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March Mid-Month 2010 |
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Your Bi-monthly Homeland Security News Source
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Upcoming Events
Register Now & Save $$$
 SSI's GSA Approved Programs CLICK HERE!
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SSI's Global Security Workshop - May 7-15, 2010 - Tel Aviv, Israel
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Sponsors:
Select SSI Courses approved for Academic Credit through Saint Leo University:
Now Available: The Counter Terrorist eZINE! CLICK HERE!
Subscribe to The Counter Terrorist
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The United States is in the midst of numerous terror related issues such as:
- American housewife calls herself Jihad Jane
- Crude IED found in wheelchair in Harlem Train Station
- Christmas Day Underwear Bombing
- Chicago Businessman charged with planning the attacks in Mumbai
- Denver man charged with terror plot
It is now more than ever that homeland security professionals at the local level must be armed with the skills and knowledge to protect us.
SSI has courses already scheduled in 2010 to provide this knowledge:
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Huge size of DHS contractor workforce leaves senators 'astonished'
by Alice Lipowicz
200,000 contract workers outnumber DHS civilian workforce
Two key Senate lawmakers are accusing the Homeland Security Department of having an "unacceptable" level of contractor employees in the wake of a report showing that contract workers outnumber federal civilian employees in the department.
Sens. Joseph Lieberman (Ind.-Conn.) and Susan Collins (R-Me.) who are the chair and ranking member, respectively, of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, said Wednesday they were "astonished" at the high estimate of contract workers, which they judged to be "unacceptable, untenable and unsustainable."
Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano recently estimated the DHS contractor workforce at 200,000, which exceeds the department's civilian workforce of 188,000, which does not include Coast Guard uniformed employees, the senators said.
Collins and Lieberman wrote to Napolitano on Feb. 24 asking for details on the estimates, including a breakdown of contract employees in each of the department's 22 agencies and an explanation of how the estimates were calculated. They senators also want Napolitano to describe how she is ensuring that the contract employees are not performing inherently governmental functions.
"The sheer number of DHS contractors currently on board again raises the question of whether DHS itself is in charge of its programs and policies, or whether it inappropriately has ceded core decisions to contractors," Lieberman and Collins wrote in the letter.
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Tel Aviv, Israel - May 7-15th, 2010
BEST TRAINING - BEST TIME - BEST EXPERIENCE
Don't Run Out of Time! - Opportunity of a Lifetime!
BEST TRAINING - 15 missions and more than 300 participants means you can't go wrong. When it comes to taking US qualified professionals to visit Israel, and show them what Israel has had to do to protect itself, SSI is the leader.
Now, register for May's exciting Global Security Workshop which aims to take the best of the experience gained during the past 15 missions and add some features that will make this an even better training experience:
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Find out about how to respond to multi casualty incidents
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Learn how Israel has had to deal with the threat of non-conventional attacks and how to translate those lessons for the USA
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Think about how populations need to be evacuated during man-made and natural disasters
And still learn about the things that matter most - how to protect our homeland against attacks.
BEST TIME - There's never been a better time to visit this sometimes conflicted region - it is safer than ever!
BEST EXPERIENCE - Expand your knowledge and grow your resume while also taking in some of the world's oldest, most beautiful and significant sights!
Register Now and get bonus participation in the optional extra day - an undeniably unfortgetable trip to the lowest point on Earth, the Dead Sea visiting Massada, the desert fortress.
BEST TRAINING - BEST TIME - BEST EXPERIENCE
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High-Tech Tools Detect Weapons of Mass Destruction at Los Angeles Port Complex
By Russell Nichols
On paper, it reads like a prop list for a high-budget futuristic action thriller: a $3 million high-tech screening ship, a radiation-detecting helicopter and a badge-carrying black Labrador retriever that can sniff out chemical and biological weapons.
But this is no movie. At the Los Angeles-Long Beach port complex, these tactical tools represent the latest in artillery aimed to prevent weapons of mass destruction from infiltrating a critical infrastructure, where 40 percent of all U.S. imports enter the country. How critical is this port complex? Consider this: If an incident forced the port complex to be shut down, it would cost the U.S. economy about $1 billion a day, said Jack Ewell, who oversees the project for the L.A. Sheriff's Department.
