As of 1 January 1, 2023 I became the President of the PSYOP Veterans Association (POVA). POVA is the oldest continuous serving veterans’ Association providing membership support, reconnection, reunion and philanthropic support to America’s military PSYOP soldiers and veterans. Founded in 1988, POVA continually seeks to support and assist our fellow PSYOP veterans. I joined… Continue reading President of POVA Duties Means the Blog is Going on HIatus
Category: Intel
Whether Democracy Is Eroding or on the Upswing Depends on What State You Live In
President Joe Biden said the midterms were a “good day” for democracy. And in many ways, they were: There were high levels of voter turnout in many states, a projected 47 percent of Americans cast ballots—some 7 percentage points higher than a typical midterm election—and, in Colorado, Maine, Michigan, Montana, Minnesota, New Hampshire, Oregon, and… Continue reading Whether Democracy Is Eroding or on the Upswing Depends on What State You Live In
Mastering Irregular Warfare
The U.S. military has failed to master irregular warfare above the tactical level. This is not a new problem, and it is one that has been recognized by leaders at the most senior echelons of government. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates stated this perhaps most clearly when he admonished the Department of Defense (DoD) in… Continue reading Mastering Irregular Warfare
Can the War in Ukraine Help the United States Address Security Concerns in the Indo-Pacific?
Even as the Russian military continues to struggle in Ukraine, Air Force leaders and top national security experts at the 2022 West Coast Aerospace Forum warned not to expect similar outcomes in a potential conflict with China. The 7th annual event focused on applying lessons learned from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine to the security challenges… Continue reading Can the War in Ukraine Help the United States Address Security Concerns in the Indo-Pacific?
Ten Things That Inspired Me in 2022
The past few years have been a crash course in how to live through extraordinary, challenging times, and 2022 was no exception. It brought the largest armed conflict in Europe since World War II, fresh uncertainty after the end of Roe v. Wade, and gutting reminders about the persistence of gun violence in the United… Continue reading Ten Things That Inspired Me in 2022
California’s Ambitious Decarbonization Plan Hasn’t Been Future-Proofed
This week the California Air Resources Board is expected to approve what’s known as its 2022 Scoping Plan, the blueprint to make the state, the world’s fourth-largest economy, carbon-neutral by 2045. The plan is beyond ambitious. “It’ll spur an economic transformation akin to the Industrial Revolution,” Gov. Gavin Newsom declared when it was released last… Continue reading California’s Ambitious Decarbonization Plan Hasn’t Been Future-Proofed
The Trouble with Russian Blacklisting
I’ve officially been banned from setting foot in Russia. Last month, I discovered I was number 44 on the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ latest list of banished Americans. Like more than 1,200 other Americans, I now stand accused of having a hand in the “promotion of the Russophobic campaign and support for the regime… Continue reading The Trouble with Russian Blacklisting
Does It Really Matter Who Owns Twitter?
Unless you live in a cave, you know that Elon Musk paid $44 Billion to buy Twitter and then take it from a public company to a private one. There has been more than a great deal of concern about the Twitter platform and the future of the company itself. On November 22,… Continue reading Does It Really Matter Who Owns Twitter?
Bringing About a ‘More Perfect Union’: Street Diplomacy in the Nineteenth Century
In the heart of Philadelphia, a runaway mother desperately held her infant son close as she matched wits with a ruthless slave catcher. The mother, Catherine Thompson, escaped slavery in Maryland, married a free man named William Thompson, and eventually settled in Burlington County, New Jersey. There she gave birth to her son, Joel, and… Continue reading Bringing About a ‘More Perfect Union’: Street Diplomacy in the Nineteenth Century
How Winners are Losing in American Elections
Who exactly are the winners of this new and confusing electoral system called ranked-choice voting (RCV)? It’s not the thousands of voters that show up to the polls in RCV elections only to have their votes thrown out. The winners of RCV are partisans and special interests who use the system’s design to manipulate election… Continue reading How Winners are Losing in American Elections