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ERF Wireless to build $5 million network for Louisiana police and public
Unique deal bolsters Louisiana State Police communications while also serving poorer rural areas; local banks, who will also have access, will foot most of the bill, but the police will provide the towers; a unique financing arrangement provides a model for other company’s seeking a PR boost
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Arizona defense industry looks to the past and future
Experts say the state is well-positioned to take advantage of increased spending on missile defense and other advanced systems; should these receive the axe under the new Democratic congress, older contracts for ATK and General Dynamics, among others, will keep the economy afloat
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FCC declines to consider Cyren Call's public safety band proposal
Improving communication among first responders and rescue units is a pressing topic, and one proposal, advanced by Cyren Call, calls for allocating 30 MHz in the 700 MHz band for public safety purposes; the wireless industry opposes the plan, and the FCC says it contradicts the wishes of Congress
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Homeland Integrated Security Systems's Cyber Tracker to monitor NY school buses
GPS-plus devices include sensors that monitor everything from internal temperature to vehicle speed; school districts want to avoid another Chowchilla while keeping eyes on their drivers
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Virginia asks emergency responders to use common language
Approach takes HSPD-5 and NIMS requirements seriously by asking agencies to abandon 10-codes; confusion often resulted during inter-agency responses due to different associated meanings
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Criticism continues of Congressional formula for state terror funds disbursement
If a camel is a horse designed by committee, than the grants DHS gives states for terror preparedness are more a camel than a horse; the reason: The formula for allocating these grants was designed by a committee — a Congressional committee, that is
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Department of Education awards emergency preparedness grants
Seventy-four schools will receive a total of $23 million for staff training and equipment purchases
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ShotSpotter technology deployed to Minneapolis
Sensors immediately tell police the exact location of a fired shot; technology based on acoustic detection of muzzle blasts; data to aid criminal prosecutions
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Canadian government announces annual air security revenue, expenses
Deficits projected as security costs, number of travellers, mount; government plans to hold dwindling program surplus as check against future costs
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In-Q-Tel names new chief executive
Christopher Darby takes the reigns at the CIA’s venture capital arm; background in cybersecurity; succeeds Amit Yoran
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9/11, Katrina anniversaries highlight radio interoperability problems
Government grants have done little to improve municipal communications; New Orleans, Philadelphia, and Tulsa provide models of ongoing difficulties
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DHS launches information-sharing program with states
More information should lead to more effective law enforcement, and DHS next month will begin to share some of the information in its files with the states; first will be the personal and biometric information collected from travelers in the US-VISIT program; DHS also said that the number of illegal aliens in the U.S. reached 11 million
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States to DHS: Either fund the Real ID Act, or drop it
Congress gave states a May 2008 deadline to equip their citizens with driver’s licenses with biometric information and RFID techonlogy; U.S. citizens without such licneses will not be able to enter federal buildings, open bank accounts, or purchase airline tickets; states balk at the cost of the project, telling the federal government to fund it or drop it
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STG wins DHS contract for financial and accounting services
A leading IT and homeland security contractor announces it had won a contract to manage financial infrastructure problems related to DHS consolidation.
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Arizona turns to wireless border security
Arizona equips its police units along the U.S.-Mexican border with wireless connection to the Internet
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The long view
Factories First: Winning the Drone War Before It Starts
Wars are won by factories before they are won on the battlefield,Martin C. Feldmann writes, noting that the United States lacks the manufacturing depth for the coming drone age. Rectifying this situation “will take far more than procurement tweaks,” Feldmann writes. “It demands a national-level, wartime-scale industrial mobilization.”
No Nation Is an Island: The Dangers of Modern U.S. Isolationism
The resurgence of isolationist sentiment in American politics is understandable but misguided. While the desire to refocus on domestic renewal is justified, retreating from the world will not bring the security, prosperity, or sovereignty that its proponents promise. On the contrary, it invites instability, diminishes U.S. influence, and erodes the democratic order the U.S. helped forge.
Fragmented by Design: USAID’s Dismantling and the Future of American Foreign Aid
The Trump administration launched an aggressive restructuring of U.S. foreign aid, effectively dismantling the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The humanitarian and geopolitical fallout of the demise of USAID includes shuttered clinics, destroyed food aid, and China’s growing influence in the global south. This new era of American soft power will determine how, and whether, the U.S. continues to lead in global development.
Water Wars: A Historic Agreement Between Mexico and US Is Ramping Up Border Tension
As climate change drives rising temperatures and changes in rainfall, Mexico and the US are in the middle of a conflict over water, putting an additional strain on their relationship. Partly due to constant droughts, Mexico has struggled to maintain its water deliveries for much of the last 25 years, deliveries to which it is obligated by a 1944 water-sharing agreement between the two countries.
How Disastrous Was the Trump-Putin Meeting?
In Alaska, Trump got played by Putin. Therefore, Steven Pifer writes, the European leaders and Zelensky have to “diplomatically offer suggestions to walk Trump back from a position that he does not appear to understand would be bad for Ukraine, bad for Europe, and bad for American interests. And they have to do so without setting off an explosion that could disrupt U.S.-Ukrainian and U.S.-European relations—all to the delight of Putin and the Kremlin.”
How Male Grievance Fuels Radicalization and Extremist Violence
Social extremism is evolving in reach and form. While traditional racial supremacy ideologies remain, contemporary movements are now often fueled by something more personal and emotionally resonant: male grievance.