--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Unfortunately, the cyber threat to 'the…" description: "\"Unfortunately, the cyber threat to 'the grid' is only one means of eviscerating the soft underbelly of American society. Another which has been getting..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04e/frank-gaffney-22333_american-society_unfortunately-the-cyber-threat-to-the-gr_2574999.png" --- # Unfortunately, the cyber threat to 'the grid' is only one… ![“Unfortunately, the cyber threat to 'the grid' is only one means of eviscerating the soft underbelly of American society. Another which has been getting increasing attention could be delivered via the kind of nuclear-armed ballistic missile that Iran and North Korea have been developing: a…” quote by Frank Gaffney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04e/frank-gaffney-22333_american-society_unfortunately-the-cyber-threat-to-the-gr_2574999.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04e/frank-gaffney-22333_american-society_unfortunately-the-cyber-threat-to-the-gr_2574999.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04e/frank-gaffney-22333_american-society_unfortunately-the-cyber-threat-to-the-gr_2574999.png) > “Unfortunately, the cyber threat to 'the grid' is only one means of eviscerating the soft underbelly of American society. Another which has been getting increasing attention could be delivered via the kind of nuclear-armed ballistic missile that Iran and North Korea have been developing: a strategic electro-magnetic pulse attack.” [Frank Gaffney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-gaffney/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A nuclear‑armed ballistic missile could deliver an EMP, crippling the U.S. power grid and exposing societal vulnerabilities. **In simple terms:** EMP attacks threaten critical infrastructure, causing widespread disruption. Key Takeaway Strengthen infrastructure resilience against EMP threats. Themes security technology geopolitics Mood cautious urgent Type strategic policy When to use this quote - policy planning - emergency preparedness - infrastructure upgrades Key Concepts risk assessment national defense Questions to Reflect On - How can societies prepare for low‑probability, high‑impact events? - What policies best balance security and civil liberties? A Different Perspective Mitigation costs and political hurdles may impede action. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [American society](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-society/) [Attention](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attention/) [Hacker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hacker/) [Iran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/iran/) [Korea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/korea/) [North korea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/north-korea/) [Nuclear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nuclear/) [Threat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/threat/) ## Related quotes > [In order to have greater visibility of the larger cyber threat landscape, we must remove the government bureaucratic stovepipes that inhibit our abilities to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-mccaul/in-order-to-have-greater-visibility-of-the-larger-cyber-threat/) [Michael McCaul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-mccaul/) > [In the future, the cyber threat will equal or even eclipse the terrorist threat,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-mueller/in-the-future-the-cyber-threat-will-equal-or-even-eclipse-the/) [Robert Mueller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-mueller/) > [We're well aware, and we have been for a long time, that there is a real threat from adversaries, state actors, non-state actors, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-rice/we-re-well-aware-and-we-have-been-for-a-long-time-that-there-is-a/) [Susan Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-rice/) > [As the United States attorney in Manhattan, I have come to worry about few things as much as the gathering cyber threat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/preet-bharara/as-the-united-states-attorney-in-manhattan-i-have-come-to-worry-about/) [Preet Bharara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/preet-bharara/) > [The most pervasive cyber threat to the U.S. financial sector is from cyber criminals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-clapper/the-most-pervasive-cyber-threat-to-the-u-s-financial-sector-is-from/) [James Clapper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-clapper/) > [The cyber threat has evolved dramatically since I left DOJ in 2005, partly just reflecting how much the digital world has itself evolved over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-a-wray/the-cyber-threat-has-evolved-dramatically-since-i-left-doj-in-2005/) [Christopher A. Wray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-a-wray/) > [I'd turn off the internet for a month and make us actually talk to each other, and be responsible for your opinions and not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-larroquette/i-d-turn-off-the-internet-for-a-month-and-make-us-actually-talk-to/) [John Larroquette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-larroquette/) > [One of my first directives, after taking office, will be asking the Joint Chiefs of Staff and all relevant federal departments to conduct a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/one-of-my-first-directives-after-taking-office-will-be-asking-the/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [We've always had to worry about the electrical grid and nuclear facilities, and they remain a concern; but cyber-terrorism, you know, which is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-ve-always-had-to-worry-about-the-electrical-grid-and-nuclear/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [My view is that the cyber threat is bigger than any one government agency - or even the government itself. But the FBI brings…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-a-wray/my-view-is-that-the-cyber-threat-is-bigger-than-any-one-government/) [Christopher A. Wray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-a-wray/) > [I have been interested in the dialogue of abstraction and modernist painting - and the rich history of the grid. I also think I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-beal/i-have-been-interested-in-the-dialogue-of-abstraction-and-modernist/) [Stephen Beal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-beal/) > [The grid is like the lines on a football field. You can play a great game in the grid or a lousy game. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wim-crouwel/the-grid-is-like-the-lines-on-a-football-field-you-can-play-a-great/) [Wim Crouwel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wim-crouwel/) > [I've been a writer and a parent since adolescence, it feels like, and I'm still making both gigs up as I go along. