(FORTUNE Magazine) – The calamities of Sept. 11 struck New York and Washington, D.C., but as the country mobilizes, spiritual leadership is coming from 3,000 miles away. BEVERLY HILLS HAS SIGNIFICANT ROLE IN THE WAR ON TERRORISM, reads the headline of a recent front-page editorial in the Beverly Hills Courier. "Since this is one of the most enviously watched cities on earth," the editorial opines, "people everywhere look to Beverly Hills for inspiration."

The citizens of Los Angeles and environs seem to have a bad case of target envy. They're convinced that L.A. just has to be at the head of any list of worthy targets. And why? Because the entertainment industry is there, along with many extremely important celebrities, whose existence is central to the national psyche.

So the Emmy Awards ceremonies have been postponed twice--not just out of propriety but because celebrities are afraid of large gatherings. (The awards have since been moved to a smaller venue.) All roads leading into Beverly Hills were barricaded within hours of the Trade Center collapse; Disneyland was also shuttered, just in case attractions like Pirates of the Caribbean drew an attack. And TV Guide reports that besides carrying Cipro, American Pie star Shannon Elizabeth keeps a gas mask and suit in her car and is looking to buy masks for her dogs.

Thus far, thank goodness, L.A. has escaped actual harm, while less obvious targets like Boca Raton, Fla., Trenton, N.J., and Reno attracted more than their fair share of attention. But no one can outdo L.A. in screaming "Me! Me! Me!" and the city is making sure it is front and center in helping people cope.

Just four days after the disaster, many celebrities in Los Angeles generously gave of their time to raise money in a concert telethon. Then again, perhaps the stars were atoning for their sins. Robert Altman, the famous director, says Hollywood caused all the problems in the first place. "Nobody would have thought to commit an atrocity like that unless they'd seen it in a movie," he told the BBC.

Los Angeles isn't the only town to batten down the hatches. Anthrax-panicked people in plenty of other places think evildoers are trying to kill them; they've bombarded authorities with suspicious goods ranging from moldy fruit to talcum powder scraped from dresser drawers. New Yorkers are afflicted with their own brand of one-upmanship too. Getting as close as possible to ground zero confers all sorts of status, and volunteering has become a competitive sport.

That is sick, but not as sick as L.A.'s vaingloriousness. Los Angelenos have been spared visions of tail fins sticking out of their landmarks. This New Yorker thinks they should be glad to be out of the spotlight.