"That would flat-out cripple the economy if all of these agencies weren't working together to ensure the safety of that complex," he said. "We want to stop anything that may be illicit before it gets in the port."
With cutting-edge detection technology, officials said, this project has not only upgraded collaboration efforts between the various agencies, but it also will enhance port security at the busiest container port in the nation.
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Click HERE for More Information.
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Pentagon-backed venture aims for 'Google Underground'
by Katie Drummond
The Department of Defense already has omnipresent eyes in the sky, underwater and, of course, on the ground. It's only when you start going underground that the surveillance powers of the Pentagon begin to wane - at least until now.
Just last month, the Pentagon's risk-taking research arm, DARPA, announced plans for a program called
'Transparent Earth'. They're spending $4 million this year on preliminary plans for a digital, 3D map that would display "the physical, chemical and dynamic properties of the earth down to 5 kilometer depth."
But Geospatial Corporation is already doing it. The company, started in 2005 by longtime water-pipeline manufacturer Mark Smith, uses a proprietary gadget called 'Smart Probe' to map deep earth via underground pipes. The company's probe can be inserted into pipes as small as 1 1/2 inches, and then travel their length while taking super-speedy coordinates - 800 per second - and saving them onto a USB key. The probe is removed, the data extracted, and a 3D map of the underground region is created. The probe can travel through pipes that are empty, or contain fluid or gas.
Geospatial got started by mapping telecommunication lines for cable companies, and has since moved on to mapping oil and gas lines, waterways and sewage tunnels. They're also planning to map entire municipalities, to enable cheaper, faster fixes of infrastructure problems. Smith tells Danger Room that the company is creating a "mega-map" geographic information system (GIS) platform, called GeoUnderground. "Underground," he says. "Is truly the final frontier."
Read On...
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Worker ID Card at Center of Immigration Plan
by Laura Meckler
Lawmakers working to craft a new comprehensive immigration bill have settled on a way to prevent employers from hiring illegal immigrants: a national biometric identification card all American workers would eventually be required to obtain.
Under the potentially controversial plan still taking shape in the Senate, all legal U.S. workers, including citizens and immigrants, would be issued an ID card with embedded information, such as fingerprints, to tie the card to the worker.
The ID card plan is one of several steps advocates of an immigration overhaul are taking to address concerns that have defeated similar bills in the past.
The uphill effort to pass a bill is being led by Sens. Chuck Schumer (D., N.Y.) and Lindsey Graham (R., S.C.), who plan to meet with President Barack Obama as soon as this week to update him on their work. An administration official said the White House had no position on the biometric card.
"It's the nub of solving the immigration dilemma politically speaking," Mr. Schumer said in an interview. The card, he said, would directly answer concerns that after legislation is signed, another wave of illegal immigrants would arrive. "If you say they can't get a job when they come here, you'll stop it."
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Pentagon Locked Down for Hours After Shooting
Pentagon police confirm three people were injured in a shooting outside the Pentagon Metro Station, near the entrance to the military facility, around 6:40 p.m. The entire Pentagon was locked down. The exterior premises were searched by heavily armed officers and dogs before the area was deemed clear of any threats.
Sources have told the Associated Press they know the identity of the injured suspect and are speaking with a second man who may have been with the suspect.
Two Pentagon police officers and the alleged gunman were wounded in the shooting.
At a press conference Thursday night, Pentagon Police Chief Richard Keevill described the officers' injuries as "grazing injuries" and says they were wearing ballistic vests. He says the suspect's injuries were more severe.
"His injury was pretty critical. He was transported to a local hospital," stated Keevill.
The chief said the suspect, who is believed to be a U.S. citizen, walked up to the secured entrance of the Pentagon and opened fire, hitting two officers.
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American Colleen LaRose Called Herself Jihad Jane
by Emily Friedman and Jason Ryan
A suburban Pennsylvania woman known by the alias "Jihad Jane" has been arrested and charged with trying to recruit Islamic fighters and for plotting to assassinate a Swedish cartoonist who made fun of the Prophet Mohammed, according to a federal indictment unsealed today.
