Search: “national security”

I have just returned from spending three wonderful days in New York City.  Broadway.  Central Park.  American Museum of Natural History.  Bryant Park.  The city that never sleeps.  And the city that is never far from the attention and aspiration of terrorists. When I used to work in security intelligence it always struck me that […]

And so the outrage begins.  A Transport Canada report that states that terrorists could use legitimate, Charter-protected protest activity as a cover to carry out violence (see story here) has caused a kerfuffle.  A director with the Canadian Civil Liberties Association has expressed concern that the report and its authors paints “(lawful) activism as a […]

One of the greatest challenges a society has to face with respect to the delicate balance between privacy and freedom of thought and national security has to do with when organs of the state are allowed to take an interest in the activities of its citizens when those activities are believed to constitute a threat […]

The debate on refugees has taken a nasty turn in Canada and the US.  Some US Republican Presidential candidates have repugnantly suggested that the country take in only Christians.  Several governors have refused to take in any refugees from Syria.  In this country, several officials, including Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall, have called on the Trudeau […]

Last week I was asked to speak at the Canadian Military Intelligence Association annual conference in Ottawa. The speakers’ list included the Canadian National Security Advisor (and former Director of CSIS) Richard Fadden and Chief of Defence Staff General Vance. The day was well attended by members of the Canadian intelligence community. On the tables […]

With a new government sworn in yesterday in Canada, there is an added impetus to do CVE (countering violent extremism) in this country.  We used to do it, and do it well, until a few – ahem unfortunate – phrases were dropped over the past year by certain government officials.  We can now set that […]

Canada is a great country.  We consistently rank among the best places in the world to live, according to various surveys.   What we offer is clearly attractive if we consider the hundreds of thousands, if not millions, seeking to come here.  And we accept, on average, a quarter million new residents every year.  Many […]

When we studied radicalisation to violence at CSIS in the 2000s, we found out that while anyone could engage in violent ideologies, the vast majority were young – ish.  The age range tended to be 18-28.  This is not to say that older, or on rare occasions younger, people did not get involved.  This finding […]

What do you call it when a team of experts weigh in on an issue and provide a recommendation on a proposed new practice and the management ignores the recommendation, intending to forge on ahead with the change?  Meh?  Managerial discretion?  Probably not too important? When it comes to the proposed new system of passport […]