Critical Mission of Homeland Security Essay Example for Free

Critical Mission of Homeland Security Essay The Department of Homeland Security was created after the attacks of September 11, 2001. The Department was formed by merging many exiting resources and adding to the best practices already in place. The Strategic Objectives of the Department are stated by the Department as â€Å"We will lead the unified national effort to secure America. We will prevent and deter terrorist attacks and protect against and respond to threats and hazards to the Nation. We will secure our national borders while welcoming lawful immigrants, visitors, and trade. â€Å" (Homeland Security). Critical Mission of Homeland Security The critical missions of Department of Homeland Security are to prevent, protect, respond and recover. Through utilization of all available technology and resources the primary mission is to prevent an aggressive act. If they are unable to prevent the incident the department will shift focus to protection. Protect as many citizens as possible from any imminent incident. If the incident could not be prevented the Homeland Security officials will respond to whatever the results are of the incident. This response could be in the way of coordinating with other agencies to provide the care and safety needed by the population in the affected area. The final mission is to recover from the incident. Although each mission is defined as a single mission in practice they are often interlinked in execution. While protecting citizens from an incident the agency at the same time may be proactively responding to the results of the incident. The recovery mission is over lapped in many areas by the response mission. Four Foundations of Homeland Security The National Strategy for Homeland Security has defined four foundations of homeland security. These foundations are; law, science and technology, information sharing and systems, and international cooperation. Each of these play a key part in providing for our national security. Identification and enforcement of the law. We have to know exactly what we are enforcing. Use of science and technology in each of the four critical mission areas. Information sharing was something various government agencies were not very effective at prior to 9/11. Since then Homeland Security has been working on removing many of the communication silos that were prevalent in the past. By open communication with several agencies overall effectiveness is improved. International cooperation is the final of the four foundations that has to be built upon. With terrorist moving from nation to nation and planning many of the attacks from foreign soil we have to work with all nations. International borders have to be permeable in today’s war on terror. Virginia Office of Commonwealth Preparedness The Commonwealth of Virginia has their own Department of Homeland Security. In Virginia it is called The Office of Commonwealth Preparedness. This office mirror many of the processes and objectives of the United States Department of Homeland Security. The Office of Commonwealth Preparedness works to make sure that all of the residents and businesses of the Commonwealth are safe, secure and prepared. Criminal Law and Civil Law Criminal Law and Civil Law are very different types of proceedings. Civil Law is usually a case between tow individuals or business entities. Criminal Law is a case between a person and a government. Civil Law In Civil Law a person is involved in litigation with another person or business. These are usually divorce cases, law suits due to injury at a place of business, or bankruptcy cases. Civil law never involves incarceration of either party because of the civil proceedings. There are some Civil cases that may become criminal cases. Stalking a spouse you are involved in a civil divorce proceeding with will lead to criminal charges being filed against the stalker. Civil law will never result in the incarceration of the guilty party. Fines in a Civil Law case are often paid to the other party in the proceeding. Criminal Law In Criminal Law there is a crime committed against society, or that endangers society by the action. Murder is a Criminal Law case. Although there may be only one victim the perpetrator of the criminal act may do so again. Therefore, society must be protected from this person. Driving while intoxicated is also a criminal law case. Even though no member of society may have been harmed by the act of driving under the influence. There was a danger posed to society by the act of driving under the influence. Criminal law cases may result in incarceration or probation of the guilty party. Fines judged in a Criminal Law case are paid to the governing body prosecuting the case. Incarceration for Misdemeanor Crimes The main difference in the two types of crimes misdemeanor and felony is the amount of possible incarceration if convicted. A felony is a more serious crime and if convicted the accused could be sentenced to incarceration for a term greater than one year or death. Misdemeanor crimes are less serious offences and if convicted will result in incarceration of less than a year if at all. I do not think those convicted of a misdemeanor should be incarcerated unless the person demonstrated no willingness to be rehabilitated through other means. Running a red light is a misdemeanor. Incarcerating this person for a period of time will serve no purpose in rehabilitation. The only outcome in this incarceration would be increase cost to the taxpayer of the community and increased crowding of jails. This accused will probably learn their lesson by paying a fine and undergoing a traffic safety class. The penalty of the crime will drive a lesson home to the accused. The taking a class will increase the general safety of the public. The current volume of cases on our court systems and the high cost of incarceration forces us to take a more lenient approach for misdemeanor crimes. Many in society would rather a person creating a danger to the public be off the streets rather than someone convicted of running a traffic light or petty theft. The penalty should be designed to make restitution and lead to rehabilitation of the accused. When we balance the crime with the penalty then we can have a better society. Bibliography Homeland Security. (2008). Department of Homeland Security. One Team, One Mission, Securing our Homeland. Retrieved 20 March 2009, from, http://www. dhs. gov/xlibrary/assets/DHS_StratPlan_FINAL_spread. pdf

