HLSC 500 DB #1
Based on your opinion and your references answer the following questions in your
thread. Homeland Security might be viewed as one agency, that being DHS, but for the
purpose of this forum view homeland security as a verb with all the stakeholders who
carry this action out.
What does homeland security mean?
Homeland security is hard to define, according to Bellavita (2008). Bellavita (2008)
states that there are seven parts of homeland security that can be defended: terrorism,
all hazards, terrorism and catastrophes, jurisdictional hazards, meta hazards, national
security, and security über alles. Homeland Security in the United States focuses on the
prevention and reduction of both natural and man-made disasters (Lansford et al.,
2010). In 2002, the Homeland Security Council labeled homeland security as a
combined national effort to prevent terrorist attacks within the United States, diminish
America’s vulnerability to terrorism, and curtail the damage and recover from attacks
that do occur.
What is the mission of homeland security?
The day before the 9/11 terrorist attack, a Pentagon briefing from US Secretary of
Defense Donald Rumsfeld proclaimed that the most significant threat to the United
States was Pentagon bureaucracy, “which disrupts the defense of the U.S. and places
the lives of men and women in uniform at risk” (Lansford et al., 2010, p. 3). As the
Secretary of Defense, Rumsfeld should have been the most aware individual regarding
the defense of the United States. The events of the next day, September 11, 2001,
proved the vulnerability of the U.S. The mission of homeland security is to protect the
borders of the U.S., and protect the citizens of the U.S., from disasters.
How effective and efficient is homeland security?
I think there are some areas of homeland security that are given more of a focus, which
is not always effective or efficient. Before Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast in August
of 2005, I had lived in New Orleans for a number of years. I moved back to NY in May of
2005. To see the destruction of a city I had grown to love was incredibly difficult. To
know that the levee system was flawed, and nothing was done about it was difficult.
Had this been addressed, the destruction that was spread over Louisiana, Mississippi,
and Alabama could have been significantly reduced. While there has not been another
hurricane or natural disaster with the same destruction as Katrina, and while there has
not been another terrorist attack that was as “successful” as 9/11, the U.S. is still
dangerously unprepared to both prevent and respond to catastrophic events on U.S.
soil. According to Lansford et al. (2010), both natural and man-made disasters have and
will continue to increase in frequency and magnitude.
What interests you the most about homeland security (what part of it) and
why?
I think I’m most interested in ways that homeland security has changed over the aging
of our nation, and the ways it has stayed the same.
If you could fix any 1 thing completely within homeland security, what would it
be and why?
I would change the response time to disasters. I would also change the level of
preparedness prior to disasters and terrorist attacks. I would change these two issues
because it seems that the U.S. is recklessly unprepared or “backsliding” as we face
fewer issues and have more times between disasters and attacks.
Apply at least 1 biblical passage to the concept or practice of homeland
security. Explain why you picked the passage and what it means to you.
1 Corinthians 16:13 states, “Be on guard. Stand firm in the faith. Be courageous. Be
strong” (NLT). This verse can be used to describe the men and women who respond to
terrorist attacks and disaster. These words could also be a reminder for those in
leadership positions within our government.
References
Bellavita, C. (2008). Changing homeland security: What is homeland security?
Homeland Security Affairs, 4(02), 1-30. http://repository.bakrie.ac.id/54/
Lansford, T., Covarrubias, B., Carriere, B., & Miller, J. (2010). Resilience and Homeland
Security. In Fostering Community Resilience: Homeland Security and Hurricane
Katrina (1st ed., pp. 1-14). Routledge.
New Living Translation Bible. (2004). Tyndale House: Carol Stream, IL.
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