Below The Beltway

The New York Times reports today that the United States is starting to apply an idea from the Cold War to a 21st Century conflict:
The emerging belief that terrorists may be subject to a new form of deterrence is reflected in two of the nation’s central strategy documents.
The 2002 National Security Strategy, signed by the [...]

Apparently, we can count on incompetence to prevent the rise of the police state:
WASHINGTON (AP) — Telephone companies cut off FBI wiretaps used to eavesdrop on suspected criminals because of the bureau’s repeated failures to pay phone bills on time, according to a Justice Department audit released Thursday.
The faulty bookkeeping is part of what the [...]

The holiday season is approaching and, like clockwork, the FBI released yet another unsubstantiated warning that terrorists might attack shopping malls:
The FBI is warning that al Qaeda may be preparing a series of holiday attacks on U.S. shopping malls in Los Angeles and Chicago, according to an intelligence report distributed to law enforcement authorities across [...]

Yesterday, a terminal at Miami International Airport was evacuated when a TSA screener saw something they thought was a bomb.
It turned out to be something very different:
MIAMI - The X-ray machine beeped, travelers were kicked out, and flights were delayed — all for a box that turned out to contain cremated human remains.
About 2,000 people [...]

Now that the nation’s security depends on what’s in Michael Chertoff’s stomach, Wired has helpfully revised the nation’s terror alert system:

James Joyner brings us the latest innovation from the Department of Homeland Security.
Makes more sense than what we have now.

Several times since 9/11, the Federal Government has issued warnings about terrorist “chatter” and indications that a major attack was in the planning stages. Without fail, these warnings have proven to be much less than meets the eye when subjected to scrutiny.
Which is why the latest report about threats of a summer of “spectacular” attacks [...]

I don’t know about you, and while he may be a threat to the Florida Gators, I’m pretty sure Troy Smith is not a threat to the country:
Troy Smith’s Heisman Trophy was shipped home because airport security would not allow the Ohio State quarterback to [...]

If this report is accurate, the Department of Homeland Security certainly has an odd way of classifying potential terror targets:
WASHINGTON, July 11 ? It reads like a tally of terrorist targets that a child might have written: Old MacDonald?s Petting Zoo, the Amish Country Popcorn factory, the Mule Day Parade, the Sweetwater Flea Market and [...]

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff spoke yesterday at a Hertiage Foundation Conference titled “‘24′ and America’s Image in Fighting Terrorism“, where he made it clear that he’s no Jack Bauer.
WASHINGTON — Take it from Michael Chertoff: The Homeland Security Department is no “24.” Chertoff, the department’s secretary, said Friday he doesn’t have a [...]