**September 13, 2006 FEMA Emergency Management Higher Education Project
Activity Report**

\(1\) GLOBAL WARMING:

Reuters. \"Arizona Seeks to Bypass Bush on CO2 Emissions.\" September
11, 2006. Accessed at:

[[http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/GlobalWarming/wireStory?id=2420581]{.underline}](http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/GlobalWarming/wireStory?id=2420581)

\(2\) HOMELAND SECURITY:

Department of Homeland Security. \"Testimony of Secretary Michael
Chertoff U.S. Department of Homeland Security Before the Senate
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.\" September 12,
2006 (10 pages). Accessed at:

[[http://www.dhs.gov/dhspublic/display?content=5825]{.underline}](http://www.dhs.gov/dhspublic/display?content=5825)

\[Excerpt: \"What are we most concerned about? Our priority focus
remains on those events that pose the greatest potential consequences to
human life and the functioning of our society and economy. At the top of
that list is the threat of weapons of mass destruction, which if used,
would have shattering consequences. Preventing the introduction and use
of such weapons requires our priority attention and constant vigilance.
In addition, we must continue to guard against infiltration by
terrorists, including those with the capability and intent to cause
significant harm to our country through multiple, high-consequence
attacks on people and the economy. Finally, we must always be mindful of
the potential for homegrown acts of terrorism, including individuals who
sympathize with terrorist organizations or embrace violence as a means
to promote their radical agenda.\"

Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.

Homeland Security: The Next Five Years. Hearing, September 12, 2006.

Accessed at:

<http://hsgac.senate.gov/index.cfm?Fuseaction=Hearings.Detail&HearingID=394>

\[Available are the prepared statements of DHS Secretary Chertoff (noted
above), Senators Susan Collins. Joseph Lieberman, and George Voinovich,
Sheriff Leroy Baca of Los Angeles County, Richard Falkenrath, Deputy
Commissioner for Counter Terrorism, NYC Police Department, Steven Simon
with the Council on Foreign Relations, and Daniel Prieto with the
Homeland Security Center, Reform Institute. Copies of the hearing can be
ordered from this website and an archived tape can be listened to.\]

\[Excerpt from Falkenrath statement: \"From my new vantage point within
the New York Police Department, my observation is that the federal
government, while well-intentioned, has no overarching vision for
terrorism-related information sharing with state and local agencies and
no clear federal direction or leadership\.... At least three
Cabinet-level officers - The Secretary of Homeland Security, the
Attorney General, and the Director on National Intelligence - have
substantial oversight responsibility for the federal government\'s
information-sharing system; none of them appears truly engaged by the
topic.\"\]

\[Excerpt from Simon statement: \"The conventional wisdom is that
Europe\'s Muslim\'s discontent is a result of failed immigration
policies that could not affect America\'s prosperous, happy Muslims, who
have benefited from the welcoming embrace of our \'melting pot\' nation.
This view may not reflect reality\... Recent research shows that \'the
real story of American Muslims is one of accelerating alienation\' which
could produce a \'rejectionist generation\'. Muslims are increasingly
choosing not to assimilate into American society, finding solace in
their religious identity instead. Muslim students\' associations on
college campuses are growing rapidly as havens for Muslims who prefer
not to socialize with non-Muslims, and Muslims are building Islamic
schools as alternatives to a public school system perceived as
inhospitable.\"\]

Strohm, Chris. \"Democrats Renew Push for Screening of All Cargo.\"

National Journal\'s Technology Daily, 12 Sept 2006. At:

[[http://www.govexec.com/story_page.cfm?articleid=35001&dcn=e_gvet]{.underline}](http://www.govexec.com/story_page.cfm?articleid=35001&dcn=e_gvet)

\(3\) KATRINA:

Campaign For America\'s Future. \"\"Report on Katrina: Conservative
Policies Failed in the Rescue and Rebuilding of the Gulf Coast.\" August
29, 2006. Accessed at:

[[http://home.ourfuture.org/media/report-on-katrina.html]{.underline}](http://home.ourfuture.org/media/report-on-katrina.html)

\[At the end of this press release is a URL Link to pdf document: Lotke,
Eric and Robert L. Borosage. Hurricane Katrina: Natural Disaster, Human
Catastrophe. Washington DC: Campaign For America\'s Future, August 26,
2006, 26 pages.\]

\(4\) MITIGATION:

Harvey, Christine. \"Slidell Signs On To FEMA Height Advisory.\"
Times-Picayune (NO), 13Sep06.

<http://www.nola.com/news/t-p/frontpage/index.ssf?/base/news-6/1158128685281440.xml&coll=1>

\[Excerpts: \" Slidell home and business owners whose properties were
more than 50 percent damaged during Hurricane Katrina and who have not
obtained permits to rebuild will have to adhere to new guidelines
adopted Tuesday by the City Council that call for elevating those
structures to a height 11 feet above sea level\.... Slidell joins at
least six parishes, including Orleans, Jefferson and St. Tammany, and 13
municipalities, including Mandeville and Madisonville, in adopting the
new guidelines.\"\]

\(5\) PREPAREDNESS:

New Orleans Times-Picayune. \"The Right (and Wrong) Stuff.\" September
13, 2006. Accessed at:

<http://www.nola.com/news/t-p/editorials/index.ssf?/base/news-3/1158125731228420.xml&coll=1>

\[Excerpt: \"Hurricane Katrina should have taught every agency how
important planning is. But it\'s hard to believe we\'re ready for the
next crisis when key agencies haven\'t performed crucial tasks. The
Department of Homeland Security still hasn\'t issued a document called
the Catastrophic Incident Annex supplement, which spells out where
commodities, equipment and personnel will go in a crisis. Without that
document, the GAO says federal agencies won\'t know what to do when a
disaster strikes.\"\]

