The Washington Monthly's Monthly journalism award.

• Position: Brief Article

"How We Got Homeland Security Wrong" Time March 29, 2004

Perhaps the most arresting thing about Ripley's brilliantly reported. cleverly written story about me absurdities of the homeland security grant system is the photo of the Cheyenne, Wyo., Haz-Matteam weaning globular silver space age suits, paid for by the Department of Homeland Security and designed to help pick up after chemical spills Ripley's narrative picks up an old Monthly narrative:even new federal funding streams are subject to the same old rules of pork-barrel politics. Thus, writes Ripley, [T]he vast majority of the $13.1 billion was distributed with no regard for the threats, vulnerabilities and potential consequences faced by each region." Hence, Alaska has been awarded $58 per capita for homeland defense, while New York gets only $25. The best-funded state per capita is Wyoming, which has enough federal dollars to buy" enough protective hazmat suits for every...