Hey, nothing else seems to be working -- why not draft up some brightly colored, high-pitched furballs on Sesame Street to help prepare for the War on Terror? That's just what Homeland Security chief Michael Chertoff and his wife, Meryl, have done, with the help of Sesame Workshop and the Ad Council.
"It's a fact of life that not every day is a sunny day," Sesame Workshop explained, tongue not planted in cheek. "Recent events have exposed families to a range of disasters; the aftermath of the Sept. 11 attacks in 2001 and Hurricane Katrina in 2005 have particularly emphasized the need to ensure children's physical and psychological protection. Despite this need, there are limited resources for families looking to instruct young children in how to proceed if an emergency situation occurs."
DHS' Ready Kids initiative is filling that void by distributing DVDs, magazines and other activity resources employing friendly neighborhood muppet legends like Grover and Rosalita and laying out the latest in preparedness strategies. But one wonders where the preparation ends, and the fear begins.
"The best way we know to look at emergency preparedness is really from the scope of making it nonthreatening," said Jeanette Betancourt, Sesame Workshop's vice president for outreach and educational practices.
If it were only that simple.
*Photo: Sesame Workshop *
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