We're part of the problem, or part of the solution.

Submitted by James Vesce (United States), Aug 22, 2006 at 17:08

When I worked in a defense plant, I was taught that security was everybody's responsibility.

Today, given the nature of the war we're in, when the enemy refuses to make his major assaults with uniformed soldiers, security is everybody's responsibility in civilian life. Most of us who pay attention to danielpipes.org know what the enemy looks like, and how he acts, and what his nasty little tricks are, even if our government is too PC to come right out and focus on the bad guys, so we're going to have to make our contribution as citizens and look for the bad guys ourselves.

Think of it as a nationwide community watch program, without the meetings and matching t-shirts. Because our government is too PC to profile the bad guys, our contribution is even more important and more needed. It's easy: read what's written about Islamofascist terrorists, keep a sharp eye out, make observations, and get video or audio recordings if we can. If we have something substantial, then we report it to the appropriate federal security agency, or to the media, or post it on the Internet.

If you're waiting to board a plane, and you have reason to think somebody is acting suspiciously, then report it to security personnel in a quiet, discrete manner. If nothing happens and you still don't feel safe, make the decision to not board the plane, and make other plans for your transportation. If you're on the plane already and think you have a valid security concern, quietly and discretely report your concerns to an attendant, and ask them to notify the flight crew or a sky marshal. Your life depends on somebody being right about these matters, and you might be the only one in a position to make crucial observations.

Do you have anything better to do?

How would you feel if you didn't speak up, and a disaster occurred?

Note: Opinions expressed in comments are those of the authors alone and not necessarily those of Daniel Pipes. Original writing only, please. Comments are screened and in some cases edited before posting. Reasoned disagreement is welcome but not comments that are scurrilous, off-topic, commercial, disparaging religions, or otherwise inappropriate. For complete regulations, see the "Guidelines for Reader Comments".