ESSAY : Homeland Security-Terrorism

Each student will be required to write at least 400 words (approx. 1 page-single space) on the question. Word count does not include titles, the original question nor reference list.
There will be 2-3 questions from which to choose. Cut and paste the question at the beginning of your response so I will know what question you have chosen. Failure to cut & paste question will result in -10 points.

You will be graded on content, grammar, punctuation and organization of thoughts. I expect college level writing proficiency and style. I expect that your thoughts will be concise and logical. There is no “right” or “wrong” answer to these questions, however, your position must be supported by cited references.  Reduced points will be given for random thoughts or
ideas that are not supported by logic or cited sources. Repetitive statements of your position on the subject will also result in reduced points. All data, sources or facts must be cited. The text book & Wikipedia may be cited but you must have at least two (2) additional sources as well.
Quotes MUST be cited and should not be longer than 1 sentence. The total percentage of quoted material must not exceed 10% of the assignment. 

Journal Guidelines & Format

Pay close attention to technical details described in the section below.
Failure to observe them will seriously lower your score.

You must have 2-3 references for each Journal (may not include Textbook
or Wikipedia).

Journals must be typed using a computer word processor & posted into the Blackboard Campus Pack Journal feature. It is strongly recommended that you compose your Journal in MS Word and then cut & paste the finished product
into Campus Pack Journal.

Use the APA (American Psychological Association—6th Ed.) Style Manual for text (manuscript) and reference page citations of works used or cited. These sites provide a guide to using the APA style.

These sites provide a guide to using the APA style:

APA Formatting and style guide –
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01 ;

How to cite sources APA style – http://www.nova.edu/library/dils/lessons/apa/ ;

Landmarks Son of Citation Machine – http://citationmachine.net 

Presentation Style

The presentation of any research paper is important. The flow of the narrative should be:

First paragraph – State your position on the question (1-2 sentences)

Middle paragraph(s) – Support your position with research, statistics, quotes, etc. This paragraph(s) should be the majority of your written narrative. You may need to have more than 1 paragraph.

Last paragraph – Closing statement. This should be no more than 2-3 sentences.

Click on “View/Complete” for the Journal week you wish to access. This should automatically take you into the Turnitin submission page that shows you the Journal Entry screen

Example Journal: A well written Journal is included as an example of the type of work I expect from students. This example can be found at the bottom of this content area.

Note:  Rubric for Weekly Research Journal can be found on Blackboard under the “Rubrics” tab

Weekly Research Journal #2
CHOOSE ONE QUESTION
Question #1 – Do you think that the United States enabled the Taliban (and therefore, al Qaeda) by supporting the mujahideen during the Soviet-Afghan War in the 1980s? Explain you answer.
OR
Question #2 – Do you believe that the killing of terrorist targets using drones by the U.S. is a justified legal and/or moral tactic to combat terrorism in the world?

SAMPLE SOLUTION

Question #2 “Do you believe that the killing of terrorist targets using drones by the U.S. is a justified legal and/or moral tactic to combat terrorism in the world?
My position on this matter is very clear; the killing of terrorists using drones by the U.S is a legal, moral, and justified strategy to fight terrorism in the world. The aim of any counter-terrorism measure is to ensure that the terrorist is worried and hence takes more time thinking of their own safety than plotting against the people/ state they perceive as their enemy (Dvaladze & Praz, n.d.). Terrorist groups continue to be complicated as they use sophisticated equipment and strategies. In his speech on drone policy, former US president Obama emphasized the need to come up with measures that can counter any techniques used by terrorists (Groves, 2013). In his quest to counter…