Features

August 1, 2007  

In this issue

The timeliness of content in this issue of AFJ underscores the monthly magazine’s role: to distill fleeting headlines into thoughtful analysis.

From Pete Brooke’s Flashpoint column, which questions Vladimir Putin’s true motives, to Chris Griffin’s Blogs of War, which gives the milblogger’s viewpoint on the Army’s recent Operation Arrowhead in Baqubah, you’ll find fresh, original perspective on topics that matter.

Our cover story round table brings together policy-shapers of all political hues to debate the big question of “What is America’s national security strategy?” Former Navy secretary Richard Danzig, AEI fellow Tom Donnelly, Johns Hopkins professor Frank Fukuyama and Harvard professor Steve Rosen offer diverse views. Former Lt. Col. Scott Morrison, an Army special operations officer until he retired in July, rounds out the discussion with a thought-provoking assessment of whether the National Strategy for Combating Terrorism has the military and the nation looking in the wrong direction.

Greg Foster, a professor at the National Defense University, poses another big question of a nation at war: Is the military fulfilling the obligations expected of it as part of the civil-military social contract? His article exposes the failure of both the civil and military leadership to ask the tough questions.

Talking tough is fine, counters Matt Mayer, but words alone won’t safeguard a superpower unless they are backed by demonstrated strength. It’s high time to reclaim the strong-horse reins of the Reagan era, he says.

Seth Cropsey, a former deputy undersecretary of the Navy and regular AFJ contributor, shifts the debate to maritime strategy and urges a rethink of Navy policy before U.S. global naval dominance becomes a study in history.

Col. Hank Foresman argues that the Army is facing the new threat head-on but remains blinkered by its cultural ties to a grand-war past rooted in World War II legacies.

This wide range of viewpoints invites further comment. AFJ readers can continue the debate through letters to the editor, article submissions or on our forums at http://armedforcesjournal.com/forums. Starting with this issue, we’ll be publishing our top pick from forum submissions on our Darts & Laurels page.