National Security

We live in a world more akin to a roulette wheel than anything else. Everything has probability, and nothing more so than the chance of a terrorist attack. How we protect ourselves is a major issue in the United States.

However, it should be noted that if you can design a security system, someone can beat it. There are most likely billions of ways to get past a security checkpoint at an airport. No matter how much money we spend on security, there will always be some nut who can break through the system.

Before we consult security, though, we must explain exactly what the goal of terrorism is. Terrorism is designed to cause terror; if every time some extremist decides that he can put M80s in the Times Square (yes, I am referring to the event earlier this year) to frighten America, we have lost the "War on Terror." Importantly, though, the man who tried to blow up Times Square simply wanted to prove a point. Therefore, American government should be more open to suggestion from the common people.

Security also costs valuable money. Al-Qaeda's stated goal is to ruin the United States financially. Through two wars and the constant increase of security, they are succeeding. Furthermore, increasing security takes away from personal rights. The most insulting thing the government can do to you, in my opinion, is to always assume you are a criminal. Not only is this unfair, it goes against the constitutional right that you maintain innocence until proven guilty. I feel that airport security does this to me. I have no desire to blow up a plane, and I don't believe I ever will. Furthermore, just because some idiot tried to travel by plane with a bomb in his shoe shouldn't mean everyone must take off their shoes when they go through security, and the same idea for water bottles, and so on.

What can the United States, then, do to improve security? First of all, find every flaw (i.e. every person mistaken for a terrorist) in security. The security system should be 99.99% accurate. No one who isn't a terrorist should be not allowed to fly. To prevent another underware bomber incident, international security agencies must maintain contact to prevent black-listed men and women from flying. Overall, security needs a huge update in technology.