Homeland Security

WASHINGTON - - An angry President Barack Obama said Tuesday that there had been "unacceptable" failures in the American intelligence system that allowed a terrorism suspect to board a U.S.-bound Northwest Airlines flight on Christmas Day and vowed changes in security procedures and information- gathering to avert future plots. The president addressed top administration officials in unusually blunt terms during a lengthy afternoon session in which agency heads acknowledged their shortcomings and laid plans for corrections.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has commendably warned states, terrorists and their proxies that America will protect its computer networks. To do so, however, the federal government must do much more to reach out to the private sector, which controls the vast majority of U.S. critical infrastructure, from banks to communications to energy. Cyber security affects every American. It enables the operation of nearly every part of the economy, from banking to manufacturing to retail to health care.

In a matter of days, Stanley Hermane will likely go from a crowded orphanage in earthquake-ravaged Haiti to a warm and cozy bedroom in Baltimore. Michael and Monica Simonsen, a Riverside Park couple who have been trying to adopt the 21-month-old boy for most of his life, are eagerly awaiting his arrival. Now it appears that last week's earthquake had a small silver lining for families in the adoption process: Much of the red tape has been removed. The Simonsens are among scores of families looking to benefit from a recent Department of Homeland Security measure that will allow many Haitian children already in the adoption process to come to the U.S. right away.

Maryland Jockey Club President Tom Chuckas said Saturday that the Preakness brand “has changed dramatically” in the last few years, citing an attendance bump in the infield celebration and increased security all around the racetrack.   “The crowd in the infield is up, and the wagers are coming in,” Chuckas said. “All in all, it's pretty much what we expected, and we'll continue to fine-tune it.”   Speaking with reporters just after the seventh race Saturday at Pimlico Race Cource, Chuckas acknowledged that the Jockey Club has sought to find a balance between catering to old-school horse racing fans and drawing in new crowds who could become racing enthusiasts.

WASHINGTON - -In what was described as an act of terrorism, a Nigerian passenger attempted to ignite an incendiary device Friday aboard a Northwest Airlines flight from Amsterdam to Detroit as the plane began its approach for landing, federal officials said. The plane landed safely shortly before noon. The suspected would-be bomber suffered burns as the result of his attempt, and two of the other 277 passengers reported minor injuries, authorities said. FBI agents were investigating the incident, which a White House official said was thought to be an attempted act of terrorism.

None of us will ever forget where we were on Sept. 11, 2001. Many of my family members were in New York. I remember the feeling of dread when I couldn't reach anyone by phone. Among the nearly 3,000 who died in the attacks, 68 names are inscribed in the memorial unveiled in Baltimore today. As we remember those we lost, perhaps the most lasting, lifesaving tribute we can give them is to improve our nation's homeland security. Recently, the 9/11 Commission reported that "Today, our country is undoubtedly safer and more secure than it was a decade ago … [but]

A s the farcical and almost-tragic facts about the Nigerian-Muslim terror suspect play out, one thing has become crystal clear: Your government can't protect you from a terrorist attack. Worse, when the next one hits - and only delusional elected officials would deny this certainty - you are on your own. Although a clearly incompetent Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano saying "One thing I'd like to point out is that the system worked" (after the suspect paid cash for his ticket, had no check-in luggage, smuggled a bomb onto Northwest Airlines Flight 253 and then proceeded to try and detonate it)

A war broke out in November 2008 — not on the battlefield, but in 7 million computers across the world. The soldiers are computer geeks armed with state-of-the-art codes to eliminate the enemy, a dangerous worm quietly and quickly settling into unsuspecting hard drives. A year and a half later, we're still battling. The worm, nicknamed Conficker, continues to outsmart our most sophisticated minds and technology. It's hiding in the shadows, ready to strike. What kind of damage Conficker will cause is unknown, as is the identity of its creator, but experts warn it could be catastrophic.