Security: Everyone Wants It, Nobody Has It

Security is an elusive ideal that is unattainable. Threats, both real and imaginary, plague a nation’s psyche, and national governments move to safeguard against instability. Terrorism, pandemics, drought; just some of the factors that politicians and military officials consider when investing billions and billions of dollars devoted to keeping the state secure. The fact of the matter is, the next threat is often something that has never been seen before, something inconceivable that no government official can protect against. Security is impossible due to the fears of the citizenry and the spontaneous nature of global threats.
National security has long been that two-word buzzword that excites the American populace. The words are associated with freedom, the armed forces, and an us-against-them mentality that divides Republicans and Democrats ideologically. Regardless of party, many Americans view terrorism as the single greatest threat to this nation’s security. This is widely due to the events of September 11th and the dramatic images of the carnage in Afghanistan and Iraq. The American knee-jerk feeling is one that the world hates them and wishes for the downfall of the American state. Of course, this is not fact, but rather the perceived state of what is true. Since security is a personal feeling, (can my government protect my rights?), what is considered true by mainstream America must be considered true by government officials who strive to create a general feeling of stability. Is this security in the sense that the American people are immune to the next great epidemic or food shortage? No, it is simply a basic feeling that others will not harm you, and Americans continue to worry about every security threat, rational and irrational, that they feel threaten their way of life.
The truth about security is that it is impossible to be completely secure. No one could have predicted that hijacked planes would be used as missiles against American economic and defense establishments. It was impossible to imagine the SARS epidemic and its impact on Asia before the outbreak. More often than not, security is against an unknown entity, often inconceivable to most. Realists argue that military buildup and a strong police presence secure a state, but it is time for people to accept that the world is a chaotic, insecure place. I’m stop here; it transitions nicely into what I’ll tell you all in class Friday.