Securing 'the Homeland': Critical Infrastructure, Risk and (In)Security

Since the attacks on the US on 11 September 2001, a new security perspective focused on terrorism has emerged. One central practice associated with this is that of critical infrastructure protection (CIP). Certain forms of infrastructure are regarded as "critical" infrastructures, such as electricity, transport, water, communication systems, and the continuity of government. A broad range of political and administrative initiatives are underway both in the US and in Europe in an attempt to better secure these infrastructures, both virtual and physical. The politics of CIP, and the construction of the threat they are meant to counter, effectively establish a powerful discursive connection between everyday life inside the homeland' and unknown fears and anxieties triggered by terrorism and new digital technologies. This means that the traditional and normal conditions for day-to-day politics are intermingled with the exceptional dynamics of national security. This edited volume addresses some of the key issues related to infrastructure protection and the governance of insecurity in the contemporary world. Taking a critical stance, it explores the rationales at play as well as the effects of these new security practices, and looks at the implications for our understanding of security and politics today.Dunn, Myriam Anna is the author of 'Securing 'the Homeland': Critical Infrastructure, Risk and (In)Security' with ISBN 9780415441094 and ISBN 0415441099.