The General Accounting Office says many communities that have experienced base closures in the past have worked their way out of the dilemma. Some 85 percent of the civilian jobs lost were regained. Some communities are faring as well as places that didn't have bases.

But it's not easy. Some communities are one-trick ponies. Their economies are so intertwined with "their" military installations that they have never contemplated what they would do if someone pulled the plug. Community leaders in the Rust Belt and steel towns across the country learned that horrible lesson the hard way. Some are still struggling to recover. Their cautionary advice? "Diversify, diversify, diversify."

This is not to suggest a light-manufacturing plant for the next generation of hybrid vehicles is going to pop up in either Davis or Tooele County before Friday. It's too late for that.

But if HAFB, TAD or Dugway show up on the closure list, two central questions must be asked: Is there any way to get off this list? If not, where do we go from here?

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Marjorie Cortez is a Deseret Morning News editorial writer. E-mail: marjorie@desnews.com