CBP wants system to detect ultralights smuggling drugs – NextGov
The Homeland Security Department wants to purchase technology that can detect slow-moving, low-flying aircraft — typically called ultralights — that Mexican cartels use to smuggle drugs into the United States, according to a draft request for proposals released last week.
By a resounding and expected margin, Washington, DC Mayor Adrian Fenty was defeated for re-election by Council Chairman, Vincent Gray. While I am not a District resident or a Fenty fan, I was impressed with his results and more importantly, the people he put into positions of authority. For as much as I liked what Michelle Rhee, his hand-picked Schools Chancellor, did to fix the disaster known as DC Schools, it was his Police Chief, Cathy Lanier, who I think has done an outstanding job. Her leadership of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) has been inspiring on so many levels. I think she has shown herself to be an excellent leader in protecting the safety and security of the District’s citizens.
The National Suspicious Activity Reporting Initiative (NSI) encourages law enforcement agencies at the local, state, tribal and regional levels to share suspicious activity reports (SARs) with each other to enhance investigations and analysis. This landmark initiative gives police the ability to search nationwide suspicious activity for clues to help piece together criminal conspiracies and prevent major crimes. To help agencies make sense of NSI, here are several tips for maximizing the benefits as originally intended by the initiative.
By Justin Hienz
This past weekend was the ninth anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, and I was relieved that the date passed without incident. I was also pleased to see it come and go without the Quran burning that had been planned by a congregation in Gainesville, FL. That Nazi-like spectacle would have created endless fodder for terrorist propaganda. But it would have achieved something else. In usurping attention with an inflammatory stunt, Jones and his followers would have revealed their ignorance of Islam, ignorance beyond the trite Islamophobic rhetoric all too common these days. Here’s why.
Following my recent posting concerning questions that ought to be asked about the cost-effectiveness of using the Predator for border enforcement purposes, I have heard from several people, and there have been a couple news stories focused on the same theme. Is it smart to deploy a very expensive air platform, like the Predator, no matter how much positive publicity the cool-looking airplane generates for border state politicians? The underlying premise of whether it is “smart” to fly UAVs (like the Predator) for border surveillance missions has NOT been addressed – and it ought to be.
Arizona’s ‘Sheriff Joe,’ Immigration Firebrand, Squares Off With Feds The Justice Department upped its political and legal pressure on Arizona and its most notable lawman Thursday when it sued Maricopa County and Sheriff Joe Arpaio for allegedly failing to adequately cooperate with a civil rights investigation that predates the state’s controversial anti-immigration measures. Although the […]
The announcement Monday afternoon by DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano that Predator B unmanned aerial vehicles will begin patrolling the skies over American’s Southwest border, funded in part by the latest $600 million infusion of cash from Congress, ought to raise some very serious questions about the manner in which increasingly limited homeland security funds are being spent. If DHS wants to deploy Predator B UAVs, then at least admit that Predators are far more expensive than almost every other alternative – or make the case why this is a better choice. Thus far, the explanations are lacking, and this should not be allowed to continue. When Congress returns, or whenever GAO gets around to it, Secretary Napolitano should be required publicly to address some of the following questions.
Are New Orleans’ storm defenses strong enough? – Homeland Security Newswire
It is almost five years since hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, and the city is bracing for other attacks to come. In a revamp now nearing completion, the city’s 560-kilometer perimeter has been fortified by toughened levees, cement walls more than 9-meters high, and imposing gates that will grind shut when flood water nears.
In a state as disaster prone as Louisiana has been over the past few years, it’s hard to remember that when something bad does occur, it doesn’t impact everyone. I was reminded of this when I sat down for lunch with two friends in Lake Charles, LA. Southwest Louisiana is truly a world away from the rest of Louisiana. Whether it is the fact that they have a higher elevation from the southeastern part of the state or they are just closer to Texas, this section of the state has always impressed me as having more of its act together than other portions of Louisiana. Back in 2005, I met Lakes Charles Mayor Randy Roach who introduced me to a saying that has stuck with me ever since. He said, “Just hand me a piece of plywood, and we’ll take it from there.”
It’s hard to say what the real ground zero of Hurricane Katrina was. For most Americans, they think of the City of New Orleans. For as awful as each of those events were, similar catastrophes were experienced by St. Bernard and Jefferson Parishes, as well as Plaquemines and Slidell, LA. While the media certainly covered the earth-shattering events that occurred there, it seems to me that the Gulf Coast of Mississippi seems to have been lost in the coverage. The only word I used to describe what I saw back then was very simply Hiroshima. The destruction was beyond catastrophic.
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