POSITION PAPER: DEFENSE OF WEAKEST POSITION
ON THREAT ISSUE ASSIGNMENT INSTRUCTIONS
OVERVIEW
The purpose of the Position Papers is to provide a well-reasoned support for a Homeland
Security threat issue and explain the rationale for both sides of that position. The “Threat” issue
is something that is within the legal jurisdiction of the U. S. Department of Homeland Security.
The security of the homeland cannot be undertaken unless and until the threat(s) has (have) been
identified and assessed. This may be ANYTHING that threatens the government structure, the
people, our national resources, our economy, our values, our culture, or the “American way of
life” (as long as it is the responsibility of the DHS to deal with that issue. Abortion, drug
addiction, Global warming, world hunger, Green energy, etc. may be the biggest problems we
face in your opinion, but if they are NOT within the jurisdiction of the DHS, don’t go there.)
INSTRUCTIONS
 There is no minimum nor maximum number of words, pages, etc. As such, you are
required to defend your position with facts and logic.
 Format of assignment: APA
 Number of citations: 3 relevant, credible sources must be used.
At a minimum, the following sections are required:
 Problem Statement – a brief paragraph identifying the issue(s), with a specific problem
statement. (Develop a clear and concise problem statement – three to five sentences.)
 Review of Literature – this heading should have at least two subheadings (Background
of Problem and Supporting Evidence). Since this is a review of the literature, adequate
citations should be included within each subheading. You do not need to include
opposing positions in this assignment. We will address this in the final assignment.
 Conclusion – This is NOT “mere opinion”. Provide a conclusion that is supportable
from the facts given, and then make recommendations and possible courses of action.
Citations may be used here to support your recommendations.
SUPPORT YOUR ARGUMENTS WITH EVIDENCE:
The information provided must be based on a strong foundation of facts. As such, you must
provide evidence from credible academic and scholarly sources. By now, you should have firmly
in your mind the difference between a conclusion and “mere opinion”. A conclusion is the
result of a process of reason, and the application of relevant evidence. Evidence consists of court
cases, historical example, scripture (correctly applied) and scholarly articles. Remember, peer-
reviewed articles are best. You will select a topic, define, refine, and limit your issue. Based
upon the feedback from Position Paper: Defense of Weakest Position on Threat Issue
Assignment, you will be better prepared to fully engage the issue in Position Paper: Defense
of Strongest Position on Threat Issue Assignment. After you have defended both sides of an

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issue, you will have a much keener appreciation for the complexities of the challenges of
Homeland Security.
Review the Position Paper: Topic Ideas document found in the Learn section of Module 4:
Week 4. After choosing your topic, define, refine, and limit your issue. REMEMBER: an “issue”
as we are using that term in this assignment, is something of a moral, legal, philosophical, or
religious basis that can be debated at least two ways. NOT an “issue” for purposes of these
position papers is (1) failures of response in past disasters, (2) budget shortfalls, or (3) chemical
weapons should be banned, etc. You are first supporting the weakest position (which is NOT the
one you may personally favor) but you will still do your best to bring the best evidence in
support of that “side”.
Note: Your assignment will be checked for originality via the Turnitin plagiarism tool