Describe the national security risk and threat assessment process.

– What national security threats have been attributed to climate change?

– What recommendations should be followed to protect the US from climate change?

– What is the water-food-energy nexus and why is it important?

– How will rising sea levels impact defense infrastructure?

– What is an EMP and why is it dangerous?

– What components of infrastructure can be damaged by an EMP and how can they be protected?

– What threat does Ebola and similar pandemic diseases pose?

– What pre-infection (mitigation) measures can be employed?

– What post-infection (response) measures can be employed?

– Given what you’ve learned about risk assessment, which of these modern threats should be given highest priority and why?

Sample solution

Dante Alighieri played a critical role in the literature world through his poem Divine Comedy that was written in the 14th century. The poem contains Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso. The Inferno is a description of the nine circles of torment that are found on the earth. It depicts the realms of the people that have gone against the spiritual values and who, instead, have chosen bestial appetite, violence, or fraud and malice. The nine circles of hell are limbo, lust, gluttony, greed and wrath. Others are heresy, violence, fraud, and treachery. The purpose of this paper is to examine the Dante’s Inferno in the perspective of its portrayal of God’s image and the justification of hell. 

In this epic poem, God is portrayed as a super being guilty of multiple weaknesses including being egotistic, unjust, and hypocritical. Dante, in this poem, depicts God as being more human than divine by challenging God’s omnipotence. Additionally, the manner in which Dante describes Hell is in full contradiction to the morals of God as written in the Bible. When god arranges Hell to flatter Himself, He commits egotism, a sin that is common among human beings (Cheney, 2016). The weakness is depicted in Limbo and on the Gate of Hell where, for instance, God sends those who do not worship Him to Hell. This implies that failure to worship Him is a sin.

God is also depicted as lacking justice in His actions thus removing the godly image. The injustice is portrayed by the manner in which the sodomites and opportunists are treated. The opportunists are subjected to banner chasing in their lives after death followed by being stung by insects and maggots. They are known to having done neither good nor bad during their lifetimes and, therefore, justice could have demanded that they be granted a neutral punishment having lived a neutral life. The sodomites are also punished unfairly by God when Brunetto Lattini is condemned to hell despite being a good leader (Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). While he commited sodomy, God chooses to ignore all the other good deeds that Brunetto did.

Finally, God is also portrayed as being hypocritical in His actions, a sin that further diminishes His godliness and makes Him more human. A case in point is when God condemns the sin of egotism and goes ahead to commit it repeatedly. Proverbs 29:23 states that “arrogance will bring your downfall, but if you are humble, you will be respected.” When Slattery condemns Dante’s human state as being weak, doubtful, and limited, he is proving God’s hypocrisy because He is also human (Verdicchio, 2015). The actions of God in Hell as portrayed by Dante are inconsistent with the Biblical literature. Both Dante and God are prone to making mistakes, something common among human beings thus making God more human.

To wrap it up, Dante portrays God is more human since He commits the same sins that humans commit: egotism, hypocrisy, and injustice. Hell is justified as being a destination for victims of the mistakes committed by God. The Hell is presented as being a totally different place as compared to what is written about it in the Bible. As a result, reading through the text gives an image of God who is prone to the very mistakes common to humans thus ripping Him off His lofty status of divine and, instead, making Him a mere human. Whether or not Dante did it intentionally is subject to debate but one thing is clear in the poem: the misconstrued notion of God is revealed to future generations.

 

References

Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). Dante’s inferno: Seven deadly sins in scientific publishing and how to avoid them. Addiction Science: A Guide for the Perplexed, 267.

Cheney, L. D. G. (2016). Illustrations for Dante’s Inferno: A Comparative Study of Sandro Botticelli, Giovanni Stradano, and Federico Zuccaro. Cultural and Religious Studies4(8), 487.

Verdicchio, M. (2015). Irony and Desire in Dante’s” Inferno” 27. Italica, 285-297.

National Security Risk and Threat Assessment Process

The national security risk and threat assessment process is a systematic approach used by governments to identify, analyze, and evaluate potential dangers to a nation’s security, interests, and well-being. It informs policy decisions, resource allocation, and strategic planning. While specific methodologies can vary, a typical process involves several key stages:

  1. Threat Identification:

    • Scanning the Horizon: Identifying potential adversaries (state and non-state actors), emerging technologies, environmental shifts,

National Security Risk and Threat Assessment Process

The national security risk and threat assessment process is a systematic approach used by governments to identify, analyze, and evaluate potential dangers to a nation’s security, interests, and well-being. It informs policy decisions, resource allocation, and strategic planning. While specific methodologies can vary, a typical process involves several key stages:

  1. Threat Identification:

    • Scanning the Horizon: Identifying potential adversaries (state and non-state actors), emerging technologies, environmental shifts,
  1. Threat Analysis:

    • Capability Assessment: Evaluating the means and resources available to a threat actor (e.g., military strength, cyber warfare capabilities, economic leverage, scientific expertise, disease vectors).
    • Intent Assessment: Understanding the motivations, goals, and willingness of a threat actor to use their capabilities. This is often the most challenging aspect.
    • Vulnerability Assessment: Identifying weaknesses within the nation’s own systems, infrastructure, population, or governance that a threat could exploit.
    • Contextual Factors: Analyzing political, economic, social, technological, legal, and environmental (PESTLE) factors that influence the threat landscape.
  2. Risk Assessment:

