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A Better Way – Ridge Headlines Plan to Strengthen TSA

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March 17, 2011

An industry group released a report advocating for major changes in how the federal government tackles its aviation security mission. In addition to 14 primary recommendations is a broader theme that the political climate in which DHS and TSA operate needs to change. aFormer DHS Secretary Tom Ridge, former Democratic Congressman Jim Turner, and Sabre Holdings CEO Sam Gililland served as co-chairs of a panel of external experts advising the U.S. Travel Association on the report, which I helped research and develop over the past year.

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TSA Gets Creative in Meeting 100 Percent Cargo Screening Mandate

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March 17, 2011

The TSA is still engaged in a game of intellectual Twister, bending every which way to meet an impossible congressional mandate that it enforce the screening of 100 percent of all cargo — domestic as well as international. The new suggested deadline shoots for all inbound cargo to be screened by December. God bless the TSA for continuing in its creative efforts to meet the mandate without undermining security, provoking allies and clogging commerce.

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If Qadhafi Wins, Does Obama Lose?

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March 17, 2011

With each passing day of fighting in Libya, it is sadly becoming obvious that the international hopes of seeing long-time dictator Col. Moammar Qadhafi deposed from his more than four-decade rule are fading. President Obama has, from his first day in office, made clear that he has zero interest in taking any type of unilateral approach in regard to use of U.S. military forces. If the Libyan rebellion is crushed and Qadhafi exacts revenge upon the population, what will that mean for presidential debates in the 2012 election?

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China overwhelming U.S. with counterfeit goods

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March 17, 2011

China overwhelming U.S. with counterfeit goods – Homeland Security Newswire
U.S. companies are losing hundreds of millions of dollars a year in sales from products that are counterfeited overseas and shipped to America; since most fake products are never seized by authorities, the federal government cannot get an accurate measurement of the economic loss; according to CBP, these fake goods “threaten America’s economic vitality and national security, and the American people’s health and safety.”

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The Next New Virtual Border Fence?

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March 16, 2011

The Next New Virtual Border Fence? – The Defense Media Network
On Jan. 18, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Agency (CBP) released a Request for Information (RFI) that raised eyebrows among homeland security experts who closely followed the doomed trajectory of a system conceived in 2005 to bring integrated cameras and sensors to the entire U.S./Mexican land border: the Secure Border Initiative Network, or SBInet.

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TSA Admits Bungling of Airport Body-Scanner Radiation Tests

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March 16, 2011

TSA Admits Bungling of Airport Body-Scanner Radiation Tests – Wired Threat Level
The Transportation Security Administration is re-analyzing the radiation levels of X-ray body scanners installed in airports nationwide, after testing produced dramatically higher-than-expected results.

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Japanese Nuclear Disaster Raises Questions Of US Preparedness

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March 16, 2011

Japanese Nuclear Disaster Raises Questions Of US Preparedness – HSToday
US federal agencies must improve response plans in the event of a nuclear disaster, urged private and congressional critics in the wake of emergencies at Japanese nuclear reactors triggered by the 9.0-magnitude earthquake that struck off the country’s coast March 11.

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Going Where No One Wants To Go and Making All the Difference

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March 16, 2011

Here’s a piece I wrote for the Defense Media Network about Virginia Task Force 1, the International Search and Rescue Team from the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department. With Japan in great need after the 8.9 magnitude earthquake, Virginia Task Force 1 is already deployed in the Ofanuto area of Japan.

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Former NSA, CIA Chief: Declassify Cyber Vulnerabilities

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March 15, 2011

Former NSA, CIA Chief: Declassify Cyber Vulnerabilities – Wired Threat Level
The former head of America’s most powerful and secretive intelligence agencies thinks the U.S. government classifies too much information on cybersecurity vulnerabilities.

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Congressman Peter King's Hearing on Muslim Radicalization: What's in a Name?

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March 15, 2011

Congressman Peter King’s Hearing on Muslim Radicalization: What’s in a Name? – Homeland Protection Zone
It was billed as a McCarthy era smear against an innocent religious minority and likened to an attack against all Muslims and a propaganda win for al-Qaeda, which would claim the event proves that America is at war with Islam.

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