1. Introduction:
For this final paper you condense two previous papers into a single research document and then add 3 substantive recommendations on how you propose that domestic intelligence can be employed more effective to support the HSE to stop terrorist attacks. This is essentially what you need to know to write this final paper.
2. Full Spectrum Domestic Intelligence to Counter Terrorism within the Homeland:
Develop a comprehensive (NMT) double spaced 6-8 page paper summarizing the content and research from your first two papers, and then make at least three substantive recommendations on how to prevent or thwart your selected terrorist group from succeeding in their hypothetical attack on the United States homeland. Use the Organizational Profile (Red Cell paper) you prepared for your Midterm Assignment and combine it with the Progress Assignment you prepared about collecting and analyzing on that group (making all necessary changes based on instructor feedback) and melding them both into one seamless research paper that also adds a major new section to address your specific recommendations to counter your selected terrorist organization’s planned attack in the homeland. Make sure your recommendations are focused only on what happens within the homeland as this is not a foreign policy or international relations course. The recommendations need to be something new or enacting a policy or procedure that is not already in place (do not describe how we already protect the homeland or discuss what current agencies do). Be original or cite ideas from others on how to adapt or reform how intelligence can better support homeland security here domestically to stop your hypothetical attack. Also, make sure your recommendations address a role for state and local agencies (as we discussed in week 4).
The focus of this paper is to address how intelligence, law enforcement and homeland security officials from all three levels of government can prevent or disrupt this attack here in the U.S. (not overseas) by clearly specifying your recommendations of counter-measures to stop or interdict the terrorists here at home before the attack occurs. Employ all that you have learned about intelligence to support Homeland Security and feel free to express your own opinions when making recommendations for Homeland Security intelligence. Just listing what the government already does to collect and analyze and conduct law enforcement on the terrorism threat to the Homeland is not sufficient — make some original or even controversial proposals if you like. Do not discuss defensive or protective measures such as increasing physical security — the thrust of your recommendations needs to be focused on domestic intelligence (that is what this class is about). You can recommend a change to policy, procedure or an organizational change to how the IC (or an individual agency) supports the homeland which directly contributes to stopping a terrorist attack. Feel free to make radical proposals or even changes to existing laws, but do not make proposals that are illegal or unconstitutional (but you can propose changing a law). Remember your hypothetical attack was supposed to be imminent (in the immediate future), so longer term proposals may not be viable for this paper.
Your paper needs to clearly identify your three homeland security intelligence and law enforcement recommendations at the end of your paper before your conclusions, and include specific section headings for each recommendation with the short title for each recommendation. Your proposals to stop a terrorist attack are the heart of your final assignment, this will be the primary criteria for grading this paper and the comprehensive and culminating event for this course. You must use sections headings like these:
Recommendation 1: Your idea to improve homeland security (domestic) intelligence and law enforcement to specifically stop this impending attack; only what you think should be done at home — DO NOT make overseas recommendations. All three must be homeland intelligence focused proposals and not address anything going on abroad — that is not the subject of this course.
Recommendation 2: Make sure at least one recommendation includes a role for the all-important state and local agencies (week 4).
Recommendation 3: Intelligence is about collecting, analyzing, collaborating, sharing/disseminating, etc, so your recommendations must fall somewhere within the intelligence cycle/process we covered about in week 3. Do NOT make recommendations about increased security measures or ‘force protection’ and defensive approaches — remember this course is about INTELLIGENCE (which is proactive / preventative, not protective / reactive).
Note: The only paper of this paper that will be graded are the recommendations since the first four pages of summaries of the first two assignments. The recommendations will be ORIGINAL material. Make sure your ideas are original and something you think the government can do better related to intelligence — not status quo or what we are already doing. If you are at a total loss for ideas about how intelligence could stop an attack or be improved with domestic homeland security intelligence, then I suggest looking back over the required reading in week 4 on Fusion Centers for Homeland Security in the section on recommendations on page 24, or consider Tromblay, D. E. (2019). Spying: Assessing U.S. Domestic Intelligence since 9/11. Chapter 12: Lessons Observed (if not learned). Lynne Rienner Publishers. (pp 209-218) available as an ebook in our library.
Note on the three paper assignment series: This final assignment combines all that you wrote in the first two papers (they build on each other) for a MAXIMUM total of 6-8 double spaced pages of content (not including title and reference pages). The final paper is not 6-8 pages of completely new writing since this paper integrates what you wrote for the midterm assignment in week 3 (summarize that first 5-7 page midterm paper with 1-2 pages of content in this final paper), then add information from the progress assignment on collecting and analyzing on them (summarize that second 5-7 page progress paper with 1-2 more pages of content in this final paper as well) — making sure to improve that writing based on my feedback. Then add new information where you are making at least three recommendations (MAXIMUM of 3-4 pages double-spaced new material – this is all that will be graded). So, the first 2-4 pages of the final paper will summarize your first two papers, and then the last 3-4 pages or so address your recommendations and summarize the whole paper.
Again, in plain terms, for this final paper, all you have to do is condense your two previous papers (as a research paper) and then make 3 recommendations on how to better stop attacks at the end.
