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Terrorism: Confronting the Threat by Technology Optimization

by Heimo von Hardung

280 pages; quality trade paperback (softcover); catalogue #03-0368; ISBN 1-4120-0006-8; US$26.00, C$32.95, EUR21.50, £14.90

The threat of terrorism to the Western World is becoming more and real and present. Governmental authorities, industrial organizations and even private citizens can and should play a role in fighting this threat. Active participation in efforts to optimize existing technologies are not limited to large organizaions and may well include inventive individuals.

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About the book      About the author      Table of Contents & Sample excerpts       Catalogue info

About the Book Having been Chief Executive of a major international defense industry and professor at several universities, the athor points out, why the Optinization of Technoloies must be an essential part of efforts to meet the terrorist's challenge. The book cites areas of particular technology requirements, points out weaknesses in present decision-making structures abd provides information about the most recent methodologies for Technology Optimization. It is emphasized that the required work is not restricted to large organizations but can also include the contribution of individuals. Finally the book points out that respective efforts also may lead to lucrative business opportunites in the future.

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About the Author Born in 1926 the author, a doctor in nuclear physics, has studied in various countries. After having entered a German nuclear industry as a junior engineer, he made his way up to the Management Board of a multi-billion British defense company. He has served on the Plutonium Panel created by President Reagan and worked as a technical and strategic advisor to several Heads of government in Europe. Having founded his own technology consulting company in California, the author is presently serving as an advisor to several international defense industries. Being tri-lingual, he has also been teaching at universities in the US, in France and in Germany.

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Sample Excerpts

PREFACE       In the United States, the nation-wide telephone numbers for calls to the police and its emergency units is "911".      The terrorists who brought down the Twin Towers in New York City claimed to have deliberately chosen the date of September 11 (in Anglo-Saxon countries written "9/11"), in order to demonstrate that they can strike when they want, that they can reach right into the heart of the Western World and that they possess, both, the required competence and the financial means to carry out such attacks.      Of course, terrorist activities have taken place before and have resulted in temporary, but mainly local shock and more or less organized counter-measures. But the destruction of the World Trade Center, for the first time, produced a global outrage.      Throughout democratic nations of the Western World, people realized that this event represented a historic turning point for their lives and that it marked the beginning of a cruel confrontation with a well-organized, multinational terrorist movement, an unpredictable war that may last for many years to come.      It also became painfully obvious that terrorism, today, is no longer restricted to the acts of some individual fanatics, but has become the work of generously financed, well-structures entities that also are in possession of a considerable degree of technological and organizational competence.      There is no easy, definite solution for that problem.      But a well-concerted, multinational effort on all levels may be able to contain the new threat and limit the losses of human live as well as the damages that terrorism will undoubtedly continue to cause for some time. INTRODUCTION      There can be no argument about the fact that the first round of the confrontation with (Islamic) terrorism has resulted in a victory for Al Qaida and those peripheral organizations that are related to its multinational network.      Irrespective of the material damages caused, it has to be born in mind that the attacks in New York City and Washington, DC alone have resulted in the death of many more people than those that were subsequently killed of even apprehended among terrorist organizations.      But the effect of the terrorist attacks in the United States and those that followed shortly thereafter (Morocco, Bali, Kenya in particular) went far beyond the number of deaths and the damages caused to buildings. In fact, the consequences of these attacks (and those to come) will continue to have an even more disastrous effect, not only within those countries that have been directly hit, but also the World economy as a whole. Developed countries have seen essential parts of their economies (such as commercial airlines for example) severely hurt. And poorer countries, the economies of which depend to a large degree on tourism, now have to live with the fact that a major proportion of their national income has collapsed and that their hotels and beaches remain empty.      In addition, the now required much more stringent security measures in the United States, in Europe and in the Far East will cost national economies billions of dollars the corresponding expenditures can hardly be considered as commercial activities that produce wealth.      The fight against terrorism thus must not be limited to the avoidance of human losses and of the material damages directly caused by terrorist attacks. It must also limit the consequential damages to Western economies that, unfortunately, will be caused by - unfortunately inevitable - future attacks.      It remains to be seen, whether a military intervention within one or two specific countries can decisively diminish terrorist activities. Chances are that the respective terrorist operatives will move to other areas and continue their multinational aggression from there.      Obviously, the present threats and the - hopefully temporary - advantage that terrorists enjoy today must not last, if Western democracies want to maintain their freedom, to protect their lifestyle and to be able to live without the constant fear that characterizes their environment today.      Unpopular as this may be, however, it will become indispensable to put the Western World's short-term will being onto a lower priority level and to mobilize all available human and technological resources in order to effectively fight the emerging terrorist threat.      It is regrettable that there still is a widespread lack of comprehension regarding respective issues, a pronounced political disagreement among countries that have been targeted by terrorism and even an insufficient competence on many decision-making levels with regard to the measure that should immediately be taken.      The subsequent essay deal with only one, but perhaps the most important part of those efforts that are imperatively required to counter-attack terrorism: the acceleration of those developments that are required to establish an undisputable technological supremacy within the Western World. A technological supremacy that must, in particular, address the structures and the methods of terrorism.      It is an undeniable fact that the optimization of specific technologies can and will render it more and more difficult for Al Qaida and its associated organizations to plan and carry out terrorist attacks in those geographical areas that this book simply call the Western World.      For several decades, the author has been able to acquire experience in the area of Technological Optimization Programs (throughout this book called "TOPs" for simplification): -> As a field engineer and interface between major companies in the areas of optimization and transfer programs for high technologies. -> As a top executive of two large, multinational defense companies and founder-owner of a high-tech consulting company (TECOP International Inc.). -> In the position of a strategy advisor to several governments and other defense-related organizations. -> Finally, when teaching related subjects at universities in the United States, in France, in Germany and in Switzerland.           Within the context of these activities, the author has gained the conviction that the overall concept of TOPs in an international environment and the corresponding methodologies to be used are not sufficiently well know among respective decision-makers; furthermore, he believes to have identified tangible evidence for the fact that this situation not only prevails at the level of some industry managers, but also among many decision-making officials in government organizations. This book, therefore, attempts to provide a comprehensive presentation as to what role TOPs can and must play in the fight against terrorism. It also supplies information regarding modern methodologies to be used for the respective planning, budgeting and program execution. For easier reading the subsequent text is divided into two parts: - The first part describes the new,changed environment for the Western World, its dangers and the areas within which countermeasures can and must be taken. - The second part will deal with the essential features of those methodologies that should be applied in order to render the execution of multinational TOPs as efficient as possible.           Politicians, industrial concerns, smaller companies and even individual inventors may find the information provided useful as some sort of checklist; it could be instrumental in order to make sure that, within their areas of endeavor, all or at least most of the requirements for an efficient optimization of selected technologies have been met.      Irrespective of that, some of the readers may find interesting suggestions regarding areas of technological activity that could be lucratively developed even for commercial markets in parallel with the overall efforts to confront the terrorist's challenges.

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Catalogue Information

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