http://armedservices.house.gov/comdocs/reports/2003exereports/03-09-22ncommand.pdf
http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/agency/dod/jfcom.htm
http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/node/37657
http://www.blackagendareport.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=864&Itemid=1
NORTHCOM doesn't seem so bad an idea for being prepared to assist. I agree, the military can do a lot of good, in a professional and organized manor, in a regionally located disaster. A lot of the "what ifs" disaster and new command structures were outlined and planned during the Reagan Administration. However, 911 resurrected that initial strategy to a new level. After all, how bad can 20,000 troops be? In addition to their main function of "assisting", they have containers prepared for non-lethal, and lethal use (just in case). These new 20,000 troops are seasoned folk, more specialized in counter terrorism than current personnel. At first, this does not seem to be such a big deal, but when is the last time something like this was done in the U.S.? It starts to get interesting knowing how Homeland Security works, FEMA, and that ultimately the Allied Command Transformation (some interesting folks over there in Virginia) can become involved, and they will be controlled ultimately by the U.S. Joint Forces Command, who, if called upon must report to NATO, who will be influenced by the U.N. So, if the SHTF, and it reaches the level of ACT or USJFC within our own borders or globally, just exactly what is going to be going on, and just how big can this thing get? Why has the U.S. government spent millions and millions of dollars, much of it buried in pork projects under various bills, for various states, during the past 6-8 years to beef up and modernize old military camps and detention centers that are not being used, but are being staffed currently by skeleton crews? This is a lot of planning and preparation for a "just in case". We must believe that a large natural catastrophe or larger scale terror assault (nuclear, bio, etc.) must be higher in odds than we would like to think. That, or maybe the disaster is going to be a major economic collapse. While it can not be known for certain exactly what did get discussed during the closed session of the 20th Congress in March (a pretty rare event), it no doubt was serious. Had it been only a political ruse to push the FISA issue through, the minutes would have been released due to so many people being upset by the misuse of the closed sesssion. The bipartisan decision was not to release the minutes. It only lasted 1-2 hours, so it wasn't about the end of the world, but it was serious enough that a lot of politicians were pretty unhappy about it, and angry over not being able to share it.
If, somehow, for some reason, Martial Law is ever declared, or if NATO becomes involved (for whatever reason), the rules of game change quite a bit. I am glad we have the dedicated and professional service folk that we do, and we should be very grateful for them, and proud of them. However, if things ever get to this level, I would really hate to be in their shoes, and a lot of stuff is going to be going through their heads. It would be a major acid test. We have dropped the ball so many times already on truly following the Constitution, that I hope all Americans stay true to what has served us well, and for which so many have served and sacrificed for.