Keesler has much to offer
Business
Posted on Thu, Jan. 24, 2008
The council chambers were silent Tuesday except for retired three-star Air Force Lt. Gen. Clark Griffith telling how Keesler and Biloxi could become the front for the battle of cyberterrorism.
Hackers are shutting down parts of the government, he said, and our country needs to fight back. These aren't the high school kids we've seen in the movies finding a way into the FBI computers. These are terrorists, as real and evil as those who crashed planes into the World Trade Center. They want to crash our economy, destroy our freedoms and disrupt our way of life.
Our military wages war on land, sea, in the air and in space, said Griffith, "so we're going to now do it in cyberspace." Griffith considers Biloxi to be among the top candidates for the Cyberspace Command Headquarters because "our lifeblood is cyberspace." According to its Web site, "Keesler Air Force Base is the 'Electronics Training Center of Excellence' for the United States Air Force."
It will be a huge challenge to convince the Defense Department that Biloxi and Keesler should have the honor of being the cyberspace headquarters. During Tuesday's meeting, Councilman Mike Fitzpatrick pointed to how the city is expanding water and sewer so housing communities can expand into Woolmarket. Councilman Tom Wall cited Biloxi High School being named a Blue Ribbon School. "Only 260 schools in the nation got this award," he said.
Councilman Bill Stallworth said he doesn't know of a better person to represent Biloxi and do what's best for the Coast, Keesler and the nation than Griffith. He wished the committee of Mississippi politicians and other officials who will meet with Air Force officials "Godspeed."
The city has already proved it will protect Keesler, as the men and women stationed there protect our country. The city gave the Air Force the land for the base back in 1941, Griffith said, and the council recently limited the height of condos and any other buildings in Keesler's flight path. Elsewhere in the country, the reluctance of local officials to contain encroachment has the military warning it may pull out of these areas.
The Air Force responded in kind to Biloxi, investing millions to restore the base after Katrina and financing the largest housing project in the history of the Air Force, now under way at Keesler.
On Griffith's list of reasons Biloxi should be the new headquarters were security, accessibility and community support. I would add character to that list - the character of the Coast to not only survive Hurricane Katrina but to emerge stronger. The character of the retired servicemen and women who return to Biloxi when their duty is done. And the character of Keesler, which makes those who trained here look back at the base and Biloxi years later with pride.
Establishing the cyberspace command is going to happen somewhere in the United States. We hope it will be at Keesler.
Just Krewson is a column of opinion by staff writer Mary Krewson Perez. She can be reached at 896-2354 or at meperez@sunherald.com@sunherald.com
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