Charles Edward Goslin

Published: Jan 09, 2017 by Butchko, Inc.
Authors: Charles E. Goslin
Subjects: Homeland Security, Information Technology

The new-found “Red Scare” arising from the revelation of Russian-government directed cyber attacks against the U.S., reminds me of a wonderful line from the movie “Casablanca.” Captain Renault, a reluctant Vichy-police official with rather flexible views on the vice of gambling, is pressured by the Nazi’s to find any pretext to close down “Rick’s American Café.”

Published: Dec 01, 2016 by Butchko, Inc.
Authors: Charles E. Goslin
Subjects: Engineering - General, Ergonomics & Human Factors, Disaster Planning & Recovery

In the high mists of the Peruvian jungle is an elegant testament to the effectiveness of carefully layered physical security design principles. It has stood the test of time, the elements, and – most importantly – the Spanish Conquistadores. It is the Incan citadel known as Machu Picchu (translated “old mountain”), located deep in the Cordillera Vilcabamba, on the eastern slopes of the Andes mountains.

Published: Oct 18, 2016 by Butchko, Inc.
Authors: Charles E. Goslin
Subjects: Homeland Security, Emergency Response, Disaster Planning & Recovery

Closing and locking the barn door does not make very much sense if the horses have already bolted. That bit of farm-life wisdom illustrates our point for today – the importance of timing when developing emergency safety and security plans. The operative word when it comes to emergency preparations is…“emergency.”

Published: Oct 05, 2016 by Butchko, Inc.
Authors: Charles E. Goslin
Subjects: Homeland Security, Emergency Response, Disaster Planning & Recovery

The recent unrest in Charlotte, North Carolina brings to mind and old adage: ‘for want of a nail, the shoe was lost; for want of a shoe, the horse was lost; for want of a horse, the rider was lost; for want of a rider, the battle and a country was lost.’ This saying decribes what is known as a threat cascade...

Published: Feb 23, 2016 by Butchko, Inc.
Authors: Charles E. Goslin
Subjects: Business & Management, Engineering - General, Homeland Security, Emergency Response, Disaster Planning & Recovery

When security budgets are lean, the first question that security leaders should ask themselves is this: does the actual risk at a facility merit the expense? Certainly “standard of care” and appropriate local codes and standards must be built into facilities. However, asking, “should I do more?” is critical when managing a very limited budget.

Published: Dec 22, 2015 by Butchko, Inc.
Authors: Charles E. Goslin
Subjects: Homeland Security, Emergency Response, Disaster Planning & Recovery

We are used to seeing our beloved veterans returning home from war. Tearful reunions with family, friends, and loved ones in the airport. They come back to a grateful nation, VA benefits, and lifelong support – as it should be. But there is another kind of veteran returning from war that we don’t see, and he may pose a deadly threat to our country.

Published: Feb 25, 2015 by Butchko, Inc.
Authors: Charles E. Goslin
Subjects: Homeland Security, Emergency Response, Disaster Planning & Recovery

When it comes to the next terrorist attack, you can bet on one thing: It probably will not happen at the Mall of the Americas, London’s Oxford Street or Canada’s West Edmonton shopping complex. These venues are on high security alert after this weekend’s threat issued by the Al-Qaida affiliated Somali terrorist group Al Shabab. The physical security countermeasures and incident response plans were on full display on all the television networks and they were impressive...

Published: Nov 06, 2014 by Butchko, Inc.
Authors: Charles E. Goslin
Subjects: Energy & Clean Technology, Engineering - Environmental, Occupational Health & Safety, Emergency Response, Disaster Planning & Recovery

When it comes to pipeline safety and security, our two neighbors provide an interesting and illustrative contrast. To our north, Canada’s oil and gas industry’s safety and security standards, with regards to pipelines, mirror and even surpass those of the U.S. The oil and gas sector is privately owned and operated and government’s involvement, though substantial, is limited to necessary oversight and regulation....Our southern neighbor, Mexico, tells a different story.

Published: Oct 07, 2014 by Butchko, Inc.
Authors: Charles E. Goslin
Subjects: Energy & Clean Technology, Homeland Security, Emergency Response, Disaster Planning & Recovery

“When it comes to pipelines, security is today where corrosion was 20 years ago.” This candid assessment, from Phillip Nidd, Vice President of Operations at Dynamic Risk USA, really distilled our impressions and understanding of security’s role at the 29 September – 3 October 2014 International Pipeline Conference in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

Published: Sep 11, 2014 by Butchko, Inc.
Authors: Charles E. Goslin
Subjects: Homeland Security, Emergency Response, Disaster Planning & Recovery

Threat is the “fissile material” needed to activate the individual components of asset, vulnerability, impact, consequence, and likelihood in the calculation of risk. It is threat that initiates the sequence of relationships and events that, together, combine to elevate or lower risk. It is important to understand threat in this context because all too often the element of threat is minimized or abstracted when security assessments are done. Why?