The attacks of September 11 fundamentally changed how the United States thinks about national security. Over the past 25 years, we’ve invested enormous resources in aviation security, intelligence, and counterterrorism to ensure it never happens again.
But threats evolve.
We don’t get to choose how our adversaries attack us. History suggests they’ll look for the vulnerabilities we’ve overlooked. And while weve bolstered our security and response capabilities, its very likely the next major conflict will find its way to our shores again with unconventional attacks on our homeland.
AMERICA BUILT A FORTRESS AFTER 9/11. THEN THE THREAT STARTED HIDING IN PLAIN SIGHT
As we become more electronically interconnected and dependent, regardless of where the physical battles occur, the conflicts will extend domestically intent to cause disruption, panic, chaos and potential loss of lives.
The U.S. must be prepared for the evolution of threats. Not designed to destroy buildings or critical infrastructure but instead designed to disrupt the core systems that allow the country to function. There is no need to physically destroy our economic, emergency response, transportation, and agriculture systems if a single act can render them severely compromised.
FOREIGN ENEMIES HAVE A SHOCKINGLY SIMPLE WAY TO TRACK US TROOPS OVERSEAS, LAWMAKERS WARN
Our vulnerability is well documented because so much of modern life depends on a foundational core: knowing where things are. In fact, it is an assumption so deeply embedded in everyday life that it is almost invisible. Position underpins how trucks move across the country, how food is planted and harvested, how utilities restore power after disasters, how emergency responders reach people in need, and how military forces maneuver, coordinate, and sustain operations. The world does not simply run on roads, communications, banking systems or the internet. It runs on position.
GPS performs so reliably that we’ve built both military and civilian systems around the assumption that it will always be both available and trustworthy. That assumption is becoming harder to defend.
Recent conflicts have demonstrated that GPS interference, spoofing, and electronic warfare are no longer isolated events. They have become recurring features of modern conflict. So common that the Department of War has made the ability to function without position (contested logistics) one of its top priorities. According to the U.S. Space Force, China is actively developing and fielding counterspace capabilities intended to disrupt and degrade U.S. space-enabled capabilities. Those include anti-satellite weapons, electronic warfare systems, and technologies designed to inte
