Should national security depend on Michael Chertoffs gut?
“Gut Feelings” author Gerd Gigerenzer talks about the Bush administration’s hunches, how to make good decisions and why you should listen to your doctor. By Farhad Manjoo Jul. 30, 2007 | Early in July, Michael Chertoff, the secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, told the Chicago Tribune that though he had no specific information pointing to a new threat, his “gut feeling” suggested that the U.S. faced a heightened risk of a terrorist attack during the next couple of months. Summertime is an “appealing” time of year to the enemy, Chertoff said; it was natural to assume, then, that the season would once again bring “increased vulnerability.” Chertoff’s intestinal sixth sense was met, to put it mildly, with some skepticism. The Bush administration has not proved to be above pulling the trick of conveniently timed terror warnings; now, facing congressional rebuke on matters from Iraq to everything else, the White House obviously was once again aiming to distract us. But what ran
