It’s alarming that the Department of Defense, which invented the Internet (along with Al Gore, of course), seems to understand so little about how it is used for propaganda — terrorist or otherwise. Recent congressional hearings on terrorism and the Internet indicate a Cold War-era mentality among federal policymakers. They seem to view terrorist propaganda efforts as a monolithic “organized framework” orchestrated by a few Goebbels-like masterminds within Al Qaeda.

Who You Gonna Believe — Jack Bauer or Joe Navarro? - SpyTalk
In the battle for public opinion on torture, Joe Navarro doesn’t stand a chance against Jack Bauer.
The hero of the Fox action series “24,” now entering its seventh season, seems to have cast a spell over the country — including high level Pentagon, CIA [...]

State Dept. Stands Alone on Virginia Saudi School :: Articles by IPT :: The Investigative Project on Terrorism
High school students in the Wahhabi-led school learn that “the Jews conspired against Islam” and Sunni Muslims should shun all Shia Muslims. They also are taught that killing an apostate or an adulterer is acceptable under Islamic law. [...]

Counterterrorism Blog: More Evidence of the Criminal-Terrorist Nexus
Those who are skeptical of the growing ties between drug trafficking organizations and terrorist groups-which I think will be the real war we will be fighting for many years, given the resources obtainable by drug trafficking organizations-should read the latest UN Office of Drugs and Crime report.

Earlier this week the U.S. Supreme Court rejected an appeal by environmental groups in a case brought to slow the progress on the construction of the border fence, a giant step forward in the effort to secure America’s borders. This was not only good for border security, but it also respected the legislative authority of Congress.

Aviation Daily on Airports: Police Officers, TSA Offer Views on Screener Badges
To give airport screeners police like badges and uniforms is a grave mistake. You are not only putting the screeners themselves in harm’s way in that they will be mistaken as sworn law enforcement, but you are creating more of a safety risk to [...]

The Unofficial Coast Guard Blog notes a variety of recent headlines, commentary and policy showing that the Coast Guard is taking on more and more responsibilties in the homeland security environment and, appropriately, gaining in stature and influence inside the Beltway.
Yesterday the Coast Guard announced a new enlisted rating focusing on law enforcement. While I’ve [...]

FEDagent - Federal Law Enforcement & Homeland Security News
Julie L. Myers, Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and Juan Jose Bravo Moises, Director for Mexico Customs, announced a major effort Monday to identify and disrupt trans-border weapons smuggling networks between the two countries’ borders

Recording Industry Decries AM-FM Broadcasting as ‘A Form of Piracy’ | Threat Level from Wired.com
The recording industry and U.S. radio companies have squared off for decades about whether AM and FM radio broadcasters should pay royalties to singers, musicians and their labels.
But now the debate is getting meaner; there’s more at stake as the recording [...]

SpyTalk: We Rage, Europeans Yawn, Over Domestic Counterterrorism Ops
Outside the United Kingdom, which invented civil liberties with the Magna Carta, ordinary Europeans couldn’t care less about wiretapping, national ID cards, preventive detention and police spies in mosques.

Immigration Watchdog » Arab firm is first international port operator to be certified for security by U.S.
A leading Gulf firm in the United Arab Emirates whose plans to operate six U.S. ports was last year rebuffed by Congress, has been certified as a partner in a U.S. port security program.
The state-owned Dubai Ports World has [...]

ImmigrationProf Blog: GAO on Border Security
The U.S. General Accountability Office has issued a report on border security, which RA boogged about earlier today, which cautions that: “The potential elimination or suspension of the Visa Waiver Program could cause dramatic increases in the demand for nonimmigrant visas that could overwhelm visa operations in the near term. [...]

“Cross Blog” — The Oregon Red Cross’ Innovative Online Presence
One of the important goals of the American Red Cross’ Social Media Unit I just visited in Washington is drawing from (and spreading) creative preparedness 2.0 work being done in their chapters around the country.

Counterterrorism Blog: Jihad Against Freedom of Speech at the United Nations
The United Nations’ Human Rights Council (UNHRC) has no problem with its members suggesting that the 9/11 attacks were an “inside job” perpetrated by the United States on itself … Denying the role of Jihadists in the 9/11 attacks is apparently perfectly acceptable freedom of [...]

Chemical Facility Security News: CFATA Delays
There is an interesting article by Samuel Loewenberg on Politico.com blaming the chemical industry and DHS for the congressional delays in taking up the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Act of 2008 (HR 5577). Unfortunately the article fails to explain how the failure of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce to [...]

Counterterrorism Blog: Treasury Moves on Hezbollah in Venezuela
The Treasury Department’s Office fo Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) today several entities tied to Hezbollah and operating in Venezuela. This is the first time I can find of the U.S. government directly and publicly linking Hezbollah funding activities to Venezuela.
This is part of a larger pattern, including, as [...]

From Chemical Facility Security News: IST Oversimplification
There is an interesting guest blog today on SecurityDebrief, a collection of security related blogs at Adfero.com. The guest blog, by L. Vance Taylor, is titled “IST – Inherently Stupider Technologies?” Seeing that title you might think that it was a diatribe against IST. Well, it really isn’t. After [...]

Computerworld has the scoop on the punishment for the young man who boasted of coordinating an attack that Osama bin Laden would refer to as “America’s Hiroshima”:
A 22-year-old Wisconsin man has been sentenced to six months in federal prison for repeatedly posting online threats that dirty bombs were going to be detonated at football stadiums [...]

John Solomon recommends: “The Unthinkable” By Amanda Ripley
The Unthinkable: Who Survives When Disaster Strikes — And Why by Amanda Ripley
I have had a chance to read the book, and I can recommend it wholeheartedly not only to any readers of this blog — who tend think about disasters more than most folks — but [...]

The decision to equip police sergeants in New York with Tasers is a sound one. The squeals of alarm in some quarters will be deafening, but these protests will demonstrate both misunderstanding and the power of emotive words. The deploymenty of Taser offers the opportunity for the NYPD to respond swiftly and effectively in a manner less lethal than the use of firearms alone. It must be remembered that Taser weapons reduce - if not completely eliminate - the risk of fatality.