Comparing Clive Cusslers Sahara and Daniel Defoes Robinson Crusoe :: comparison compare contrast essays

Comparing Clive Cussler's Sahara and Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe The theme that will be explored in this essay will be survival   when times get tough, physically, mentally. The two books that will be involved in the discussion will be Clive Cussler's Sahara and Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe.   In both cases the leading characters show signs of breaking down and quitting because of physical, but also their mental stress.   Robinson Crusoe, and Sahara relate in many ways, as do the main characters, and will be two good books to compare the survival of both Dirk Pitt and Robinson Crusoe. The three criteria that will be talked about in this essay will be the survival physically. Did both characters have hard times to pull out of ? . The next type of survival is   mental survival, it comes a close second to physical survival and both characters show signs also of this type.   With mental survival the physical component must first be stable and accomplished, that is when you can then work your mind into better thoughts and ideas.   The third criteria that will be   looked at is, how the characters were changed at the end of the book looking at it through post-traumatic stress disorder.   Both characters show signs of physical survival and it is believed that physical is the most important type of survival because you must first be physically healthy and strong before you can even walk or talk or think. Mental survival is strongly needed and is required in tough times    Each type of survival is different in it's own way, but first physical stability must be achieved to be able to survive the elements and their challenges to then master the other type of survival such as mental survival.   In Robinson Crusoe the rain is pouring down and the wind is blowing strongly.   Robinson says that this is the strongest, fiercest storm that has ever blown in on him.   He is deathly ill and writes this in his diary.    The ague again so violent that I lay abed all day and neither ate nor drank.   I was ready to perish for thirst but so weak I had not strength to stand up or to get myself any water to drink.   (Defoe 96) Dirk Pitt also had some rough times in the book Sahara.   Crawling in the desert, he has had nothing to drink or eat days, or for days to come. This is what he remembers from that dreary day on dusty desert floor. Pitt found it odd that he couldn't remember when he last spit.   Though he sucked on small pebbles to relieve the relentless thirst, he could

American History before the Revolution

The discovery of the Americas by Christopher Columbus in 1492 led to the colonial expansion of the nations of Western Europe. These colonies were created to push trade forwards in the form of new imports, primarily raw materials as a base for trade and creations of new products. This topic will focus on the history of North America before the American Revolution in 1776. The first successful English colony was established by the London Virginia Company in 1607 and was known as Jamestown. It was primarily created for the purpose of looking for gold.It was not successful in its venture but eventually found money in growing tobacco which eventually bloomed into plantations with settlers coming in with servants and slaves to create their own. The colony depended on the trade of these crops and most of them were shipped straight back to Britain. The formation of this colony was followed by the settlement of the Pilgrims, a protestant sect based in England and the Netherlands in Massachuse tts. They were escaping religious persecution aboard the Mayflower and they drew themselves the Mayflower compact after landing which gave them power of self governance.This was followed by the establishment of the Massachusetts Bay colony in 1629 by the Puritans. They wished to create a religious nation that would serve the true religion. The banishment of Roger Williams from the colony for preaching the separation of church and state led the creation of Rhode Island Colony. From an economic standpoint they were also self-sustaining. Their economy worked on every farmer sustaining himself and having to trade for any goods they could not provide for themselves. The three of these colonies formed the Cheapsake bay area.The middle colonies consisted of what are presently New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Delaware. These colonies were characterized by much diversity in their religious, economic, political and ethnic practices. Connecticut was also formed. The colonization of the l ower south started in Carolina in 1670 by the English Lords Proprietors. It was mainly set up as a trading colony especially in South Carolina. They eventually cultivated rice in 1690 through the aid of the African slaves they brought with them.The political differences between the settlers in this colony created much conflict and eventually war which lead to the Proprietors selling it back to the British Crown. A member of parliament known as James Oglethorpe established Georgia Colony in 1733 as a way to form a base against Florida which was occupied by Spain at the time. It was established with strict moral laws which forbade slavery and alcohol along with other forms of immortal acts. Once these laws were rescinded the country went from poverty to prosperity. It consisted of people from varied religious backgrounds.Great Britain eventually won East and West Florida from the Spaniards in 1763 and returned it in 1783 when they left. By 1700 most of the regions were divided in two halves. Their origins brought about the creation of two very different societies. The colonies of New England were much more individualistic as compared to the Southern colonies. The northern colonies touted freedom of religion and of the political process. They formed their society around an orthodox method in order to set an example for all other societies. In contrast the southerners were developed around the bases of economics.Their society was more geared towards mercantilism. The vast quantities of cheap land available to them allowed them to pursue this interest. In order to facilitate their economy they also formed a government which was based according to the Virginia Charter. The increasing demand for English goods grew rapidly in the 1700s and with the possession of the cotton industry in the south the colonies soon outpace England in terms of exports. This was mainly due to the fact that the colonies made use of slaves for labor purposes which brought them great prosperi ty.In the 1600 the English passed a series of laws known as the Navigation Acts which restricted the use of foreign shipping to trade between England and its colonies. This was mainly done to limit Dutch merchants from trading with its colonies and allowed England to be the main hub for all colonial products. These acts though bringing Britain great wealth caused great resentment in the colonies. This was so because the laws restricted the ability of the colonies to trade with anyone but the English, with these in effect it decreased their power to be independent of the Royal Court.Thus these Mercantilist policies were refused by the colonies as they saw it as a control over their economies and their government. In order to avoid heavy taxes and regulations the colonies resorted to smuggling their goods. The loss of much wealth led the British to enact the writ of assistance which enabled officers to freely search citizens and homes which were suspected of smuggling. The colonists f ound this to be a violation of their civil rights as citizens of the crown. One of the main ways that smugglers from the colonies operated was the selling tea to the American colonies.Originally the tea came from England through the East India Company, however when Benjamin Franklin suggested that the company bypass England and deal with the colonists directly, the smugglers lost their source of income. In rebellion they tossed 342 crates of tea into the Boston Harbor. This led to the Boston Port Act through which Britain closed down Boston harbor until the tea was paid for. The mercantilism system had a draconian effect on the colonies. Following the Seven years war in 1765 the British Parliament imposed a stamp tax on the American colonies requiring by law that all printed materials carry it.This was to pay for the military funds from the war of which the colonists were considered benefactors. This was also considered violations of their rights as colonial citizens to decide their own tax laws and led to many protests from New England to Georgia. Other British colonies also rebelled against the tax as they saw it as a threat to their economy and it was eventually repealed in 1766. This added further fuel to the colonist resentment and concerns of the British parliament. The last straw was that of the Boston Massacre where the deaths of five civilians in 1770 and sparked the fire which led to the American Revolution.In the end it was all of the reasons above along with the need of the colonies to establish their own government free from the religious, economic and governmental persecution of the English that led to the creation and subsequently fight for the freedom of the colonies and as we know in the end they succeeded. References Internet History Sourcebooks Project. (2007, June 4). Colonial North America. Retrieved May 24, 2009, from Internet Modern History Sourcebook : http://www. fordham. edu/halsall/mod/modsbook07. html

