You must write (2) replies of at least 140 words each to other classmates threads, and a minimum of 1 source is referenced appropriately for each reply. Note that both quantity and quality are important considerations when it comes to participation. For example, a message that says simply, I agree, does not constitute participation because it does not add anything of substance to the discussion.
In order to earn points, you must add something of substance to the discussion; this would consist of new ideas, your perspectives, pointed follow-up questions, etc.
Responding to a classmates post requires both the addition of new ideas and further analysis. A particular point made by the classmate must be addressed and built upon by your analysis in order to move the conversation forward. Thus, the response post is a rigorous assignment that requires you to build upon initial posts to develop deeper and more thorough discussion of the ideas introduced in the initial posts. As such, reply posts that merely affirm, restate or unprofessionally quarrel with the previous post(s) and fail to make a valuable, substantive contribution to the discussion will receive appropriate point deductions.

Topics:
(1)st reply to Stephans post:
It is evident that security and preventing terrorist attacks is a priority for local governments, especially the governments of larger cities. However, the full weight of protection should not be placed on the local government because in the wake of an attack citizens must be able to protect themselves. It is the responsibility of the government to allow the tools necessary for its citizens to defend themselves in conjunction with its own preventative measures.  Since the founding of the United States it has been the responsibility of the citizens to be the immediate defense of the community, hence the founding of local militias. Amidst modernization and the transformation of the local militia to the modern-day National Guard; the sheriffs and police departments are the immediate response force to a threat. The duty to protect is a shared responsibility between the citizens and the government.

The primary purpose of the local (municipal) government is responsibility for parks and recreation services, police and fire departments, housing services, emergency medical services, municipal courts, transportation services (including public transportation), and public works (streets, sewers, snow removal, signage, and so forth). With the range of responsibilities there is the danger of local governments resources stretching too thin to adapt to the threat of terrorism. However, in this time it is necessary for more susceptible targets (New York City, Los Angeles, etc.) to allocate resources to terrorist prevention. In the case of local deterrence and protection of its citizens from terrorism it may be necessary for the federal government to aid local governments in the form training or funds.

With all this being said it may be wise to consider a form of voluntary civilian defense against terrorism on a larger scale then the see something, say something approach. If trained civilians in conjunction with law enforcement work together to create a web of defense it could lead to more effective results. It is not possible for the local government/law enforcement to cover all areas but if there are citizens willing to be trained and help identify potential threats within the community there may be different outcomes. A recent example to highlight is the San Bernardino attack. If citizens were well trained and or armed with concealed carry it may have been possible to prevent some casualties. With scarce resources and the growing threat of attacks it is absolutely necessary for local governments to readopt the shared responsibility of protection between the government and citizens.

Sources:

https://www.dhs.gov/topic/preventing-terrorism

https://www.whitehouse.gov/about-the-white-house/state-local-government/

(2)nd reply to Kristens post:
Being prepared is necessary. Whether it is for a job interview, a presentation for class, or even for writing this discussion board. King Solomon says, ” The wise store up choice food and olive oil, but fools gulp theirs down” (Proverbs 21:20). All throughout history, back in biblical times to today in the 21st century being prepared was essential. The saying, “By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.” you have already given the enemy a chance to attack because of lack of preparedness. The 2nd Amendment was high on the list so that the people could protect themselves from foreign and domestic enemies and not need the aid of the government; it was set in place so that the people could be prepared for an attack.

The local government has a duty to protect the citizens by following rules and guidelines set by the DHS to follow.

On the recommendation of the 9/11 Commission, Congress created the Office for State and Local Law Enforcement (OSLLE) in 2007 to lead the coordination of DHS-wide policies related to state, local, tribal, and territorial law enforcements role in preventing, preparing for, protecting against, and responding to natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and other man-made disasters within the United States (DHS State and Local Law Enforcement).

However, each county has their own set budget. For example, in Culpeper, VA (disclaimer: I am a resident of Culpeper County), there is no fire and rescue station; there are only volunteer stations, one out of three is paid, because they simply cannot afford a paid station like in bigger cities in Northern Virginia (Fairfax, Vienna, Gainesville, Alexandria, and etc…). The sheriff in Culpeper County takes his job very seriously in ensuring the protection of its citizens at all costs; recently he was on Fox News saying that he would deputize all eligible, law-abiding citizens in Culpeper to keep that responsibility of duty to defend and protect the citizens rights to own and bear arms (Nelson, 2019). This man understands that it is the right of the people, that he needs to protect the rights set by the Constitution, that it is his duty to do so.

Because each county is different it is hard to gage what each one should do. Virginia Beach, VA is not going to have the same levels of preparedness as Culpeper, VA or as Gainesville, VA; however, there should be a set of standards, no matter where you are, that protects each citizen. Whatever that looks like, the main goal should be to defend and protect each individuals God given right that was laid out decades ago by our founding fathers to ensure that no government could take them away. One major way to ensure citizens safety is to do what the sheriff in Culpeper has done by saying and promising that he will fight for the citizens rights. Just like how the Texan parishioner man stopped a gunman from killing everyone because he was willing to stand up for his rights and felt that he had a duty to protect God’s people by ending a bad situation before it got out of hand. The best way to protect the public’s safety is to make them aware of dangers that seem unforeseen to them, but to someone working in homeland security, very obvious such as signs of traffickers looking for new women and children to kidnap.

                                                                                                                                                        References

Bullock, J., Haddow, G., & Coppola, D. (2016). Introduction to homeland security. Butterworth-Heinemann. 5. 31-65.

Homeland Security. (2016). DHS state and local law enforcement resource catalog. Department of Homeland Security. 4. Retrieved from https://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/publications/oslle-resource-catalog-volumeiv-2-24-2016_1.pdf.

Nelson, J. (2019). Virginia sheriff: We’ll deputize law-abiding citizens to counter state dems’ gun control ‘overreach’. Fox News. Retrieved from https://www.foxnews.com/us/virginia-sheriff-deputize-democrats-gun-control.