Homeland Security

We hear a lot about the importance of homeland security from both parties, but what would it really mean to have a secure homeland? Neither party has addressed that issue as far as I am concerned, so here is my answer to this question.

First, to have a secure homeland, we must be a strong nation and capable of sustaining ourselves independently if we are at war. The United States once had this strength. We produced all of the supplies a nation or armed forces would need in case we were attacked. During World Wars I and II, we were a major supply source for the allied forces for everything from uniforms and food to tanks, airplanes, munitions and electronics. As our country loses manufacturing industries, we depend on other areas of the world for items that are critical during a conflict. The recent test by China of a missile that could knock out a communications satellite makes our vulnerability quite evident. What if China decided to go on the offensive against us? They have more manpower, and now they also have more industrial capacity. They are quickly catching up to us in technological sophistication, in large part because our corporations have shared the technological advances with them. In past wars, our oceans have protected us against attack, but they would be a formidable barrier to getting supplies if the world was at war and we needed supplies from our NATO allies. Why isn’t Congress addressing our diminishing manufacturing capacity?

Second, to be a secure nation, we must have secure borders. This nation is fighting to secure the borders for Afghanistan and Iraq, and we supported Lebanon in trying to establish its border against Syrian interference, but when it comes to our own borders, we are not secure. I am not opposed to immigration, but immigrants need to come through our borders legally. I am not opposed to trade, but trade needs to be legal and fair. The millions of illegal immigrants, illegal drugs and weapons that pass through our border on a daily basis are certain proof that we do not have secure borders. I believe that this nation has the ability make our borders secure, but that greed has encouraged government and corporate leaders to sacrifice security for the money they make on illegal trade and cheap labor. Legal immigration has been one of the strengths of this nation. To secure our borders we need to increase the quota for legal immigrants and enforce the laws against hiring those who enter this country illegally. A guest worker program as suggested by President Bush would only continue to cut away at the wages and living conditions for American workers and encourage illegal trade in people and drugs.

One other concern I have about border security is that we are increasingly putting our ports and now even our toll roads in the hands of foreign corporations, often corporations owned by the leaders of undemocratic foreign governments. How can our nation be secure if foreign governments are in charge of material entering our country and the highways that allow it to be transported?

Fourth, homeland security means that our neighborhoods must be relatively safe from violence, but we are one of the most violent nations in the world. The current drug laws have only increased the market for and profit to be made from illegal drugs and have failed to properly deal with the societal and family problems created by use of addictive substances. Why isn’t Congress addressing the failed war on drugs? Our failure to deal effectively with this problem has created a subclass of citizens who live in constant conflict with the law. A comparison of the prison populations in 12 countries is a good reflection of domestic tranquility and the security in our neighborhoods.

Prison population per 100,000 inhabitants
USA	Russia	UK	Canada	Germany	Italy	France	Vietnam	Sweden	Denmark	Japan	Iceland
740	713	124	102	98	92	80	75	64	61	37	29

*

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Incarcerated

While we concentrate on terrorist in Baghdad, LA has an estimated 700 gangs with 40,000 members - about four for every police officer*

• http://breakingnews.nypost.com/dynamic/stories/L/LA_GANGS?SITE=NYNYP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-01-21-20-20-36

Aren’t the gangs in our city neighborhoods terrorists to the people who live there?

Fifth, homeland security demands an infrastructure that is up to date, well maintained and secure. One only needs to look at the Katrina disaster to see the effects of neglecting the infrastructure of our nation. Not only were the levees in need of repair, but our failure to create a modern transportation system in this nation made it impossible to get those who were dependent on public transportation out of the city. The lack of a national system of energy efficient transportation also makes us vulnerable to nations who can cut off our oil supply. Cutting off our oil supply from sources other than the U.S. could totally cripple this nation because of our overdependence on automobiles, airplanes and trucks to move people and goods.

So, if Congress and the president want to do something about homeland security, they ought to begin at home.