After recent London attack, why ‘predictive profiling’ is necessary

The news is now breaking about the suspects in the London Underground attack last week. At least one is confirmed to be a refugee from Syria, who reportedly lived with foster parents in the UK.

On Friday I had an opportunity to speak for former NYPD police commissioner Bernie Kerick who was on the ground with Mayor Rudy Giuliani on 9/11. Although his public career ended when he pleaded guilty to several felonies and served three years in prison, his fall from grace happened at the time he was nominated by then-President George W. Bush to serve as the Homeland Security Secretary director. His sentence notwithstanding, the guy is an expert on security, counter terrorism and law enforcement best practices. Although some may attack his credibility he is an expert and people are starting to listen to his recommendations.

We had a detailed conversation about the need to step up our efforts to prevent future attacks through effective profiling. We're not talking about racial or religious profiling, but "Predictive Profiling" which centers on likely suspects, sources and behavior.

Beyond the idea of profiling people who already live in the United States, there's the issue of people coming into the country. We already have knowledge that terrorists are taking advantage of the refugee crisis and infiltrating groups labeled as victims. Some are here and some are trying to get here. They want us to continue to debate the merits of the politically correct arguments over racism and hate while they gain access to our nation to carry out murderous attacks on our civilized society. The authorities in the UK are already having the discussions and acting to limit the number of refugees.

The issue of foster parents and people generally accepting refugees seems to be a compassionate action in light of the continuing human rights crisis facing some war-torn nations like Syria. But leaders in the US have to prioritize our national security interests and your safety first. Blindly doing things that seem helpful at first are the exact things the evil-doers are willing to take advantage of to carry out their acts.

It's time to create an atmosphere of fear among the terrorists, not among peaceful citizens. The first step is to aggressively pursue strict immigration laws, build the wall, continue the travel ban, and expand it where practical and begin the smart and necessary practice of "Predictive Profiling." It's about time and our future depends on it.

Bill Spadea is on the air weekdays from 6 to 10 a.m., talkin’ Jersey, taking your calls at 1-800-283-1015. Tweet him @NJ1015 or @BillSpadea.

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