Journal

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Many political analysts and historians referred to the war as one for independence or as a civil war. This characterization is incomplete and contributes to numerous misconceptions about the conflict.

Hacking for Defense is a battle-tested problem-solving methodology that runs at Silicon Valley speed. We just held our first Hacking for Defense Educators Class with 75 attendees.

The best way to defeat terrorism motivation rooted in religious convictions is not through a continuation of government-sponsored, Madison-Avenue-style advertising and PSYOP.

Galula was a self-made man in various aspects; born into a relatively modest environment, he rose to positions where no one expected him to.

This paper explores current recruiting practices, its shortfalls, and offers solutions tied to a thorough job analysis and restructured recruiting strategy.

Islamic extremist ideology has become a pandemic super-infection resistant to current counter-ideological methodologies.

A red team assessment of Syrian prospects for counterinsurgency written in December of 2015. It is a blueprint for Syrian military, economic, and political success in the coming years.

This monograph is a revision of a paper submitted for consideration during the 2008 U.S. Army Command and General Staff College historical writing competition for CGSC Course 08-01.

Mad Scientist # 20: The demand for cybersecurity professionals is exceeding the number available, and some estimate that more than 200,000 positions are currently unfilled.

Mad Scientist # 19: We are losing the cyberwar because cyber defenses apply the wrong philosophy to the wrong operating environment.

Mad Scientist # 18: The purpose of this paper is to highlight the need for strategic broadening and policy education for mid-career Cyberspace leaders.

An Empirical look at drivers of terrorism, ventures to determine whether Abadie’s findings in “Poverty, Political Freedom, and the Roots of Terrorism” remain true after ten years.

This essay explores one of the key and most underemphasized components of building successful fighting power, namely the moral component.

Though the training scenario was an imperfect reflection of a real-world UW mission, our success could be replicated in other environments by any ODA.

Continue on for a Small Wars Journal-El Centro update and call for papers.

El Salvador’s Attorney General is concerned that the maras, Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) in particular, are developing armed commando battalions that are designed to confront the state.

Mad Scientist # 17: The Army is allocating proportional resources to the cyber domain as it is to the success or failure of key weapon systems.

Mad Scientist # 16: The US Army is moving to field the next generation of cyber warfighters, and the need to identify, train, and develop these cyber professionals is becoming increasingly critical.

The US can enable novel gains in the information environment by collecting on, operating in, and collaborating through indigenously produced economic media.

While many of the Army’s great leaders have blossomed on the battlefield without systematic development, there are doctrinal references that define leader development processes.

A UN departure could cause more than just trouble in terms of quelling rebels. The 20,000 peacekeepers are now a backbone of the nation’s struggling economy.

Small Wars Journal interview with Karsten Friis, Senior Adviser and Head of the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs’ Research Group on Security and Defense.

This article uses the C-UAS problem set as a case study to highlight some of the challenges the Army faces responding to the increased use of innovative technologies by our adversaries.

An often-overlooked part of the conflict in Southeast Asia, the formation of and lessons learned by the MRF can serve as the groundwork of a future joint riverine force.

As weapons platforms become increasingly digital, the risk from electronic interference becomes increasingly troublesome—including hacking, jamming, and even hijacking of remote platforms.

The war saw the engagement of South African, Namibian, Angolan, Cuban, Soviet, Chinese and even American forces in an array of operations and offensives.

This article addresses Psychological Operations Measures of Effectiveness pitfalls and fixing the measurement and reporting problems.

The US must ensure it is not simply being responsive to Chinese moves, but instead base decisions on strategic objectives.

This study gives policy makers, scholars, law enforcement practioneers and planners a greater understanding on the degree and nature of Mexican drug trafficking organization’s rationality.

Do we actually know much about drone strikes' political effects? No.

In an era of expanding popular engagement and attention to foreign conflicts, a strategic appreciation of people-centric dimensions is more important now than ever.

FID is failing now.  The solution is to create a mid-career SOF FID specialization for SOF Officers.

Mad Scientist # 15: As an Army “Mad Scientist”, I am both intellectually mad and emotionally mad about the armor/force protection topic.

The chances the government’s ongoing peace negotiations with FARC will end with the guerrillas morphing into a political party willing and participating in the democratic process are iffy.

This article discusses an alternative defensive strategy which addresses human performance capabilities and limitations to disrupt spearphishing attacks.

“History teaches us that we learn nothing from history.”

- - Hegel

The confluence of the Army’s explicit ideology, its operational practices, and ability to wage war in a political vacuum left by an unstable civil authority fed into mutually reinforcing processes of intransigence and insular thinking.

Mad Scientist # 14: On today’s battlefield, if it can be sensed it can be killed from afar, often with a single round. As the level of precision improves, this will only become truer.

Mad Scientist # 13: The Gray Zone is an ambiguous space. Not easy to visualize, it is cloaked making things beneath not always what they seem.

In order to develop effective counter-narratives, it is first necessary to conduct proper research that will lay the groundwork for any counter-narrative campaign.

Mad Scientist # 12: With the advancing field of genomics and gene modification, the possibility has arisen for applying these technologies to enhance a soldier’s physical capacity.

Mad Scientist # 11: War is man’s oldest profession. While we might aspire for peace, the exigencies of our world demand we prepare for war.

Mad Scientist # 10: As the demographic shift to an urban society continues, it becomes increasingly important to understand this complex terrain.

Though Russia traditionally relies on hard power to ensure state security and project power, the country may begin a revitalized effort of utilizing soft power to help achieve this.

Mad Scientist # 9: The Army risk mitigation processes and procedures needed to operate in a multi-national environment in order to prevent accidents and incidents.

Mad Scientist # 8: Routine complexities that we can forecast and prepare for, operational adaptability within the future security environment, and the changing nature of conflict.

Mad Scientist # 7: The DoD's  Third Offset Strategy - is it really strategy?

Mad Scientist # 6: In 2050, the world will have welcomed a net 2.5 billion additional people in areas characterized as urban, with most of this increase concentrated in Asia and Africa.

Violent extremism is a complex, psycho-social process that belies a simple explanation.