In class we discussed the example of TSA checkpoints, and what occurred to me was the idea that many of the actions governments take in the name of security don't just make us feel safe, they make us afraid.
Take, for example, the DEFCON signs that were placed along the security line in my home airport for most of my childhood. The signs warned of the current level of DEFCON (4 or something I think) and explained briefly what the level meant. My parents told me that the signs were because of 9/11 and the threat of terrorism. The signs sent a clear message: you are being threatened. In class we touched on the idea of security theater, where the government tries to make you feel safe with the appearance rather than the actuality of security. At the same time, I believe a possible counter interpretation is that TSA checkpoints and other similar measures evoke rather than assuage our fears. Security theater is not just reassuring the populace, it is also reminding them what they should be afraid of. What would be the goal of the government in making its own people afraid? One answer drawing from Miranda's post is that security is part of national identity, and, thus, shaping security is part of shaping national identity, which can be an extremely important tool for the people in power (an example of this would be the quote "American blood on American soil," which was used often after 9/11 to explain why it could not be allowed to happen again, drawing on the historical analogy of the Mexican-American war which, interestingly, also led to aggressive American military action). Controlling the way people see themselves, by controlling the narrative that surrounds what should make them feel safe, and what they should be safe from, is enough to, say, begin 2 wars on the other side of the planet in the name of national security, without much opposition to either. Another explanation for why attempts to securitize often magnify the threat they aim to defeat is voiced by one of my all-time favorite articles:
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AuthorAmerican University Class of 2021. Interested in state-building and economic governance. Archives
December 2018
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