America Needs to Consider New Ideas in Afghanistan—Including Erik Prince's Plan by Steven Metz - World Politics Review

Frustration with the stalemate in Afghanistan has broadened the domestic debate over U.S. strategy there. For the time being, President Donald Trump remains committed to the general approach taken by the George W. Bush and Obama administrations. But options that seemed unthinkable a few years ago, like outright disengagement, are now on the table. As this unfolds, one out-of-the-box proposal in particular has sparked intense discussion among security experts: a plan to replace American troops with contractors.

The most prominent proponent of this idea, Erik Prince, is a former U.S. Navy SEAL with connections in the Trump administration. Prince is currently the chairman of Frontier Services, a Chinese-owned business that provides security, logistics and insurance to corporations operating in austere environments. He was also the founder of Blackwater, a private security firm that became infamous in Iraq when several of its employees were convicted of killing civilians.

In a recent New York Times op-ed, Prince proposed downsizing America’s presence in Afghanistan to “a light footprint of American Special Forces, as well as contractors to work with Afghans to focus on the goal that Americans really care about: denying America’s enemies the sanctuary they used to plan the Sept. 11 attacks.”

The argument that the United States should shift from counterinsurgency to counterterrorism in Afghanistan is not new. Then-Vice President Joe Biden made it during the Obama administration’s 2009 review of its Afghanistan strategy, and I’ve advocated for it myself. But Prince’s plan for relying on contractors rather than U.S. troops to support the Afghan security forces has generated particularly vociferous opposition…

Read on.

The Mad Scientist Initiative Kicking Off The Fall 2017 Call For Ideas

Deadline: 01 December 2017

Topic: Soldier 2050

We want your ideas! The Mad Scientist Initiative uses storytelling and crowd-sourcing to imagine potential futures.

You can share your ideas by submitting  papers, artwork, videos, and games.

Choose your creative methods:

(1) Researched Topics (see topics of interest in the attachment)
(2) “A Soldier’s Letter from the Frontline”

War is a human endeavor. The convergence of bio, nano, quantum, neuro, and information macro trends will change the character of war and how Soldiers will train, deploy, and fight.

Submissions must be unclassified, unpublished, and cleared by public affairs office and operations security managers (USG & as applicable).

(1) Research papers: max 5000 words/12 point font.
(2) “A Soldier’s Letter from the Frontline” – max 2000 words/12 point font; video length max 5 minutes.

These questions are writing prompts and should not limit your imagination and creativity:

Prompt 1: How does the convergence of bio, quantum, neuro, nano, and information change warfare?
Prompt 2: How will the Soldier of 2050 interact with their equipment, fellow Soldiers, and autonomous capabilities?
Prompt 3: Soldiers’ letters have been a window into warfare for hundreds of years. How do Soldiers describe their units, equipment, and war to their loved ones in 2050?

BEST IDEAS will get you:

(1) Publication in a military or academic journal
(2) Invited to speak at a Mad Scientist Conference
(3) Mad Scientist SWAG

If you have questions about the topics or submission guidelines contact Allison Winer at <allison.d.winer.civ@mail.mil>

The Mad Scientist Initiative Kicking Off The Fall 2017 Call For Ideas