Whereas equivalent disasters caused by natural forces (earthquakes and the like) would not endanger democratic institutions, a dozen successful terrorist attempts on democratic countries, on the scale of 9/11, might well bring about the irreversible imposition of authoritarian rule. The so-called “national security state” that grew up during the Cold War has made it acceptable for governments not to confide their emergency plans to the citizenry. Rorty proposes that governments make known what they plan to do in various contingencies as a way to lessen the danger of losing democratic freedoms.