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-winton/i-ve-been-a-writer-and-a-parent-since-adolescence-it-feels-like-and-i/) [Tim Winton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-winton/) > [The government built the grid to favor one industry over others. But I don't hear any conservatives screaming about that. Folks don't understand that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/van-jones/the-government-built-the-grid-to-favor-one-industry-over-others-but-i/) [Van Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/van-jones/) > [I live in Mexico in the wintertime, and I live off the grid down there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-ventura/i-live-in-mexico-in-the-wintertime-and-i-live-off-the-grid-down-there/) [Jesse Ventura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-ventura/) ## More by Frank Gaffney > [The United Nations has long sought the ability to raise revenues in this manner as a means of reducing its reliance on American and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-gaffney/the-united-nations-has-long-sought-the-ability-to-raise-revenues-in/) [Frank Gaffney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-gaffney/) > [The object of China's strategy is inexorably to supplant the United States as the world's premier economic power, and if necessary, to defeat us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-gaffney/the-object-of-china-s-strategy-is-inexorably-to-supplant-the-united/) [Frank Gaffney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-gaffney/) > [If the area were on or near the U.S. continental shelf, such data could well provide an enemy with strategically invaluable insights into undersea…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-gaffney/if-the-area-were-on-or-near-the-u-s-continental-shelf-such-data-could/) [Frank Gaffney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-gaffney/) > [After America won the Cold War, some believed we had come to the 'end of history,' and budget-cutters celebrated the so-called 'peace dividend.' 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He recognized the strategic importance of staying the course, both in terms of denying Moscow the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-gaffney/to-his-lasting-credit-president-reagan-never-wavered-he-recognized/) [Frank Gaffney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-gaffney/) > [Barack Obama has exhibited sympathy, if not for the terrorists, then certainly for the Islamic supremacists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-gaffney/barack-obama-has-exhibited-sympathy-if-not-for-the-terrorists-then/) [Frank Gaffney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-gaffney/) > [The most desirable aspects of the Law of the Sea Treaty pertain to navigational rights.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-gaffney/the-most-desirable-aspects-of-the-law-of-the-sea-treaty-pertain-to/) [Frank Gaffney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-gaffney/) > [Most Americans will be horrified that President Obama is compromising our deterrent to chemical and biological attacks on this country. Our allies will also…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-gaffney/most-americans-will-be-horrified-that-president-obama-is-compromising/) [Frank Gaffney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-gaffney/) > [But I really believe it is in America's interest as well as that of the free world more generally to stop Iran from getting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-gaffney/but-i-really-believe-it-is-in-america-s-interest-as-well-as-that-of/) [Frank Gaffney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-gaffney/) > [Sharia has become an increasingly significant force in American capitalism, thanks to the embrace by Wall Street and the U.S. government of so-called Sharia-Compliant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-gaffney/sharia-has-become-an-increasingly-significant-force-in-american/) [Frank Gaffney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-gaffney/) > [Since the presidency of Ronald Reagan, conservatives have succeeded by adhering to a platform that rests firmly on three legs: smaller government, faith and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-gaffney/since-the-presidency-of-ronald-reagan-conservatives-have-succeeded-by/) [Frank Gaffney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-gaffney/) > [Dozens of nations have agreed to join in monitoring and, if necessary, intercepting and boarding ships on the high seas in the event they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-gaffney/dozens-of-nations-have-agreed-to-join-in-monitoring-and-if-necessary/) [Frank Gaffney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-gaffney/) > [History demonstrates that previous military drawdowns invited aggression by our enemies. After World War I, America drew down forces until the U.S. Army had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-gaffney/history-demonstrates-that-previous-military-drawdowns-invited/) [Frank Gaffney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-gaffney/) > [The more we are consuming oil that either comes from places that are bent on our destruction or helping those who are... the more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-gaffney/the-more-we-are-consuming-oil-that-either-comes-from-places-that-are/) [Frank Gaffney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-gaffney/) [Explore all 27 Frank Gaffney quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-gaffney/) ## More American society quotes > [The contempt for law and the contempt for the human consequences of lawbreaking go from the bottom to the top of American society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/the-contempt-for-law-and-the-contempt-for-the-human-consequences-of/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [American society is now remarkably atomized. 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No one reduces the presidency…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bakari-kitwana/hip-hop-is-contributing-to-american-society-s-misogyny-and-racism/) [Bakari Kitwana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bakari-kitwana/) > [I believe it is essential to have English as the official language of our National Government, for the English language is the tie that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-sensenbrenner/i-believe-it-is-essential-to-have-english-as-the-official-language-of/) [Jim Sensenbrenner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-sensenbrenner/) > [Black people cannot and will not become integrated into American society on any terms but those of self-determination and autonomy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerda-lerner/black-people-cannot-and-will-not-become-integrated-into-american/) [Gerda Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerda-lerner/) > [Black people in America have to, for their own protection, develop a defense mechanism, and I just grew terribly tired of it. 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