New York/New Jersey High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Terrorist Financing & Drug Trafficking Strategy
My Masters Project focuses around the New York/New Jersey High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (NY/NJ HIDTA). Narco-terrorism has become a significant issue for the safety and security of the United States. Terrorist financing also plays a significant role in the war on terror. I chose to create a three part strategy for the NY/NJ HIDTA that will combat both narcoterrorism and terrorist financing. Each chapter describes another detailed plan of how the NY/NJ HIDTA, as well as particular agencies within, combat these issues in attempt to keep our nation secure. My Masters Project was carefully constructed with a strong focus on terrorist financing. The top priority of terrorist organizations is to cripple the American economy. This paper will illustrate the significance of “following the money will eventually deteriorate terrorist organizations at their core. Narco-Terrorism & Terrorist Financing 3 Acknowledgements I would like to thank my parents, John and Marie O‟Mara. They showed me how hard work and determination can make your dreams come true. I would not be where I am today without their love and support. Not only did they proofread my papers throughout these past two years, they provided encouragement when it was really needed. My sisters, Jennifer and Meghan have also been a tremendous support system throughout this journey. I would like to thank them for proofreading my papers and providing me with an outside perspective. I would also like to thank my fiance, Steve. Not only did he look over my work and fix the grammatical errors, he was my rock. He was always there to support me and give me that extra push to keep on working. He believed in me and the work I was capable of even when I doubted myself. I am eternally grateful. I would like to thank my grandmother, “Mama”, for teaching me that education is a valuable gift. She saw potential in me when I had doubts. I wish she could be here to experience this achievement with me but I know that I have made her proud. There are three people I must thank that were a tremendous part in the execution of my Master‟s Project. Detective Ray Bravo, his knowledge of Homeland Security mixed with his personal experiences enabled me to fully comprehend the lessons that were taught throughout this program. I would like to thank him for sitting patiently with me while I asked him hundreds of Narco-Terrorism & Terrorist Financing 4 questions. I learned so much from his stories and valuable insight. Detective John Petrocelli was always there to read over my papers and provide me with the advice and guidance that I needed to move forward. His friendship and support were invaluable to me. Investigator Robyn Arias, who is my colleague and my friend. I would like to thank her for staying after work with me to help me on my homework assignments. She was always there to provide support and inspiration when I felt like giving up. Most importantly, I would like to thank Dr. Ryan. His enthusiasm for academia resonates throughout the Pace community. He has been an inspiration and a support system throughout this journey. His hard work and dedication to this Master‟s program is shown throughout my Master‟s Project as well as my fellow peers‟. It is truly an honor to be able to graduate in the first cohort. Thank you Dr. Ryan we couldn‟t have done this without you. Narco-Terrorism & Terrorist Financing 5 Table of
Potholes and Detours in the Road to Critical Infrastructure Protection Policy
IntroductionOne can frame the policies of the current national strategy for critical infrastructure protection using a number of colorful analogs, but transportation seems the most fitting because transportation is one of the sectors identified by the National Strategy for the Physical Protection of Critical Infrastructures and Key Assets, published by the White House in 2003. 1 Beneath the title of this article is the reality that we have a long way to go to protect critical infrastructure assets ? across all sectors ? at even modest levels of security. Indeed, if a 1,000-mile journey begins with a single step along a well-defined road, then the national strategy road is badly in need of repairs.This paper exposes only a handful of the many myths, fallacies, and roadblocks preventing the nation from protecting its second-most important assets: the water, power, energy, telecommunications, information, and transportation systems that make up critical infrastructure (CI). 2 We claim that the first step in this 1,000-mile journey is to fix the potholes and eliminate the detours promoted by the current strategy for protection of the country's CI. To do so, we must understand how the national strategy fails to address reality. We couch these realities in metaphorical terms ? as potholes and detours on the road to protecting the nation's critical infrastructures. The term 'pothole' is used to identify problems and barriers to making progress, and the term 'detour' is used to expose wrong-headed myths, distractions, and bumps in the road to better infrastructure security.This paper argues against a purely federalist approach to critical infrastructure protection and instead advocates that the federal government take greater responsibility (and control) over state and local decisions; it argues that the first step in this transformation is to set standards, beginning with concise and clear definitions of vulnerability and risk. We then turn to the arguments preventing action ? specifically that government is helpless to correct security problems in critical infrastructure because most infrastructures are owned and operated by the private sector. Finally, we make four concrete recommendations on how to improve critical infrastructure protection through re-thinking and re-aligning current policies.Think Globally, Act LocallyThe national strategy is based on the idea that the federal government should set goals and policies, while the states should assume primary responsibility for homeland security, because incidents happen at the local level. Specifically, the National Strategy defines the relationship between federal and state/local governments as follows:In addition to securing federally owned and operated infrastructures and assets, the role of the federal lead departments and agencies is to assist state and local governments and private-sector partners in their efforts to:* Organize and conduct protection and continuity of government and operations planning, and elevate awareness and understanding of threats and vulnerabilities to their critical facilities, systems, and functions;* Identify and promote effective sector-specific protection practices and methodologies; and* Expand voluntary security-related information sharing among private entities within the sector, as well as between government and private entities. 3Basically, the federal government is primed to assist state and local governments, but the state/local governments are responsible for implementation of 'protection practices, and methodologies.' This strategy has a number of deficiencies as pointed out by the first pothole.Pothole 1: CIP (Critical Infrastructure Protection) is a local problem and therefore the federal government should provide guidance and funding, but state and local jurisdictions must become the first line of defense against attacks on critical infrastructure assets. …
Emotional and social intelligence assessment model for student character reinforcement
PurposeThe purpose of this study is to help teachers resolve the difficulties in assessing the students' characters through the development of valid, reliable, goodness-of-fit statistic instrument of emotional and social intelligence assessment for elementary school students.Design/methodology/approachThis study used a research and development model from Plomp with five phases, such as investigation, design, realization, testing and implementation. The research subjects were 345 students of class IV amongst 20 elementary schools in Yogyakarta. Data collection used questionnaires, documentation, interviews, Forum Group Discussion and an observation. Data analysis used descriptive analysis, Aiken's V, exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis formulae.FindingsThe research study helps solve the difficulties of teachers in assessing emotional and social intelligence, which have previously been in only one area of psychomotor. The design of emotional and social intelligence assessment instruments is made from three domains of character, namely, cognitive, affective and psychomotor. The form of the instrument is non-test in three variations. The construct of social and emotional intelligence assessment for a character reinforcement has met the validity, reliability and goodness-of-fit statistic.Research limitations/implicationsThis study explains that the Emotional and Social Intelligence (ESI) model is applied for measuring cognitive, affective and psychomotor in children. This study proves that the ESI model is a comprehensive assessment model for evaluating the children's soft skills, includes (1) personal abilities: the ability to make rational decisions, the ability to design the future and (2) social skills: the ability to work together and the ability to understand other people.Practical implicationsTeachers can measure and determine the condition of children's soft skills by operating the ESI model. Based on the knowledge of the correct soft skill conditions, the teacher can adjust the teaching materials and teaching methods that would improve the child's soft skills regarding to their respective conditions. Mastering these soft skills will affect the children's capability in facing the challenge in the upcoming society's life.Originality/valueThe novelty of this study is the design model of the emotional and social intelligence assessment instrument developed comprehensively and practically as it is created from three domains of character and three forms of non-test questions, so that the assessment is not mechanical, and easily practiced by users.