Colleen R. LaRose, 46, of Montgomery, Pa., described by neighbors as an average "housewife," is better known to federal authorities as "Fatima Rose" or "Jihad Jane."
The indictment, obtained by ABC News, charges LaRose with conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists and conspiracy to kill in a foreign country.
She is also accused of making false statements to a government official and of attempted identity theft, a passport she allegedly stole with the intention of giving to an Islamic fighter. The court papers claim that LaRose reached out through the Internet to jihadist groups saying she was "desperate to do something to help" suffering Muslim people, and that she desired to become a martyr.
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Soldier's Facebook Post Scuppers Army Raid
An army has jailed a soldier and cancelled a military operation after he published its details on Facebook.
The Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) had to call off an incursion into a West Bank village because the soldier revealed his combat unit, the location of the operation and when it was set to take place.
Referring to a village near the Palestinian city of Ramallah, the unnamed gunner wrote on his Facebook page: "On Wednesday we clean up Katana and on Thursday, G-d willing, we go home."
The soldier, from an elite artillery unit, added his mobile phone number. He has been sentenced to 10 days in jail and has been thrown out of his unit.
His error was discovered by other members of his unit who informed their commanders, who court-martialled the soldier and scrapped the mission.
The army said in a statement: "The division commander decided to cancel the operation out of concern that the information had reached hostile groups and would harm IDF forces."
It is not the first time an Israeli soldier has proclaimed sensitive military details online.
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May 10-12, 2010
Hosted by MBTA (Quincy, MA)
In a fascinating, insightful and packed three-day program, you are taken through the formative phases of the Islamic religion and will understand the different branches of Islam, understand how these were formed and on what ideology they are based. You are taken through a journey up to the present time, to really understand how extremism is organized in Radical Islam. You will also get practical hands-on information on recognizing Suicide Bombers, planning and changing protocols to respond to acts of terror, the detection of terrorists through fake ID's and the basics of their tools such as IED and VBIED's.
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Homeland1.com is revolutionizing the way in which the homeland security community finds relevant news, identifies important training information, interacts with each other and researches product purchases. It is becoming the most comprehensive and trusted online destination for industry personnel and aspiring professionals alike.
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Cell-All: Super Smartphones Sniff Out Suspicious Substances
Crowdsourcing cell phones to detect dangerous chemicals.
Years ago, if you wanted to take a picture, you needed a dedicated camera. You needed to buy batteries for it, keep it charged, learn its controls, and lug it around. Today, chances are your cell phone is called a "smartphone" and came with a three-to-five megapixel lens built-in-not to mention an MP3 player, GPS, or even a bar code scanner.
This Swiss Army knife trend represents the natural progression of technology-as chips become smaller and more advanced, cell phones continue to absorb new functions. Yet, in the future, these new functions may not only make our lives easier, they could also protect us-and maybe even save our lives.
The Cell-All initiative may be one such savior. Spearheaded by the Department of Homeland Security's Science and Technology Directorate (S&T), Cell-All aims to equip your cell phone with a sensor capable of detecting deadly chemicals at minimal cost-to the manufacturer (a buck a sensor) and to your phone's battery life. "Our goal is to create a lightweight, cost-effective, power-efficient solution," says Stephen Dennis, Cell-All's program manager.
How would this wizardry work? Just as antivirus software bides its time in the background and springs to life when it spies suspicious activity, so Cell-All regularly sniffs the surrounding air for certain volatile chemical compounds.
When a threat is sensed, a virtual ah-choo! ensues in one of two ways. For personal safety issues such as a chlorine gas leak, a warning is sounded; the user can choose a vibration, noise, text message, or phone call. For catastrophes such as a sarin gas attack, details-including time, location, and the compound-are phoned home to an emergency operations center.
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New Products from SSI: FloodSax and BlastSax
Exclusive Sole Source Distributor
As seen on the Weather Channel!
Click Here! FloodSax enables everyone to prepare for flooding: from children or elderly and disabled people living alone, to giant corporations. With FloodSax, everyone can buy time to safeguard their properties from flooding without the need for outside help that may never come or arrive when it's too late!.