Pariseau, Beth. \"Universities Lean On Each Other For Better Disaster
Recovery.\" SearchStorage.com, September 7, 2006, 3 pages. Accessed at:

<http://searchstorage.techtarget.com/originalContent/0,289142,sid5_gci1214592,00.html>

\(6\) WAR ON TERROR:

Abedin, Mahan. \"New Security Realities and al-Qaeda\'s Changing
Tactics: An Interview with Saad al-Faqih\" (Head of Saudi opposition
group Movement for Islamic Reform ion Arabia). Spotlight on Terror, Vol.
3, Issue 12, December 15, 2005. Accessed at:

[[http://www.jamestown.org/terrorism/news/article.php?articleid=2369847]{.underline}](http://www.jamestown.org/terrorism/news/article.php?articleid=2369847)

\[Excerpt: \"MA: I have a couple of questions on the Internet. Firstly
do you think that the jihadis now see the Internet as the most important
battle space?

SF: Only the jihadis in Iraq.

MA: Why?

SF: Because the only place on earth where the jihadis feel safe is Iraq.

The Internet used to be awash with jihadi material but this is becoming
less so for two reasons. Firstly, Western intelligence services are now
aggressively targeting jihadi websites and are showing a greater
determination to close them down completely. In the past they would
allow some of the more interesting ones to remain in operation so that
they could covertly gather intelligence on the webmasters and the
contributors. Dozens of websites have been closed in recent months.

Secondly, Western governments have provided software and other expertise
to the Saudi regime to trace individual contributors to web forums. But
the jihadis in Iraq feel safe and secure because they have satellite
Internet connections and they can set up temporary websites and upload
files very easily. The invasion of Iraq has boosted the fortunes of
jihadis in many respects, and the Internet is no exception.\"\]

Heffelfinger, Chris. \"Al-Qaeda\'s Evolving Strategy Five Years After
September 11.\" Terrorism Focus, Vol. 3, Issue 35, September 12, 2006.

Accessed at:

[[http://www.jamestown.org/terrorism/news/article.php?articleid=2370127]{.underline}](http://www.jamestown.org/terrorism/news/article.php?articleid=2370127)

\[Excerpt: \"The rise of al-Qaeda in Europe, al-Qaeda in the Arabian
Peninsula, Qaedat al-jihad fi bilad al-Rafidayn (al-Qaeda in Iraq) and
others has demonstrated that the movement is not directed from the top
down, but that these organizations seem to center around local leaders
who pledge their allegiance to bin Laden as emir, or commander, and
their role is subsequently acknowledged by the al-Qaeda leadership. This
is again consistent with their policy of being an inspirational force
rather than a formal organization. Al-Qaeda appears now to be one step
closer to realizing its final goal of establishing an Islamic state in
the face of U.S. defeat\.... Reviewing the developments of the war
against al-Qaeda during the last five years, one sees their strategy
being carried out in the various stages described above-inspiring
Muslims around the globe, the creation of franchise organizations,
frequent attacks in countries that support the United States and its
allies and the gradual widening of the battlefield to the point that
al-Qaeda itself becomes less and less relevant.\"

Ignatius, David. \"Young Anger Foments Jihad.\" Washington Post,
September 13, 2006. Accessed at:

<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/09/12/AR2006091201298.html>

\[Excerpt: \"Sageman argues in his book, \"Understanding Terror
Networks,\" that we are facing something closer to a cult network than
an organized global adversary. Like many cults through history, the
Muslim terrorists thrive by channeling and perverting the idealism of
young people\.... The implication of Sageman\'s analysis is that the
Sunni jihadism of al-Qaeda and its spinoff groups is a generational
phenomenon. Unless new grievances spawn new recruits, it will gradually
ebb over time. In other words, this is a fire that will gradually burn
itself out unless we keep pumping in more oxygen\.... we should choose
our offensive battles wisely and avoid glamorizing the jihadist network
further through our rhetoric or actions.\"\]

Mills, Greg. \"Time to Talk to the Taliban?\" International Herald
Tribune, September 12, 2006. Accessed at:

[[http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/09/12/opinion/edmills.php]{.underline}](http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/09/12/opinion/edmills.php)

\[Excerpt: \"With the recent upsurge in violence in Afghanistan, it is
not the time to be going soft on the Taliban. But equally, the time has
come for the West to take heed of one of the first principles of
counterinsurgency: Know your enemy.\"\]

Wallsten, Peter. \"Bush Politicized A Solemn Day, Democrats Say.\" Los
Angeles Times, September 13, 2006. Accessed at:

<http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-na-bushpol13sep13,1,1381045.story>

\[Excerpt: \"Democrats have argued that the war has weakened the United
States\' standing in the world and that Bush\'s \"stay the course\"
policy only increases the terrorism threat.\"\]

B. Wayne Blanchard, Ph.D., CEM

Higher Education Project Manager

Emergency Management Institute

National Emergency Training Center

Federal Emergency Management Agency

Department of Homeland Security

16825 S. Seton, N-430

Emmitsburg, MD 21727

\(301\) 447-1262, voice

\(301\) 447-1598, fax

wayne.blanchard@dhs.gov

[[http://training.fema.gov/EMIWeb/edu]{.underline}](http://training.fema.gov/EMIWeb/edu)

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