Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano announced Wednesday that the United States would replace color coded terror alert system developed during the Bush administration. The new system, dubbed the NTAS (National Terror Advisory System), will take effect on April 26^th and issue only two types of alerts – “elevated” and “imminent.” From the DHS website:

“The NTAS Alerts will be based on the nature of the threat: in some cases, alerts will be sent directly to law enforcement or affected areas of the private sector, while in others, alerts will be issued more broadly to the American people through both official and media channels.”

Each alert will also contain a “sunset provision,” indicating when the threat expires. Alerts will also be broadcast via Twitter, Facebook and other social media websites. Standing alongside champion of civil liberties Peter King at a press conference in New York, Napolitano said “We don’t want people to live in fear; we want people to live in a state of alertness and awareness.” She added that “the United States cannot be put under a glass dome” and suggested that citizens should “provide people with more information.”

While the Obama Administration can pat itself on the back now for finally attempting to appear a little more rational about warning the public of terrorist attack than the Bush administration was, the NTAS system is basically the same idea wrapped up in a slicker package. After nearly a decade of living on yellow alert hoping for the potential of that color coded system to get bumped down to “guarded,” we get to teeter between a “high” risk and “severe” risk of a terrorist attack. In addition, the “if you see something, say something” campaign makes Ari Fleischer’s comments about Americans needing to “watch what they say” in 2001 seem almost quaint.

Once again, the more things appear to change, the more they stay the same. While DHS may not suggest we ransack hardware store shelves for duct tape and plastic sheeting anymore, we’re still expected to live in fear of something happening somewhere, sometime. Americans are still encouraged to spy on their neighbors. The only difference between today and yesterday is that now, Homeland Security will send terror alerts straight to your Facebook feed.