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A National Security Strategy That Doesn’t Focus on Threats

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iwishiwas Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed May-04-11 05:03 AM
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A National Security Strategy That Doesn’t Focus on Threats


Now this is the kind of military that is worth its weight in gold.



http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/04/nyregion/a-strategy-for-national-security-focused-on-sustainability.html?src=ISMR_AP_LO_MST_FB


A National Security Strategy That Doesn’t Focus on Threats
By JIM DWYER
Published: May 3, 2011

Here’s a proposition: The death of Osama bin Laden brings a moment to talk about something other than threats — not because they don’t exist, but because for the country to see and speak of nothing else is mortally dangerous.


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Stephen Morton for The New York Times

Col. Mark Mykleby, a senior advisor on strategy to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Capt. Wayne Porter of the Navy wrote a paper calling on the United States to focus on social policies, education and sustainability.


Related in Opinion

Times Topic: Jim Dwyer

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Brendan Hoffman for The New York Times

Capt. Wayne Porter at the Pentagon.

So listen for a moment to two military strategists, working at the highest level of government, as they turn to the subject of leaky air-conditioners in government buildings in New York. “Poorly fitted air-conditioners cost New York City 130 to 180 million dollars a year in extra energy consumption,” one of the strategists, Capt. Wayne Porter of the Navy, said Tuesday. “They generate 370,525 extra tons of carbon dioxide.”

Suppose, he says, you fixed them. And then you got the 40 states that waste the most electricity to match the 10 most efficient. The likely benefits are no surprise — less foreign oil, cost savings, job creation, decreased pollution.

Now follow that thread to “A National Strategic Narrative,” a paper written by Captain Porter and Col. Mark Mykleby of the Marines, which calls on the United States to see that it cannot continue to engage the world primarily with military force, but must do so as a nation powered by the strength of its educational system, social policies, international development and diplomacy, and its commitment to sustainable practices in energy and agriculture. ..............................
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HysteryDiagnosis Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed May-04-11 05:10 AM
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1. I wonder if they are interested in this
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/07/080714151427.htm

ScienceDaily (July 20, 2008) — Scientists from the Universidad Carlos III of Madrid (UC3M) and the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC) have developed an environmentally friendly cooling technology that does not harm the ozone layer. This is achieved by using solar energy and therefore reducing the use of greenhouse gases.
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Sherman A1 Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed May-04-11 06:01 AM
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2. These guys "get it"
Security is much more than the number of guns, fighters and ships available. It's about people, the economy, education, the environment..................
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Uncle Joe Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed May-04-11 12:07 PM
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3. This is a wise observation with profound implications and an excellent article.


“We must recognize that security means more than defense,” they write. After ending the 20th century as the world’s most powerful country, “we failed to recognize that dominance, like fossil fuel, is not a sustainable form of energy.”


Thanks for the thread, iwishiwas.:thumbsup:
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Overseas Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed May-04-11 12:27 PM
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4. K&R. Yes Please!
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