FloodSax semi-porous inner liners contain thousands of super absorbent non-toxic crystals that are bonded to cotton-wool which soak up water to 90% capacity in less than 3 minutes. Each FloodSax can hold up to 5.5 gallons of water (45 lbs.) for up to three months from a single activation. They act just like sandbags to keep floods at bay only WITHOUT the SAND because they use WATER as their volume and weight!
FloodSax are GSA Approved!
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Security Solutions International is proud to introduce BlastSax TMD (Transportable Mitigation Device). The patent pending BlastSax devices are engineered for the military, private industry and public safety to save lives in the field during wartime, training, industrial construction and homeland terrorist attacks. BlastSax are extremely lightweight, portable and always ready to deploy in seconds.
In addition to suppressing shock waves from an explosion, BlastSax can assist in containing the flash, smoke and most importantly the fragmentation or "frag". A unique feature that was engineered into BlastSax is its capability to "capture" and "cool" hot frag pieces to assist in forensic analysis for a more complete reconstruction of the device.
BlastSax can assist to:
- Reduce demand on resources
- Considerably reduce blasts
- Contain blast frag pieces and contaminants
- Save lives & protect property from blasts or flood water (see FloodSax)
Learn More...
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Homeland Security Center Opens on Long Island
A building where scientists built the spacecraft that carried men to the moon is becoming a hub for the development of homeland security technology.
Business leaders, politicians and others attended a dedication ceremony Friday for the Morrelly Homeland Security Center. It's located at a former Northrup Grumman site in Bethpage.
New York City Fire Commissioner Salvatore Cassano gave the keynote address.
Some government agencies and private businesses already are up and running there.
The center boasts state-of-the-art technology. That would also allow it to double as a "command and control" hub in the event of a major disaster in New York or on the East Coast.
The 90,000-square foot center is the former Grumman Plant 5. The lunar module was built there in the 1960s and '70s.
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Join the author's of Muslim Mafia, Dave Gaubatz, at the central event in the First Responder calendar - SSI's 5th Annual Homeland Security Professionals Conference in Las Vegas, NV - October 25-29, 2010.
Dave son's, Chris Gaubatz, infiltrated CAIR's inner sanctum, and worked undercover as David Marshall, a converted and devoted follower of the Muslim religion. Chris discovers incredibly disturbing information: Which politicians are given money by CAIR. How Capitol Hill staffers are strategically placed by CAIR.
Participants will also have the opportunity to network with fellow professionals and over 10 experts in the field presenting on key topics, including Evolution of Mass Hostage Siege Tactics, Protecting Large Gatherings from Sporting Events to Casinos, The Attack in Mumbai India, Psychological Impact and Implications to the First Responder Community, among others. The Exhibit Hall will showcase the latest technologies to all participants. Systems, tools and equipments used to prepare and react to any incident will be on display and ready for testing on site.
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Counter Terror Expo, the leading global event for counter terrorism and specialist security solutions for the public and private sector.
300+ exhibitors, 85 leading international conference speakers and 90+ free to attend workshops.
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'Underwear Bomber' could not have blown up plane
by Eric Bland
An experiment that detonated a bomb similar to the so-called "underwear bomber's" shows that the plane would have withstood the impact.
Even if the "Underwear Bomber" Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab had exploded his device on Christmas day, 2009, the Airbus A330 would have survived, according to an experiment conducted by a BBC documentary team.
And while the person sitting next to Abdulmutallab probably would have died, the worst injury most passengers would have suffered would have been ruptured eardrums.
"What we tried to do was simulate, as far as we could, what might have happened over Detroit," said explosives expert John Wyatt, who was part of the BBC experiment. "We used the same type of explosive and the same amount and put it in the same position as the bomber."
"The supports adjacent to the seat lost five or six rivets and the metal bowed out, but the structure didn't fail," said Captain J. Joseph, an aviation expert also featured in the BBC documentary, which is also airing on Discovery Channel this week. "The actual aircraft would have remained intact."
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Sincerely,
Security Solutions International |
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For further information:
Security Solutions International,
13155 SW 134th Street STE 204,
Miami, FL 33186
866-573-3999 Office, 866-573-2090 Fax
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