The Security of the U.S. Government

Questions 322-3
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Questions 322-3
1 Of the documents reviewed in class (excluding the U.S. Constitution), which do you feel serves as the most important at this point?
The Geneva Conventions are critical in the global humanitarian regulations and essential documents of the contemporary world. Notably, the conventions are effective regulations that protect ailing military personnel, injured military, and prisoners of war. According to Matheson (2017), the strategy’s fundamental purpose is to deter related brutality of weaponized disputes across the United States. Solely, the conventions appertain to global weaponized conflicts except for Article 3 that addresses weaponized controversies in a local setting. Article 3 is fundamental in setting the standards of safeguarding the people who no longer engage in violent behaviors. A unique aspect of Geneva Conventions is that they are approved universally.
Besides, Geneva Conventions have been relevant for the last 69 years, recognizing their regulations as customary rules. However, some individuals choose to disregard Geneva Conventions despite having prior knowledge of their relevance (Matheson, 2017). For that reason, former President Donald Trump affirmed that the only effective way to deter terrorists is to evacuate their families. However, such an action is against the stipulations in the Geneva Conventions. If people adhered to the conventions, it would be possible to evade tribulations that result from weaponized disputes.
Terrorism has been one of the significant challenges across the United States and even on an international scale. However, the Fourth Geneva Conventions' protocols help interdict terrorist activities across national borders. Notably, the conventions help to counterbalance state protective affairs and human dignity. A key aspect about them is safeguarding the people charged with protecting the citizens at risk. For instance, the United States has regulations protecting soldiers and international personnel from facilitating an investigation surrounding their imprisonment.
Counterterrorism efforts undermine the independence of the judiciary, while the use of special courts in addressing terror attacks impacts the effectiveness of court systems. In other instances, the government utilizes repressive measures to intimidate civil society, indigenous groups, and human rights defenders. Similarly, policymakers divert resources allocated to development assistance and social programs to the border security sector, thus affecting the economic rights of the citizens (Eilstrup-Sangiovanni, 2018). Therefore, counterterrorism practices have far-reaching impacts on effective governance and human rights. Equally, some measures to deter terrorism have counterproductive has implications on national efforts of addressing terrorism. Therefore, the government should develop counterterrorism strategies while protecting human rights. Therefore, government agencies must embark on measures conducive to preventing acts of terrorism without any form of human rights abuse.
Geneva Conventions should be familiar to military and federal government officials as one way to uphold human dignity. It would be even more crucial for the government to create awareness about the conventions in the current era of prevailing terror threats. Following increased acts of terror, military personnel and civilians are likely to find themselves in a crossfire (Eilstrup-Sangiovanni, 2018). Many individuals embrace International Humanitarian Law and the idea that wars should be limited. However, some individuals are not conscious of the existing regulations on Geneva Conventions. Following the continuous killing of civilians, separation of loved ones, and people leaving their homes out of fear of weaponized disputes, a higher understanding of the conventions is critical.
2 When examining critical infrastructure, which sector possesses the biggest risk, and what legal and ethical issues must the U.S. government consider when attempting to harden the target?
The critical infrastructures in a country serve a significant role in enhancing the livelihood of the citizens. The transport sector, manufacturing sector, energy sector, communications sector, chemical sector, information technology sector are vital in the United States. Significantly, critical infrastructures facilitate the essential operations and the delivery of basic goods and services to the citizens. Therefore, any destruction on them would debilitating impact public safety, security, and economic security. According to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the critical infrastructures entail assets essential for a country’s safety, economic vitality, and general way of life. The government has a role in protecting them and ensuring that they work perfectly. Although all the critical infrastructures are essential to facilitate essential operations in a country, the energy sector is more important.
The energy sector in the United States facilitates economic growth through a stable supply of needed power. As such, the health care facilities, industries, and other sectors might be threatened without a steady energy supply. Besides, The Presidential Policy Directive 21 recognizes the energy sector as vital in providing an “enabling function” on all the critical infrastructure sectors. However, the private sector owns 80% of the energy infrastructure in supplying electricity to households, fuels for the transportation sector, and other integral energy sources for sustainable production. Notably, the energy networks and systems across the United States’ borders make it critical to promote international collaboration to enhance security levels.
Notably, qualms and time to mitigate risks are the primary legal obstacles in the energy sector. For that reason, key stakeholders focus on adjusting the current policies and regulatory frameworks to alter public opinion and practices regarding renewable energy. Following an increase in energy demand, the United States encounters numerous obstacles. Some private investors have invested in the energy resulting in new infrastructure planning. Even when an advocate might be triumphant, they might be plagued with legal appeals and challenges. The energy sector has realized a significant shift, thus, making risk management a critical aspect in expediting effective operations. The key officials in the energy sector have adopted modern technology resulting in new systems that facilitate energy supply. However, private investors and the government alike ought to make an enormous investment since the current system might fail to withstand new loads of energy. Grid technologies are vital in dealing with sporadic power sources. Notably, the regulators in the energy sector must be capable of altering power sources.
According to the new trends of the current systems, one of the simplistic practices is to penetrate the infrastructure from both external and internal points. Therefore, the United States government would need to collaborate with private investors to find alternate energy sources to facilitate the country’s stability. Following a hazard strike, the government needs to separate the energy sector from other critical infrastructures. Although a separation might result in inefficiencies and involve additional costs, the country might incur more losses should the electric grid fail. Cyberwarfare and disputes surpass the global physical warfare in the current era of the proliferation of new forms of technology. The energy sector is a prim...