Defining the meaning of security in our nation's turbulent times

Jan 1, 2002 12:00 PM, Larry Anderson www.securitysolutions.com

All of a sudden, security is everywhere, and yet none of us can find it.

Security is in the news every day, and in some sense, security is the news. As we look forward to 2002, everything we hear concerns security, whether it's national security, homeland security or even financial security (or lack thereof, a.k.a., recession).

Yet in the last several months of 2001, most of us have felt far from secure. How different is feeling secure from being secure? One could argue, for example, that during the first half of 2001, we all felt more secure than we actually were.

A lot of recent activity in our nation has been about trying to be more secure, and plenty more has been about trying to feel secure, in effect seeking to regain a sense of security we have lost.

Is security a feeling or a verifiable condition that is independent of emotion? Actually, it is both — a dichotomy contained in the very definition of the word. My dictionary lists “freedom from danger” as a definition of security, but it also lists “freedom from fear or anxiety.” In the end, security involves achieving the former as a means of enabling the latter.

Children want security, exemplified by Linus and his beloved blanket. Elderly people want security, whether it's a monthly check from the government (Social Security) or locked doors and guards at their retirement high-rises. In the broadest sense, every policeman, fireman and EMT in the country serves a function of providing security — so does every soldier, sailor and Marine. “Provide for the common defense” is in the preamble of our Constitution, and it might just as well say “provide for the common security.” The same short passage refers to “secur[ing] the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity.”

As security issues displace the concerns that constituted the Cold War 20 years ago, the coming years may well be seen as the Decade of Security. With the prospect of a prolonged war against terrorism, feeling secure in the midst of turbulence may become even more difficult.

Security is so integral to our way of life and our nation that there is now a Cabinet post devoted to it. The Office of Homeland Security has taken its place beside the other government institutions that speak volumes about what we value as a nation — Health and Human Services, Agriculture, Justice, Commerce, Defense, etc.

The proliferation of security issues in our daily lives and on our national agenda underscores more than ever the importance of the daily work we do. Security as a national issue and personal concern for everyone is a broader topic than security as a business concern, but they are closely intertwined.

Being able to do work related to a concern that is so important to our nation and its people is a gift. It's one of the great gifts of being involved in the security industry in the year 2002.

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