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Gates needs to expand scope of call for civilian role in fighting terror
By WDavidStephenson | November 28, 2007
Secretary Gates got part of the message right yesterday in calling for civilian role in fighting terror and “soft power” approaches, but he referred only to other government employees, such as foreign service officers — not you and me.
“‘We must focus our energies beyond the guns and steel of the military, beyond just our brave soldiers, sailors, Marines and airmen,’ he said in a speech at Kansas State University in Manhattan, Kan. ‘We must also focus our energies on the other elements of national power that will be so crucial in the coming years.’”
“‘Success will be less a matter of imposing one’s will and more a function of shaping behavior — of friends, adversaries and, most importantly, the people in between,’ Gates told his audience of students, faculty and local residents.
He also said that ’strategic communications” are critical to communicating its goals to foreign audiences.
Sphere: Related Content“In his speech, Gates said there is an urgent need to figure out how to better organize the government to meet the security challenges of the 21st century. Among shortcomings in the non-military area, Gates singled out U.S. strategic communications. He said the U.S. government is ‘miserable’ at communicating its goals and policies to foreign audiences.
“‘It is just plain embarrassing that al-Qaida is better at communicating its message on the internet than America,’ he said. ‘Speed, agility and cultural relevance are not terms that come readily to mind when discussing U.S. strategic communications.’”
Sorry, Mr. Secretary, but as long as we turn fireflighters into snitches, undermine the Bill of Rights, practice extraordinary rendition, etc., etc., the reality trumps our ability to form and disseminate messages!
Most important from this blog’s perspective, Gates’ speech ignored the role of those of us on the homefront, who can both prevent terror attacks by providing valuable information to govern, and, equally important, doing so in a way that respects privacy and the Bill of Rights. That will aid our efforts abroad by demonstrating that the Constitution isn’t just a piece of paper, but our living guidebook for true democracy!
P.S. Don’t suppose Gates’ enthusiasm for civilian adjuncts to war effort have anything to do with Army scraping bottom of barrel to meet enlistment quotas, do you?
Technorati tags: homeland security War on Terror Iraq War terrorism antiterrorism government homeland security 2.0 Pentagon Robert Gates
Topics: empowering public, policy and politics, collaboration, networked security | |