The Legacy Of Veteran Suicide - 1189 Words

Veteran Suicide Twenty-two United States Veterans commit suicide every day, giving approximately one thousand seven hundred and eighty Veterans deaths due to suicide for the year of 2016 to date (â€Å"Operation Never Forgotten†). Veteran suicide is an ongoing problem because veterans enter the civilian world directly after receiving discharge from the armed forces and struggle with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, and acute stress, and anxiety (â€Å"Veterans Services†). Veteran suicides have become a large concern for members of the United States Armed Forces, Operation Never Forgotten (ONF) is an organization that is helping veterans find purpose and a reason to live, by working with the U.S. Congress, they could pass a law†¦show more content†¦However, war does seem to be the major problem with veteran suicide, which is where PTSD comes from. To elaborate, men and woman go to war zones, such as Afghanistan, Iraq, or Pakistan, and fight wi th the Middle Eastern cultures. While doing so, these men and woman tend to fight for, not only Americas freedom, but also their lives and the lives around them. Therefore, on many occasions, these men and woman are forced to kill anyone that shows threat to America’s military members. Also, when in a firefight, those men and woman have to attempt to save the lives of the people around them from gunshot wounds, IED wounds, and many other attack defenses from the enemy of war. Therefore, war is the cause of PTSD, which seems to be the number one cause of veteran suicide. Process for Implementing the Proposal The Veteran Affairs (VA) department needs to attend to the culture of clinical diagnosis (Satel). In order for the VA to be able to focus on the clinical diagnostics of PTSD. The VA will need an increase in funds, as well as other organizations like Operation Never Forgotten to help veterans with their emotional and mental disorders. In order to do so, there would need to be a bill passed through U.S. Congress and eventually signed by the United States President to become a law or budget change for such organizations. The bill would potentially state the importance of why the budget needs to be increasedShow MoreRelatedPersonal Growth And Development As A Soldier I Received From Cpt Fitch1206 Words   |  5 PagesLegacy Leaders, â€Å"Leaders of Influence†, CPT Justin Fitch The purpose of this paper is to thoroughly describe how CPT Justin Fitch’s attributes and competencies contributed to the Army community. It will also depict my personal growth and development as a Soldier I received from CPT Fitch. 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