11/16/2020 News & Commentary – National Security
News & commentary by Dave Maxwell. Edited and published by Duncan Moore.
1. Moderna’s covid-19 vaccine Is 94.5% effective, early results show
2. China’s new wolf warrior diplomacy is a Maoist resurrection
3. Hopes and doubts in Beijing
4. How Biden and Xi can keep the new cold war from turning hot
5. More than 100K federal employees have had COVID-19
6. Coronavirus cases are spiking at federal agencies
7. Scoop: Trump plans last-minute China crackdown
8. The new world order that President Biden will inherit
9. Hollyanne Milley, wife of Joint Chiefs chairman, saves veteran’s life at Arlington
10. SEALs, green berets join large defense drill in Sweden
11. Who is Michelle Flournoy? Meet Biden’s likely pick to head the Pentagon
12. America’s forgotten marine highway network that could green global freight transport
13. In the mercenaries’ own words: documents detail TigerSwan infiltration of Standing Rock
14. Woman who compiled SAS ‘war crimes’ report breaks her silence
15. Father and son, both active-duty officers, graduate Ranger School exactly 35 years apart
16. Special Operations Warrior Foundation leaves no child of America’s fallen special operators behind
1. Moderna’s covid-19 vaccine Is 94.5% effective, early results show
Wall Street Journal · Peter Loftus · November 16, 2020
We should be very hopeful. But now the challenge begins. We have got to get this out to the world to break the hold the virus has on all of us. But we cannot become complacent, because the rate of positive cases and hospitalizations is rising so fast.
2. China’s new wolf warrior diplomacy is a Maoist resurrection
Sydney Morning Herald · Anne-Marie Brady · November 16, 2020
3. Hopes and doubts in Beijing
Foreign Affairs · Cheng Li · November 13, 2020
I just hope no one produces a “reset button.”
4. How Biden and Xi can keep the new cold war from turning hot
Bloomberg · Niall Ferguson · November 15, 2020
We need to successfully compete across the spectrum while not allowing the cold war to turn hot. We have to be able to conduct a superior form of political warfare.
5. More than 100K federal employees have had COVID-19
News Max · Eric Mack · November 15, 2020
6. Coronavirus cases are spiking at federal agencies
Defense One · Eric Katz · November 15, 2020
More details on key agencies.
7. Scoop: Trump plans last-minute China crackdown
Axios · Jonathan Swan & Bethany Allen-Ebrahimian · November 15, 2020
This is one area (among many) that should require transition coordination.
8. The new world order that President Biden will inherit
New York Times · Editorial Board · November 15, 2020
Some of the scariest words: “New World Order.” Recall when President George H.W. Bush used them after the fall of the USSR, how they were blown out of proportion by extremists who think they meant a global government structure.
9. Hollyanne Milley, wife of Joint Chiefs chairman, saves veteran’s life at Arlington
Military.com · Richard Sisk · November 13, 2020
Hooah. Kudos to Mrs. Milley.
10. SEALs, green berets join large defense drill in Sweden
Military.com · John Vandiver · November 15, 2020
Implementing the Resistance Operating Concept. Good work. Here is a summary of the concept.
11. Who is Michelle Flournoy? Meet Biden’s likely pick to head the Pentagon
Fortune · Lolita C. Baldor, Robert Burns, & the AP · November 15, 2020
12. America’s forgotten marine highway network that could green global freight transport
Forbes · Nishan Degnarain · November 15, 2020
13. In the mercenaries’ own words: documents detail TigerSwan infiltration of Standing Rock
Intercept · Alleen Brown · November 15, 2020
Very interesting story.
14. Woman who compiled SAS ‘war crimes’ report breaks her silence
Daily Mail · Alana Mazzoni · November 15, 2020
Tragic story from Australia.
15. Father and son, both active-duty officers, graduate Ranger School exactly 35 years apart
Army Times · Harm Venhuizen · November 15, 2020
The family business. How many parent-children military personnel do we have?
16. Special Operations Warrior Foundation leaves no child of America’s fallen special operators behind
Coffee or Die · Nolan Peterson · November 15, 2020
One of the important charitable organizations to which I give every year. Kudos to Clay Hutmacher. (and heartfelt thanks to Ross Perot and his vision)
“Propaganda vs. Truth. How can I tell them apart? The answer is simple: If you agree with it, it is the truth. If you don’t agree, it’s propaganda.”
– Psychological Warfare, Second Edition, by Paul Linebarger, Combat Forces Press, Washington D.C. 1954
General Melchett: “If nothing else works, a total pig-headed unwillingness to look facts in the face will see us through.”
– “Blackadder Goes Forth”
“The young always have the same problem – how to rebel and conform at the same time. They have solved this by defying their parents and copying one another.”
– Quentin Crisp