Blinders Are Good

“If We Ignore It, It Didn’t Happen”

The OBriceklainiden administration’s response to the recent cyber attacks is the epitome of negligence. There are certain industries and commodities that governments consider as sacrosanct; impinge on them, and administrations consider them threats to national security. Oil reserves is one such example. Why does the United States keep a “Strategic Petroleum Reserve?” Could it be that previous administrations recognized fuel is a resource that requires reserves in case it becomes a scarce commodity. At present U. S. tanks are not electric; they still require petroleum products to run.

Other segments of the U. S. infrastructure (and, no I do not mean grandma’s gossip group, or “Let’s Make America Green” activist groups) deserve official recognition as essential to national security. The present administration seems blasé about cyber attacks, categorizing them as the concerns of the private sector. Does the OBriceklainiden administration understand that the U. S. communication infrastructure is now totally digital? Their responses suggest they do not. There is no digital “international boundary,” or border between the U. S. and its ideological enemies. (Of course, what do borders matter for the OBriceklainiden administration. After all, borders are relics of racism, right?). I wonder. If the “Russians” blocked traffic on I-95, or I-5 to collect tolls, would the current administration notice, or take action?

There are certain industries that must be considered essential to national security. Examples might be the oil industry, steel manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, agriculture, and the U. S. communications infrastructure. Disruption of any of these industries have a deleterious affect on our national stability.

Cyber attacks are attacks via our communication infrastructure, regardless of where they originate, and by whom. The U. S. has some of the most advanced cyber specialists in the world. Perhaps we should create national security/private sector partnerships to help harden vulnerable industries against cyber attack. Maybe, Bill Gates could divert some of his attention (and money) from green energy and plague issues to help hardening critical industries.