Keeping the Homeland Secure

An interesting mix of directions in homeland security.

There's a blog called Homeland Security Watch. It's been about what you might expect, but I track it to see if there are any interesting (or frightening) trends. Over the last week, the bloggers there seem to be developing some sympathy for Occupy Wall Street.

More than a few commentators have begun to suggest in some subtle and not-so-subtle ways that the Arab Spring could be followed by an American Fall. As homeland security professionals, we might rightly ask ourselves what this means for us. Which side are we on? Do we stand with the state or the citizens?

I don’t know about any of you, but I’m not eager to play the part of the Egyptian Army if Zuccotti Park becomes the new Tahrir Square.

After the out-of-control cop sprayed kettled protesters with pepper spray, I saw something about 100 NYPD officers refusing to act against the protesters. Haven't seen any followup.

More from Homeland Security Watch, not clear if this is sympathetic:

Let’s see, Arab Spring: Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Bahrain, Syria, Yemen, Israel, Algeria, Iraq, Jordan, Morocco, Oman, Kuwait, Lebanon, Mauritania, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Western Sahara.

Unemployed people with cell phones, twitter accounts, facebook pages, youtube feeds.

Now there’s a 21st century risk.

I wonder if it is included in the Strategic National Risk Assessment.

The folks over there also seem to have found a paper bag to breathe into on nuclear terrorism. Or perhaps it's Thomas Schelling's credentials that convinced them.

Unfortunately, as that one group of voices seems to be settling back from terrorist-induced panic after only ten years, the Department of Homeland Security seems to be working toward bigger and better things: a full-up security zone all along the Canadian border; making sure that private pilots aren't hiding anything in their flight plans; and the usual TSA assaulting of people who want to fly while prosthetized.