Topic: Issues in Homeland Security and Course Wrap Up
Answer the following questions in your thread:
●What do you see as the number one most pressing issue regarding homeland security, and
why do you say this?
●What are your solutions to this issue?
●Did this course cause you to change your mind or opinion about anything related to
homeland security? If so, what was it?
●Why or why not? Maybe something was reinforced—if so, explain.
●What was the most important thing you learned in this course, and why (an "aha"
moment)?
The most pressing issue regarding homeland security is being in front of cyberterrorism.
Cyberterrorism is an extreme and modern form of terrorism that can be destructive from any part
of the world. Since billions of people all over the world have access to some sort of device that
can connect to the internet, there will always be a larger threat every day. The threat to
communications in the United States is always growing. The author of America’s Critical
Infrastructure: Threats, Vulnerabilities and Solutions states, “Yet, the sector is vulnerable to
extreme weather impact, as well as to the dangers of aging and terrorist attacks”(Tal, 2018). The
communications sector is extremely vulnerable, and is always a growing potential threat to the
infrastructure. It is because there are those who have goals to take down modernized cities and
countries, and are able to do so just by hacking into the correct servers. The United States has to
monitor any potential threats they face every day. If the counterterrorism units have just one
hiccup, someone could hack into the energy systems, traffic systems, and nuclear plants. The fact
that most of the critical infrastructure sectors are controlled by computers and technology makes
them all threats to any criminal hacker.
There are ways to solve the issue of ongoing threats cyberterrorism against the United
States. The chief of Homeland Security stated that the, “...agency ‘was founded 15 years ago to
prevent another 9/11. I believe an attack of that magnitude is now more likely to reach us online
than on an airplane’”(Nielsen, 2018, as cited in Lynch, 2018). She believes that the threats are no
longer in the physical form, but instead major threats take the form of the cyber field. The
counterterrorism department needs to make sure they are always ahead of any potential threats
that could happen to the sixteen critical infrastructure sectors. They need to be on the constant
lookout for any potential weaknesses that these sectors could face. There are intelligent people
all over the world, and unfortunately some of them use their knowledge and the technology they
have access to destroy innocent lives.
This course lead to my beliefs being heightened regarding the importance of homeland
security. The country is vulnerable with all of the critical infrastructure sectors and many points
of entry for deviants to induce destruction towards the innocent people of the United States. I do
believe that there is a lot that homeland security does behind the scenes that most people do not
know about. I learned that there is a lot of planning and preparation that goes into the work of
making sure many disasters do not occur, and if they do occur, there is a plan in place to keep
everyone safe. Homeland security makes sure that people who are involved in NRF, NIMS ,and
ICS are always planning ahead. It is always made sure that there are agencies and first
responders available in case of any disaster, whether a natural disaster or terrorist attack. I have
learned a great deal from this course, and always continue my eagerness for learning something
new every day. As the Bible states, “An intelligent heart acquires knowledge, and the ear of the
wise seeks knowledge”(Proverbs 18:15, ESV). I believe that you should always try to learn in
life because knowledge is the greatest power that one can have. I have learned a lot from reading
the opinions and beliefs from all of my classmates, and I hope I brought the same amount of
intellect to inform some of my classmates as well.
References:
Holy Bible, ESV
Lynch, J. (2018, September 11). On 9/11 anniversary, DHS says cyber threat has eclipsed
terrorism. Retrieved March 6, 2019, from
https://www.fifthdomain.com/civilian/dhs/2018/09/11/on-911-anniversary-dhs-says-
cyber-threat-has-eclipsed-terrorism/
Tal, J. (2018, September 20). America's Critical Infrastructure: Threats, Vulnerabilities and
Solutions. Retrieved March 6, 2019, from https://www.securityinfowatch.com/access-
identity/access-control/article/12427447/americas-critical-infrastructure-threats-
vulnerabilities-and-solutions
Responses:
Hey James,
I enjoyed reading your post in the final discussion board. There are many issues regarding
Homeland Security today, and there are ways to fix these issues. The DHS has grown a lot since
September 11, 2001 prior to their creation. They need to change and evolve with the rest of the
country and world. As technology grows so does the intelligence of everyone. I too felt that this
course heightened my understanding of the ideas of Homeland Security as a whole. The article i
attached is about how the DHS has grown. The author states, “The Department of Homeland
Security (DHS), which celebrates its tenth birthday this March, has grown into a miniature
Pentagon” (Kramer & Hellman, 2015, par. 3). The author believes that the DHS has grown so
fast and into a miniature version of the Pentagon. The Bible states, “Practice these things,
immerse yourself in them, so that all may see your progress” (Timothy 4:15). The Bible just
wants everyone to know that where there is growth, there will be progress associated with it.
References:
Holy Bible, ESV
Kramer, M., & Hellman, C. (2015, June 29). 'Homeland Security': The Trillion-Dollar Concept
That No One Can Define. Retrieved March 8, 2019, from
https://www.thenation.com/article/homeland-security-trillion-dollar-concept-no-one-can-define/
Hello Consuela,
I enjoyed reading your last discussion post about everything you learned and gained from
this semester. I too believe sex trafficking to be an extremely alarming issue all over the world.
This leads to sex slavery and death of way too many young children and even young adults. The
article I found to be interesting was about the death toll thought to have come from human
smuggling and trafficking through the borders of the United States. The article states,
“‘Smugglers also take advantage of children and their families by extorting them with threats and
false promises,’ they said” (Yan, 2017, par. 21). I find this to be devastating that people could do
such a thing to hurt anyone, it is just extremely unfortunate. In the Bible it states, “While evil
people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived” (Timothy
3:13, ESV). The Bible says that people who deceive others are imposters and make things go
from bad to worse for everyone involved.
References:
Holy Bible, ESV
Yan, H. (2017, July 28). The deadly toll of human smuggling and trafficking in the US. Retrieved
March 8, 2019, from https://www.cnn.com/2017/07/28/us/migrant-deaths-and-human-
trafficking-by-the-numbers/index.html
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