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Sector Report for Friday, 9 September 2011: Terrorism / counterterrorism
This report contains the following stories.
Plus 7 additional stories
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Al Qaeda "very much alive"; U.S. needs to be "aggressive and preemptive"
Representative Peter King (R-New York), the chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, reflects back on the 9/11 attacks, discusses critical lessons learned, and the greatest threats facing the United States over the next decade; “—we have largely learned that we need to be aggressive and preemptive when it comes to our national security. Increasingly, we do not wait for an attack before we respond, but we go after and disrupt the threat before an attack can be launched; Law enforcement at all levels must follow suit, thinking more imaginatively and “outside the box.”
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We are in an "era of terror": individuals, small groups can kill on a mass scale
Graham Allison, the director of the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, discusses nuclear terrorism in a post 9/11 world, the progress the United States has made at home and abroad in securing loose nuclear weapons and materials, the need to strengthen security measures protecting low-grade nuclear stockpiles at hospitals, and the dangerous threat that nuclear terrorism still poses
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U.S again under threat
New York City and the District of Columbia respond to “specific, credible but unconfirmed” intelligence of an impending attack; information obtained indicates a vehicle-borne bomb; NYPD deploys boats, armored vehicles and a 1,000-member counter-terror force
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Apathy a "central threat" to nuclear security, says expert
Corey Hinderstein, the vice president of the International Program at the Nuclear Threat Initiative, looks back on the progress made in securing loose nuclear material in the ten years since 9/11; more specifically, Hinderstein discusses the likelihood of al Qaeda obtaining a nuclear bomb or nuclear material, bolstering security at medical and industrial facilities that have stockpiles of low-grade nuclear material, and the dangers of apathy
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The "lost decade" of cybersecurity: adversaries outpace cyber-defenses
Anup Ghosh, the founder and CEO of Invincea, a firm that specializes in developing cybersecurity solutions, discusses the failures of the U.S. government in cybersecurity, emerging technologies that can help keep networks safe, and the havoc that terrorists can wreak via a cyberattack
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Congress should permanently authorize chemical security bill
Calvin Dooley, president and CEO of the American Chemistry Council and a former U.S. Congressman, discusses the efforts to date of the chemical industry to secure its facilities, the need for Congress permanently to authorize a regulatory regime, and the fallacies of a one-size fits all approach to chemical security
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Counter-terrorism expert: Domestic radicalization "blown out of proportion"
David Schanzer, the director of the Triangle Center on Terrorism and Homeland Security and an associate professor in Public Policy at Duke University, discusses the over inflation of the threat from domestic radicalization, ways to prevent young Muslim Americans from becoming radicalized, and the opportunity that the Arab Spring has presented the United States
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Emergency communication remains a challenge ten years after 9/11
Chris Russo, a twenty-five year firefighting veteran, a 9/11 first responder, and the founder of ELERTS Corporation, discusses the challenges first responders face in communicating with each other in major disasters, the lack of progress made to create an inter-operable system for emergency responders, and how technology is changing how authorities communicate and interact with the public during major disasters
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TSA: Aviation security "stronger and more secure" ten years later
Lisa Farbstein, a spokesperson for the Transportation Security Administration (TSA); discusses new technologies implemented by TSA and DHS and the agency’s shift to a more risk-based approach to passenger screening
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Mexican border agents cross into U.S. again without permission
A national watchdog group warns that incursions along the southern border by the Mexican government could be a serious potential security threat
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California lawmakers approve Dream Act
Last week California legislators approved a controversial bill that would allow undocumented workers to receive state loans for college
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DHS failed to prevent abuse of purchase cards
A new DHS Inspector General report found that more than 90 percent of DHS’ purchase card transactions did not comply with guidelines established by the Office of Management and Budget; investigators found two Federal Aviation Administration employees had used the cards to purchase more than $150,000 worth of personal goods and services
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"No containment" for Texas wildfires
Currently there is no end in sight for the wildfires that are raging out of control in central Texas, despite the best efforts of firefighters to contain the conflagrations; “There’s no containment right now,” said the director of the Texas Forest Service; high winds from Tropical Storm Lee, a severe drought, and a lack of rain have fueled the fire and made it nearly impossible to control
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Michigan could dodge defense cuts
With Congress seeking to make potential cuts in defense spending and contractors bracing for reductions across the country, Michigan’s $385 billion defense industrial base remains optimistic as it could get by unscathed; key lawmakers say the types of services that Michigan’s defense industry provides could keep it from becoming the target of the newly formed Joint Selection Committee on Deficit Reduction
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The long view
Kinetic Operations Bring Authoritarian Violence to Democratic Streets
Foreign interference in democracies has a multifaceted toolkit. In addition to information manipulation, the tactical tools authoritarian actors use to undermine democracy include cyber operations, economic coercion, malign finance, and civil society subversion.
Patriots’ Day: How Far-Right Groups Hijack History and Patriotic Symbols to Advance Their Cause, According to an Expert on Extremism
Extremist groups have attempted to change the meaning of freedom and liberty embedded in Patriots’ Day — a commemoration of the battles of Lexington and Concord – to serve their far-right rhetoric, recruitment, and radicalization. Understanding how patriotic symbols can be exploited offers important insights into how historical narratives may be manipulated, potentially leading to harmful consequences in American society.
Trump Aims to Shut Down State Climate Policies
President Donald Trump has launched an all-out legal attack on states’ authority to set climate change policy. Climate-focused state leaders say his administration has no legal basis to unravel their efforts.
Vaccine Integrity Project Says New FDA Rules on COVID-19 Vaccines Show Lack of Consensus, Clarity
Sidestepping both the FDA’s own Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee and the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), two Trump-appointed FDA leaders penned an opinion piece in the New England Journal of Medicine to announce new, more restrictive, COVID-19 vaccine recommendations. Critics say that not seeking broad input into the new policy, which would help FDA to understand its implications, feasibility, and the potential for unintended consequences, amounts to policy by proclamation.
Twenty-One Things That Are True in Los Angeles
To understand the dangers inherent in deploying the California National Guard – over the strenuous objections of the California governor – and active-duty Marines to deal with anti-ICE protesters, we should remind ourselves of a few elementary truths, writes Benjamin Wittes. Among these truths: “Not all lawful exercises of authority are wise, prudent, or smart”; “Not all crimes require a federal response”; “Avoiding tragic and unnecessary confrontations is generally desirable”; and “It is thus unwise, imprudent, and stupid to take actions for performative reasons that one might reasonably anticipate would increase the risks of such confrontations.”
Luigi Mangione and the Making of a ‘Terrorist’
Discretion is crucial to the American tradition of criminal law, Jacob Ware and Ania Zolyniak write, noting that “lawmakers enact broader statutes to empower prosecutors to pursue justice while entrusting that they will stay within the confines of their authority and screen out the inevitable “absurd” cases that may arise.” Discretion is also vital to maintaining the legitimacy of the legal system. In the prosecution’s case against Luigi Mangione, they charge, “That discretion was abused.”