Archives: December, 2009

Lest we delay any longer, we note that the Obama Administration’s Virtual USA website was officially launched earlier this month. It’s an information-sharing effort that’s well worth the security community’s attention. Virtual USA, says the Homeland Security Blog, “relies on collaboraton among local agencies, neighboring jurisdictions, states, regions and citizens and the participation of each […]

We’re passing along Time magazine’s listing of “an unprecedented surge in terror ‘events’ on U.S. soil” in 2009. Time’s alarm may seem surprising, but most of the plots were foiled and may have escaped your notice for that reason. Rand Corporation expert Brian Jenkins figures, Time reports, that “more terrorist threats were uncovered in the […]

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is rounding out its anti-terrorism capability by conducting drills including hand-held and backpack radiation detection devices capable of spotting “dirty bombs.” TSA has assembled “VIPR” teams with a variety of security disciplines, including air marshals, TSA inspectors, explosives-detection canine teams, bomb appraisal officers, explosive security specialists and behavior detection officers. VIPR stands […]

FEMA does disaster preparedness, but disaster readiness can contribute to overall security. So FEMA is worth following, especially in this social media age when they make it so easy. FEMA is on Twitter at twitter.com/FemainFocus and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/FEMA Facebook allows for more interactive communication with the federal preparedness agency, but Twitter is a […]

The American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) has added a section on sustainable design – “Sustainable ASLA” – to its website to stress the advantages of building for integrated, environmentally aware and people-pleasing settings. PRO Barrier commends the architects for this important emphasis. It brings up the fact that we have the same sort of […]

There’s disquieting evidence that al-Qaeda-connected terrorists are in the United States and planning attacks here. This doesn’t mean there’s a threat behind every mailbox, but it’s something for security managers to be mindful of. In a speech December 2 to the America-Israel Friendship League in New York, reported on by Security Management, Homeland Security Director […]