The Security Policy Institute™ (SPI) is a funded research and development organization to promote the study of information security practices, develop practical security solutions, and bridge between academic, government, and business communities.

Housed at the Florida Institute of Technology in Melbourne Florida, under the direction of Dr. Michael Workman the SPI facilitates two applied centers: The center for information and national security (CINSec™) and the global center for preparedness and resilience (GCPR™), which exist to prepare professionals and to commercialize applied research for the advancement of security practices in the interest of democratic societies.

Notes from our Thought Forum:

“Man is born free, but everywhere he is in chains” Jean Jacques Rousseau; The Social Contract, 1762.
 
The bedrock of governing a free society is the social contract, which simultaneously seeks to preserve individual freedom and yet social order. The social contract underpins democracy, and asserts that a legitimate state authority is derived from the consent of the governed. However, one of the greatest challenges in a free society is found in the tension between the preservation of freedoms and the control mechanisms designed to protect individuals from harm. People want freedom, and also safety; yet there is a danger that one may come to love the chains and consider them armor or decorations worn by choice. Once harnessed, the chains may become a familiar and comfortable routine. Dostoyevsky wrote, “Man is a pliant animal, a being who grows accustomed to anything.”