What He Said – On Transforming the Military

People often ask me what is wrong/right with the U.S. military today and what I would change. Many times this is linked to a question about our work in Iraq and Afghanistan. Rather than rambling, I often wish I could just plop them down and show them this TED talk by Thomas Barnett.

Barnett has advised leaders on national security for many years now and has some of the most refreshing and spot-on ideas of how the U.S. military needs to change if we’re going to be effective in the 21st century.

He argues that we are still set up to fight a cold-war era opponent and that our military is being asked to nation-build when it was never meant to be used that way. But, rather than just criticizing, he offers a very clear solution: a large civilian force made up of highly educated civil servants who can focus on the post-fighting phase of helping rebuild a country like Iraq or Afghanistan.

I won’t spoil it too much, just give it a watch if you have a second.

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