Was the Terminator Fiction or a Prophetic Prediction?
I was watching Terminator 2 the other day and then I heard the news that the government was outsourcing our national security to a aerospace company based out of the West Coast. Maybe it's just me, but isn't that exactly how Skynet got its start in the film? See, in "The Terminator" ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terminator_2:_Judgment_Day ) the company Cyberdyne Systems ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyberdyne_Systems_Corporation ) is given government funding to protect the borders of the nation. Within months they allow a AI computer to make national security and defense decisions, taking human control away from the weapons. It isn't much later when Cyberdyne becomes Skynet ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skynet )and launches its attack on mankind, throwing the world into apocalypse.
Okay, so Boeing is PROBABLY not going to launch the downfall of mankind by releasing self-aware computers on the world, but it's a disturbing sign to see privatization of security. Not only that, but the idea of a "virtual fence" on the border also frightens me because of the possible disasters it opens us up to. It may seem like paranoid fantasies, but has anyone ever used a computer with Windows on it? There are daily glitches in the system, hiccups and other issues that make the unreliability of computers obvious. If we cannot manufacture a care alarm that doesn't know the difference between a break-in and a Harley riding down the street, how can we make a sensor that can distinguish a Mexican Immigrant from a wild animal?
I'm not sure what worries me more, the privatization of national security or the employment of a "virtual fence" with Mexico. I am obviously not a supporter of any kind of fence between our nation, but a "virtual fence" could potentially cause a lot of problems. First, there is really no need for a fence, it is a waste of our resources to even be debating it. Second, it will become a safety net that we'll rely on for security, becoming complacent in protecting our borders. And Third, it will most surely fail to protect us from the actual threats we face.
The way security measures work is that they impact the law-abiding citizens more than they do the ones the security measures were designed to disrupt. Not only that, but the security measures act in response to threats instead of anticipating them. Hijackers take over planes with knives, so AFTER it happens they make them illegal. It's not all that useful to put water on a fire after it has burned down the house, there ain't nothing left to burn. Look at the border crossing in San Ysidro (San Diego) and "La Linea" that stretches for 90-120 minutes when coming back to the US from Mexico. While they catch plenty of minor criminals, the major ones just ignore that border crossing. The Arellano-Felix cartel ignored the border and just built tunnels under it or fly planes over. Goes to show you how useless security measures really are.
Like when stealing somebody's radio out of their car, you don't go through the lock, you break the window. Well, when sneaking across the border, you will just exploit the weaknesses in the same way. Just as a window can't stop a determined thief from stealing your radio, a virtual fence will do nothing to stop the professional armies and other undesirables that are the real threats to our security. So instead of giving billions to an aerospace company to protect our border, why not just concentrate on security within our cities. Because it's only a matter of time before a young Muslim (or Christian, Jew or Hare Krishna) decides that he's had enough of American imperialism and hegemony and launches a chemical attack on Yankee Stadium. Why spend money to help train our enemies?
Okay, so Boeing is PROBABLY not going to launch the downfall of mankind by releasing self-aware computers on the world, but it's a disturbing sign to see privatization of security. Not only that, but the idea of a "virtual fence" on the border also frightens me because of the possible disasters it opens us up to. It may seem like paranoid fantasies, but has anyone ever used a computer with Windows on it? There are daily glitches in the system, hiccups and other issues that make the unreliability of computers obvious. If we cannot manufacture a care alarm that doesn't know the difference between a break-in and a Harley riding down the street, how can we make a sensor that can distinguish a Mexican Immigrant from a wild animal?
I'm not sure what worries me more, the privatization of national security or the employment of a "virtual fence" with Mexico. I am obviously not a supporter of any kind of fence between our nation, but a "virtual fence" could potentially cause a lot of problems. First, there is really no need for a fence, it is a waste of our resources to even be debating it. Second, it will become a safety net that we'll rely on for security, becoming complacent in protecting our borders. And Third, it will most surely fail to protect us from the actual threats we face.
The way security measures work is that they impact the law-abiding citizens more than they do the ones the security measures were designed to disrupt. Not only that, but the security measures act in response to threats instead of anticipating them. Hijackers take over planes with knives, so AFTER it happens they make them illegal. It's not all that useful to put water on a fire after it has burned down the house, there ain't nothing left to burn. Look at the border crossing in San Ysidro (San Diego) and "La Linea" that stretches for 90-120 minutes when coming back to the US from Mexico. While they catch plenty of minor criminals, the major ones just ignore that border crossing. The Arellano-Felix cartel ignored the border and just built tunnels under it or fly planes over. Goes to show you how useless security measures really are.
Like when stealing somebody's radio out of their car, you don't go through the lock, you break the window. Well, when sneaking across the border, you will just exploit the weaknesses in the same way. Just as a window can't stop a determined thief from stealing your radio, a virtual fence will do nothing to stop the professional armies and other undesirables that are the real threats to our security. So instead of giving billions to an aerospace company to protect our border, why not just concentrate on security within our cities. Because it's only a matter of time before a young Muslim (or Christian, Jew or Hare Krishna) decides that he's had enough of American imperialism and hegemony and launches a chemical attack on Yankee Stadium. Why spend money to help train our enemies?
posted by Dan Pasternack at 5:06 PM
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