Afghanistan: Defining Victory
Over the weekend, Dave Schuler closed his post "Winning in Afghanistan" with three very good questions: What are our strategic objectives in Afghanistan? What tactics will effect those objectives? What are the logistical requirements of implementing the objectives? Today in New Atlanticist, my former graduate advisor, Don Snow, gives an extensive response with "Are We Losing in Afghanistan." He frames the questions thusly: The problem ...Posted in Outside The Beltway | OTB on October 7, 2008 11:47
Iraq War Now Peacekeeping Mission?
Michael J. Totten weighs in on the Iraq War is Over and We Won argument and decides that, while he's "reluctant" to answer that question in the affirmative, "The war in Iraq is all but over right now, and it will be officially over if the current trends in violence continue their downward slide. " [Michael] Yon is braver than the ...Posted in Outside The Beltway | OTB on July 17, 2008 08:09
McMaster Gets Star, ARCIC Directorship
H.R. McMaster has been officially nominated by the president for brigadier general and is "currently enroute to serve as director, concepts development and experimentation, Army Capabilities Integration Center, U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command, Fort Monroe, Virgina." Foreign Policy's Blake Hounshell reports that, The ARCIC is a relatively new center that has the potential to be very influential in setting Army doctrine. ...Posted in Outside The Beltway | OTB on July 16, 2008 15:41
Bloggers and Journalism: False Dichotomy
Stilgherrian has attended one too many Future of Media conferences and he has a long tirade for Old Media journalists whining about bloggers and professional standards. What’s tiring about this false dichotomy is that it compares the highest ideal of journalism with the lowest grade of personal blogging about what the cat did yesterday and — lo and behold! — they’re ...Posted in Outside The Beltway | OTB on July 16, 2008 07:09
More Language and Culture, Fewer Guns
Apropos our value of foreign languages discussion earlier, Andrew Krepinevich, a highly regarded military analyst, says the Pentagon needs to commit far more resources to just that. "If the experience of the last seventeen years tells us anything, it is that we are likely to continue to find our armed forces deployed... in operations among the indigenous populations, rather than around ...Posted in Outside The Beltway | OTB on July 9, 2008 15:33
Democrats Attacking McCain’s Military Record: Is A Pattern Emerging?
Jim Geraghty is not buying the notion that Wes Clark's attempts to diminish John McCain's military service was done without coordination with the Democratic Powers that Be. After statements by a half-dozen high-profile Democrats and Obama surrogates, you cannot persuade me that there is not a concerted effort on the part of Obama Democrats to criticize McCain on his war record. ...Posted in Outside The Beltway | OTB on July 1, 2008 11:21
Jindal Signs Chemical Castration Bill
Lousiana Governor Bobby Jindal yesterday signed the "Sex Offender Chemical Castration Bill" hours after the Supreme Court overturned that state's law allowing capital punishment for child rapists. It "provides that on a first conviction of aggravated rape, forcible rape, second degree sexual battery, aggravated incest, molestation of a juvenile when the victim is under the age of 13, or ...Posted in Outside The Beltway | OTB on June 26, 2008 09:44
Blogs Then and Now
Aaron Brazell is doing some research on the evolution of blogging in recent years and has asked for my input. [Update: The result, "Political Blogging 2.0," is now up.] I started OTB in January 2003 and have seen a lot of change. I should note at the outset that my experience is almost entirely with the political blogosphere, a ...Posted in Outside The Beltway | OTB on June 7, 2008 09:12
Reggie Love: Barack Obama’s Body Man
Reggie Love was a standout wide receiver and basketball player at Duke that the Dallas Cowboys, for some odd reason, unsuccessfully tried to turn into a pro linebacker. Love was occasionally flat on his back in his college days. He's landed on his feet, working as the body man for the presumptive Democratic nominee for president. Ashley Parker has ...Posted in Outside The Beltway | OTB on May 27, 2008 13:58
Petraeus: Diplomacy, Not Force, With Iran
David Petraeus says force should be our last option in solving our disputes with Iran. Army Gen. David H. Petraeus, President Bush's nominee to lead U.S. forces in the Middle East and Central Asia, supports continued U.S. engagement with international and regional partners to find the right mix of diplomatic, economic and military leverage to address the challenges posed by ...Posted in Outside The Beltway | OTB on May 22, 2008 10:51
