There it was in the Times this morning.  A piece by Professor Peter Ludlow of Northwestern University.  Dr. Ludlow is right there doing just what this blog tries to do.  The professor is far more articulate than I of course.  But he’s read Schneier and Hobbes (and no doubt many others) and sees how they can get put together: security can be seen through a humanistic lens and be all the clearer for it.

[Now Schneier, in Liars and Outliers is actually moving towards putting security with sociology not philosophy.  And not sociology in the way that tries to explain social engineering, per se.  But in trying to understand how trust is established and used.]

Dr. Ludlow’s piece, on the other hand, is a step towards explaining how the security strategies we use sometimes move us from rational to fear inspired decision making.  A very good read:

http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/01/19/fifty-states-of-fear/?ref=opinion

The next step in all this is bringing thinking about security in line with the branch of communication theory advanced by Harold Innis and Marshall McLuhan.   But if someone can help us see how to think about the connections between Hobbes and the TSA, then it is only a matter of time.