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America the Resilient: Defying Terrorism and Mitigating Natural Disasters
Title: America the Resilient: Defying Terrorism and Mitigating Natural Disasters
Date: March/April 2008
Author: Stephen E. Flynn
Institution: Foreign Affairs
Bibliographic Entry: Flynn, Stephen E. “America the Resilient: Defying Terrorism and Mitigating Natural Disasters.” Foreign Affairs, March/April 2008.
Electronic Link: http://www.foreignaffairs.org/20080301faessay87201/stephen-e-flynn/america-the-resilient.html
Key Words: resilience, disaster preparedness, emergency operations, natural disaster, terrorist attack, (critical) infrastructure, robustness, resourcefulness, rapid recovery, emergency operations plans
Summary of Key Points, Issues, Conclusions:
Unlike during the Cold War, when the threat of nuclear weapons placed the fate of the nation in the hands of a few, current threats of terrorism and natural disasters are the responsibility of the large society. The battleground of terrorism is occupied not by soldiers, but civilians. The goal should be to sustain U.S. leadership globally, and economic competitiveness. This will depend on the resilience of the nation, which has historically been a national strength.
A disaster preparedness report released June 2006 by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security found only 25% of state emergency operations plans and 10% of municipal plans to be sufficient for addressing a natural disaster or terrorist attack. As both individual and community preparedness are in decline, nine out of ten Americans live in locations placing them at a moderate to high risk for damaging high wind, earthquakes, flooding, hurricanes, volcanic eruptions, or wildfires. Problems such as the United States aging infrastructure and decreasing trends in preparedness and infrastructural integrity can luckily be solved by increased investment and leadership.
Also addressed is the event of United 93, and potential lessons “unlearned.” These include whether the collected intelligence information suggesting terrorists were seeking to use airplanes as weapons would have been publicized, and whether this would have changed the outcome. The best defense is considered to be greater resilience to increase security by depriving terrorists of the fear aspect from threats. The government should also increase the confidence of Americans, in their ability to prepare for and recover from terrorist strikes or other disasters. This sort of resilience stems from four factors: 1.) robustness, 2.) resourcefulness, 3.) rapid recovery, and 4.) taking seriously the lessons learned from a catastrophe. Many should be held responsible for increasing national resilience, such as the president, the secretary of homeland security, the mass media and Hollywood, and Americans in general.
Name of Researcher: Alison Stevens
Institution: Integrative Center for Homeland Security, Texas A&M University
Date Posted: April 7, 2008