Open Source Homeland

Government funding for ‘Muslim MySpaces’ « I’m Simon Dickson.

Quoting from here:

The funding will facilitate an expansion of Internet based projects, radio stations and web-casts which are locally run and managed to give young people spaces and forums to share their views and discuss issues such as democracy and shared values. By encouraging young people to discuss these issues openly we will seek to undermine the influence of extremists who use the web as a propaganda tool to radicalise young British Muslims.

We’ve all seen the Captivate Network in high-rise office buildings all over the country. This post over on ScreenWerk got me thinking about the possibilities for emergency broadcasting to those screens in municipalities. In situations where people are still encouraged to use the elevator (i.e. the danger is nearby but not in the building) it could provide a valuable, consistent communication platform.

A stinging, detailed critique showing what the downtown heat emergency related to the LaSalle Bank Marathon has to say about emergency preparedness in Chicago

Second City Cop: Who’s Culpable?
The inefficiency of City agencies to coordinate a large scale response to an emergency situation run by a private entity should really bring pause to anyone who thinks this town is anywhere near ready for an Olympics or a terror attack.