HMLS 302 Addressing Terrorism: Homeland Security discussion

Part 1

In the article in your weekly readings Reflections on Homeland Security and American Federalism (https://www.brookings.edu/articles/reflections-on-…) you read about the hardening of American critical infrastructure components. Many folks worry about a terrorist attack on a nuclear facility, but the risk is described as nil.

The article goes on to talk about screening airline passengers. In your opinion, what should Homeland Security professionals focus on to best protect the American public. Consider this as if you are in charge of DHS and you are only able to chose one area to focus on. Search the UMUC library to find a scholarly reference to support your view. Try to think out of the box, don’t take the conventional route.

Part 2

In the article in your weekly readings Legal Aspects of Using Drones for Domestic Surveillance Explored in Congressional Report (https://www.hstoday.us/channels/federal-state-loca…) the idea of using drones for surveillance is discussed. Drones are being used in public safety in many various aspects these days. Fire departments are using drones to get first hand images of hazardous materials incidents. Law enforcement agencies are using drones for surveillance of drug operations.

The use of drones does raise legal and ethical questions though. What legal issues do you see (or not) with the use of drones by local, state and Federal law enforcement agencies? Are there any considerations or policy changes that law enforcement should consider with the use of drones? Search the UMUC library to find a scholarly reference to support your view. Try to think out of the box, don’t take the conventional route.

Part 3

The purpose of the National Incident Management System (NIMS) (https://www.fema.gov/media-library-data/20130726-1…) is to “provide a systematic, proactive approach to guide departments and agencies at all levels of government, nongovernmental organizations, and the private sector to work seamlessly to prevent, protect against, respond to, recover from, and mitigate the effects of incidents, regardless of cause, size, location, or complexity, in order to reduce the loss of life and property and harm to the environment.” This document was created as a result of the communication issue during 9/11. As you skim the document, consider one key point that is laid out and describe how it could have reduced the issued and/or loss of life during the 9/11 attacks.

Part 4

View the video interviews with Jack Tomarchio and Dr. Mark Lowenthal. As you watch each video, try to summarize each video with what you feel are the two most important points talked about by each speaker. Additionally, try to pick out any common themes and/or contradictory points between the two interviews and expand on this.




Note: For Parts 1-4, Initial Response of a minimum of 200 words and two (2) follow-up responses of more than 50 words.