QHSR Update – 07-24-09

I received an interesting email today from National Dialogue on the Quadrennial Homeland Security Review. They wanted to thank me for signing up to participate in the National Dialogue. They also told me that I was one of only 1700 people that had signed up to date to participate in the dialog that ‘starts in less than two weeks from today’. Then they ask me to do my part in spreading the word by:

"Forward this email… "Post a message or link… "Use the AddThis button…"

So here is my continuing contribution…. DHS is Trying, But It is obvious that DHS and their host, the National Academy of Public Administration (NAPA), are trying hard to get active participation in the Dialogue. I applaud their objective, but continue to have doubts about the way they are doing things. But I will admit they are apparently listening. In an earlier posting on this topic I objected to the way NAPA was using a third-party web site to host their documents; that has been corrected. Their one page .PDF flyer is now on the NAPA web site. The sign-up for the Dialogue is also handled directly from http://www.homelandsecuritydialogue.org page instead of going to the third-party site. So they are getting better and some of my earlier misgivings about recommending participation have been appropriately dealt with. But, they still need some help on their web skills. Their email does not have a single clickable link to take you to their web page; you have to copy and paste the web address. The ‘AddThis’ button they ask us to use does not exist; there is, however, a ‘Share’ button that any current internet user is accustomed to seeing/using. I still have high hopes for this public participation in the QHSR. The idea of using the internet for active participation in setting national policy is an idea that has a lot of merit. If DHS manages to pull this of well, it will certainly be used in other areas by this administration. If it flops, however, it will be a long time before anyone risks their reputation on another attempt at participative governance.