In the last two decades, America has faced an evolving threat landscape from the coordinated terrorist attacks of 9/11 to mass shootings in schools, malls, and churches. Today, credible intelligence suggests that the United States will once again be attacked soon. This attack will not be a single incident, but a multi-pronged Al-Qaeda and ISIS operation targeting several mid-sized U.S. cities simultaneously. Mid-sized U.S. cities are typically characterized as having populations of approximately 100,000 to 500,000 people. These events will happen fast, but they will not happen without warning signs. The challenge is that most of us have forgotten how to see them.
That skill - the ability to perceive, process, and predict environmental cues is called situational awareness. Once second nature for most people, it has quietly eroded, especially in the last five years, leaving us more vulnerable than at any time since 2001. And with a coordinated terrorist attack on the horizon, it’s a skil…