    • Likelihood Assessment: Estimating the probability of a threat materializing.
    • Impact Assessment: Evaluating the potential consequences if a threat materializes. This includes loss of life, economic disruption, political instability, environmental damage, and psychological effects.
    • Risk Matrix/Prioritization: Combining likelihood and impact to categorize and prioritize risks (e.g., high-likelihood/high-impact threats receive highest priority).
    • Interdependencies: Understanding how different threats and vulnerabilities might interact or amplify each other.
  3. Mitigation and Response Planning:

    • Strategy Development: Formulating national security strategies, doctrines, and policies to address identified risks.
    • Capability Development: Investing in military, intelligence, diplomatic, economic, and technological capabilities to counter threats.
    • Resilience Building: Strengthening critical infrastructure, public health systems, and societal cohesion to withstand and recover from attacks or disasters.
    • Contingency Planning: Developing specific plans for responding to various crisis scenarios.
    • Deterrence: Implementing measures to discourage potential adversaries from acting.
  4. Monitoring and Review:

    • Continuous Assessment: The threat landscape is dynamic, so the process must be continuous, involving regular updates, re-evaluations, and adjustments to strategies.
    • Feedback Loops: Learning from actual events and exercises to refine the assessment and response mechanisms.

National Security Threats Attributed to Climate Change

Climate change is increasingly recognized by national security experts as a “threat multiplier” because it exacerbates existing vulnerabilities and creates new challenges. Key threats include:

  • Resource Scarcity and Competition: Increased droughts, water shortages, and decreased agricultural yields can lead to competition over vital resources, potentially fueling internal conflicts and cross-border tensions, especially in already unstable regions.
  • Mass Migration and Displacement: Rising sea levels, extreme weather events, and desertification can displace large populations, leading to internal displacement and international migration flows. This can strain resources, infrastructure, and social cohesion in host communities, and potentially lead to political instability.
  • Increased Frequency and Intensity of Extreme Weather Events: More powerful hurricanes, prolonged heatwaves, severe droughts, and intense floods can overwhelm emergency services, damage critical infrastructure, disrupt supply chains, and cause significant economic losses, requiring military and civilian response efforts.
  • Weakened State Capacity: Climate-related disasters can undermine the ability of fragile states to govern, provide services, and maintain order, creating vacuums that extremist groups or criminal organizations can exploit.
  • Damage to Military Infrastructure: Coastal military bases, training ranges, and naval facilities are vulnerable to rising sea levels, increased storm surges, and permafrost thaw, requiring costly relocation, adaptation, or abandonment.
  • Health Crises: Changes in temperature and precipitation patterns can alter the geographic distribution of vector-borne diseases (e.g., malaria, dengue fever) and waterborne diseases, posing new public health challenges that can strain national health systems and impact military readiness.
  • Arctic Competition: Melting Arctic ice opens new shipping routes and access to natural resources, increasing geopolitical competition among nations like Russia, China, and the US, raising concerns about militarization and potential conflicts.

Recommendations to Protect the US from Climate Change

Protecting the US from climate change involves a dual approach: mitigation (reducing greenhouse gas emissions) and adaptation (adjusting to the impacts).

Mitigation Recommendations:

  1. Accelerate Renewable Energy Transition: Invest heavily in solar, wind, geothermal, and other renewable energy sources, and phase out fossil fuel dependence through policy incentives, R&D, and infrastructure upgrades.
  2. Improve Energy Efficiency: Implement stricter energy efficiency standards for buildings, vehicles, and industries, and incentivize smart grid technologies.
  3. Promote Sustainable Land Use: Encourage reforestation, sustainable agriculture practices, and protection of natural carbon sinks (forests, wetlands).
  4. Invest in Carbon Capture Technologies: Develop and deploy technologies to capture and store carbon emissions from industrial sources.
  5. International Cooperation: Engage actively in global climate agreements and initiatives to ensure collective action on emissions reduction.

Adaptation Recommendations:

  1. Strengthen Critical Infrastructure Resilience: Design and upgrade infrastructure (roads, bridges, power grids, water systems, military bases) to withstand extreme weather events and rising sea levels. This includes elevating structures, building seawalls, and improving drainage.
  2. Develop Early Warning Systems: Enhance meteorological monitoring and forecasting capabilities for extreme weather events.
  3. Improve Water Resource Management: Implement strategies for water conservation, desalination (where appropriate), and efficient irrigation to address drought and water scarcity.
  4. Plan for Population Displacement: Develop strategies for managing internal and international climate-induced migration, including humanitarian aid, resettlement programs, and integration support.
  5. Enhance Public Health Preparedness: Strengthen health systems to respond to climate-related health challenges, such as heat-related illnesses and the spread of vector-borne diseases.
  6. Protect Ecosystems: Invest in natural defenses like wetlands and coastal ecosystems, which can buffer against storm surges and absorb floodwaters.
  7. Integrate Climate Risk into National Security Planning: Embed climate change considerations into military doctrine

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