The Secretary of Homeland Security visited Cincinnati Wednesday, and all I got was this lousy case of the jitters.

Secretary Tom Ridge kicked off a national media blitz designed to get every household prepped for terrorism.

In soon-to-air commercials that look like he's selling long-distance phone service, Ridge tells Americans that all we need are emergency kits filled with nonperishable food, water, first-aid supplies, flashlights and batteries.

And a plan for each family to hole up somewhere - just in case someone uses a dirty bomb or uses biological weapons in our corner of the country.

Prepping for disaster

It's like preparing for a hurricane or a tornado, he assures us, but with a twist.

If there's a chemical gas, he says, duct tape and plastic sheeting are necessary to give us a few hours' breath until it dissipates.

If there's a dirty or other kind of nuclear bomb that we somehow survive, we'll need food, water and a can opener until Kroger opens again.

So, if our kits are in order and our plans are set, we've done what our country requires of us, he says.

No matter the color-coded national threat, we'll be secure.

Funny. I'm not convinced.

North Korea's nuclear weapons capabilities, its tough talk and its long-range missiles still give me pause.

I doubt my emergency kit will help in a nuclear conflagration.

And what about other threats, nonterrorist, that are closer to home.

This week many credit-card holders were told a hacker compromised millions of our numbers.

Bank officials said they haven't detected any fraudulent use yet, but these are the Sherlocks who didn't notice the hacker in the first place.

A piece of the rock

And finally, just the other day, another rock of stability crumbled. My insurance company flinched.

State Farm sent policyholders notices that it won't cover bodily injury or damage to vehicles if they result from "nuclear reaction, radiation (or) radioactive contamination from any source (or) the accidental or intentional detonation of or release of radiation from any nuclear or radioactive device."

In other words, in case of a dirty bomb, don't bother filing a claim.

Whatever happened to "Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there"?

So, if I'm caught in nuclear fallout in the van, my family won't be able to collect.

Insurers nationwide are following suit, not just for car insurance but for other kinds of property and casualty claims.

On a larger scale, insurers have tried to exclude terrorism events from coverage of commercial buildings.

After Sept. 11, according to industry estimates, insurers faced $40 billion to $70 billion in claims.

At first, commercial insurers responded by rewriting their insurance plans to exclude future acts of terror.

But in November, President Bush signed the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act, which wiped out terrorism exclusions for commercial coverage.

The act mandates that by Feb. 24, insurers offer terrorism coverage to commercial policyholders and disclose the added premium costs.

For its part, the federal government agreed to help share some of the financial risk with insurers for at least three years.

Industry observers say that's a lifesaving backstop, which will give them enough time to properly assess and prepare for the financial risks of terrorism.

Meanwhile, I'm still in need of reassurance.

With $3.5 billion to be spent on homeland security, I want to know, where is my backstop?

E-mail damos@enquirer.com or phone 768-8395