and unless EVERY computer (ultra reliable of course) on 
their network is fully duplicated in seperate bunkers that has proper 
Faraday sheilding, then no, I don't believe it. I suspect that even the old 
cold war Long Lines Microwave system had more reliability than their 
superdeduper computerized excuse of a phone network. Save a direct hit with 
a nuke (and I mean direct), those microwave stations were truly hardened. By 
contrast, look at those cell towers that everyone hangs their safety and 
even lives upon. You know, the ones that will not work when Airforce one is 
in town. (And it doesn't mattter who owns the tower. They are all
 vulnerable.) The actual towers are probably the sturdiest thing about them, 
the (computerized, I might add) electronics are stuffed in little fiberglass 
huts that are delivered by dropping them off of a truck. Most do not even 
have backup generators. A good windstorm or (God forbid) an earthquake, and 
down come the cell towers, and then down goes the sanity of a nation 
addicted to TV on I-phones. (That part makes me snicker actually...) It 
would take more than a windstorm or earthquake to take out an old Long Lines 
microwave station. A whole lot more. So much more that the bean counters at 
ATT (or any other modern day teleco) would ever allow such things to be 
built today.

Yeah, the computerized networks might be able to be reconfigured by some 
computer geek from some office in where ever. But survivability is a whole 
lot more than reconfigurability. Give me 1960's cold war phone tech any day 
over this house of cards telecom system we have today.

Joe