use of articles

[hela]

Dear teachers,

Would you please tell me:

1) Why isn’t there an article in 1, 2, 7, 8, 9 & 10 ?
2) What’s the meaning of “alert public” in 3 ?
3) In 4, 5 & 6 we don’t use a definite article because we are referring to a general concept ?

Washington, D.C. - - 1 Congressman Neil Abercrombie voted today for 2 House passage of the Child Abduction Prevention Act (H.R. 1104), a bill to establish a nationwide system to broadcast public alerts of child abduction incidents.
“An 3 alert public is an important tool to help 4 police respond to these terrible crimes,” said Abercrombie. “Getting the message out quickly is the key. The AMBER system uses the public’s concern to provide information that can lead to 5 rescue of the child and 6 apprehension of the criminal.”

Establishment of a nationwide AMBER alert program received 7 impetus recently when Ed Smart, father of teenage abductee Elizabeth Smart, appealed to 8 Congress to pass the measure.

The AMBER program is named after Amber Hagerman, a 9-year-old girl abducted and killed in Arlington, Texas, in 1996.
The bill passed by the House today directs that the Attorney General appoint an officer in the Justice Department to act as a national AMBER coordinator, whose responsibilities include working with broadcasters, the Federal Communications Commission, the U.S. Department of Transportation, and law enforcement agencies to establish standards for 9 notification and 10 issuance of child abduction alerts.

Thank you very much indeed,
Hela

[Tdol]

1- no need for the artcile when you give the name. Drop the name and you'll need one.
2- House passage is a general term for the process, so it's not specific
3- it means that the public are keeping the eyes and ears open
4/5/6- I'd actually use an article there, but he's talking in general
7- I'd only used the article with impetus when I went on to describe its specific nature
8- Congress but the Senate- it doesn't often havce an article, in BrE at least
9/10 General not specific

[hela]

Dear tdol,

Is an "alert public" the same as a "public alert"?

Thank you very much for your help.
Hela