EXECUTIVE SESSION ON DOMESTIC PREPAREDNESS
September, 2003
Countering Terrorism: Dimensions of Preparedness
By Arnold Howitt, Executive Director of the Taubman Center for State and Local Government, Faculty Affiliate and Robyn Pangi, Former Research Specialist, Executive Session on Domestic Preparedness, International Security Program
The United States now knows that it is vulnerable to terrorist attacks. In Countering Terrorism, experts from such disparate fields as medicine, law, public policy, and international security discuss institutional changes the country must make to protect against future attacks. In these essays, they argue that terrorism preparedness is not just a federal concern, but one that requires integrated efforts across federal, state, and local governments.
September, 2003
Terrorism, Freedom, and Security: Winning without War
In Terrorism, Freedom, and Security, Philip Heymann continues the discussion of responses to terrorism that he began in his widely read Terrorism and America. He argues that diplomacy, intelligence, and international law should play a larger role than military action in our counterterrorism policy; instead of waging "war" against terrorism, the United States needs a broader range of policies. Heymann believes that many of the policies adopted since September 11 -- including trials before military tribunals, secret detentions, and the subcontracting of interrogation to countries where torture is routine -- are at odds with American political and legal traditions and create disturbing precedents.
June 2002
"Cyber Attacks: Protecting America's Security Against Digital Threats"
"...America remains highly vulnerable to another form of attack: a 'cyber attack' against the computer networks that are critical to our national and economic security. Attackers might target banking and financial institutions, voice communication systems, electrical infrastructures, water resources, or oil and gas infrastructures. The growing complexity and interconnectedness of these systems renders them increasingly vulnerable to attack. While a physical attack is likely to be carried out only by terrorists or hostile foreign nation-states, cyber attacks may be carried out by a wide array of adversaries, from teenage hackers and protest groups to organized crime syndicates, terrorists, and foreign nation-states. As a result, the problem is of enormous breadth and complexity. It requires that both our protective and reactive measures deal with each specific scenario, and not just the threat of an attack by terrorists."
