Comments on: A Look Back at Three Grand Strategies

by: A.E

Mon, 12 Mar 2007 17:41:22 +0000

But, there’s the attack on the human security guards in the lobby in the first movie. Uniformed and armed personnel yes, but entirely unaware of the plot and probably could have at least been incapacitated without lethal force, given all the amazing abilities and weapons Neo has. Thanks for the input though. The post on Fight Club was very interesting too.

I didn’t know about those journals. Thanks for the links. I noticed Bruce Hoffman is the editor of Studies in Conflict and Terrorism.

by: Wiggins

Mon, 12 Mar 2007 12:57:33 +0000

Hm. I think Fight Club might be a better example of what you're describing. After all, Neo seems more focused on killing Agents, not on rallying like-minded people to him and creating systemic disruptions. Or maybe I just wanted an excuse to cite myself ;-). As far as a journal for your article, you might consider anything from International Security and Security Studies (two of the most prominent journals in the field) to more specialized periodicals like Studies in Conflict and Terrorism or Terrorism and Political Violence. cheers, W

by: A.E

Sat, 10 Mar 2007 16:25:42 +0000

Schneier is a genius. I’ve read his “psychology of security” essay as well.

The thrust of the article goes like this. If you’ve read the New Yorker story about 24, there’s a bit in it about how the Army is concerned that Jack Bauer is making illegal torture and thuggish operating procedures more attractive to soldiers. My article–probably around 14-17 pages–would examine movies that make valuable points about terror that are largely ignored in the national discourse. For example, take the Matrix–which in many ways has you seeing the world like an Islamist terrorist would.

Neo believes that the rest of the world is a fake, consumerist, decadent, shell that hides domination by a series of powerful actors. He takes on any identity he wishes and bends the operational reality of his universe in order to carry out guerrilla attacks that sometimes hurt and kill innocent people. But why do we emphasize with him?

I’ll post the link up when I write it. Any ideas about where to send such a piece would be greatly appreciated. I am trying to look for some new places to send my work with more of a focus on security issues.

by: Wiggins

Sat, 10 Mar 2007 11:05:08 +0000

Nifty. Lots of interesting connections in your post.

As a counterpoint to what policymakers can learn from popular movies, have you read Bruce Schneier’s critiques of what he calls Movie Plot Security? I think he offers some of the most grounded thinking on these matters.

I assume you’ll post a link to your article once it’s done? I’ll be very interested to check it out.

cheers,
W

by: A.E

Fri, 09 Mar 2007 23:46:07 +0000

Your welcome.

Your post also inspired me to do a post on my blog about isolationism.

Also, the post on sci-fi I was planning on writing a long time ago turned into a larger article I’m working on– its about lessons policymakers can learn from popular movies and science fiction in terms of counter-terrorism and global guerrillas theory.

by: Wiggins

Fri, 09 Mar 2007 09:46:07 +0000

No, I hadn’t encountered their work before. Thanks for the heads up!
~W

by: A.E

Fri, 09 Mar 2007 02:31:57 +0000

Have you read “Ethical Realism,” by Anatol Lieven and John Hulsman? They have a concept called “The Great Capitalist Peace” that reminds me very much of Barnett.

by: Thomas P.M. Barnett :: Weblog

Tue, 06 Mar 2007 09:34:26 +0000

More Tom around the Web

+ Mind in the Qatar (Great play on pronunciation, BTW ;-) recommends PNM, Hugh’s series with Tom, etc. + Movies , Books, Quotes, and Quirks quotes from PNM. + Murderati interviewed Tom’s publisher, Neil Nyren, naming Tom as one of…