5 Votes
A National Strategic Narrative
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In light of the current situation in Washington, and recent discussion on this site about national policy, this paper (.pdf) published by the Wilson Center in April 2011 deserves another look.
Written under the pseudonym “Mr. Y” by two members of JCS Chairman Admiral Mike Mullen’s staff, Navy Captain Wayne Porter and Marine Colonel Mark Mykleby, “A National Strategic Narrative” attempts to describe a long-term vision and defining purpose for the United States, to update and replace the narrative of the last 60 years which was crafted in the context of the Cold War. The thesis is that our national priorities and resources should be committed in accordance with a clear vision of the direction America is headed, to ensure future prosperity and security, bounded by enduring values. Further, that the U.S. should move away from the current threat-based, reactive outlook to a more proactive stance focused on opportunities and interdependence.
Agree or disagree? Tell Admiral Mullen what you think, or check it out on facebook.
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- Bush's Catch 22, by mikeforbes about 7 years ago
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Ulterior motive by mikeforbes
To be perfectly honest, while this is a very thought-provoking and well-written paper, my main reason for posting it here was to try to displace the latest round of inane back-and-forth over morality and religion (i.e., “Atheists are immoral
” “No, Christians are more immoral!!!!” “Nyyaaah!!”). Come on, folks … come up with a fresh line of reasoning or just give it up.
But seriously, this is a great paper. You should read it.
Feasibility by mikeforbes
While I generally agree with the broad outlines of this paper, and I think their recommendations are feasible at least in theory, I have some doubts about its feasibility in reality.
Clearly, nothing like this is even remotely possible with the current Congress. I wonder how long it would take, and how firmly these types of ideas would have to take hold in the population at large, before something like the “National Prosperity and Security Act” would be in the realm of possibility.
One good election cycle? 2 or 3? Ten? Would this be something that would have to be pushed from below, or would people follow inspirational leaders with a vision like this? Or is it a total fantasy, in the same league as Kucinich’s “Department of Peace” idea?