. . . bodies and blood represent market share.
The Open-Source War – New York Times:
IN September, the Defense Department floated a solicitation for a company to build a “system of metrics to accurately assess U.S. progress in the war on terrorism” and make suggestions on how to improve the effort. As a software executive and former Air Force counterterrorist operative, I began thinking: how would I build this system and what would I recommend?
My first task would be to gauge our progress in Iraq. It is now, for better or worse, the epicenter of the war on terrorism. By most measurements, the war is going badly.
[ . . . ]
If an open-source counterinsurgency is the only strategic option left, it is a depressing one. The militias will probably create a situation of controlled chaos that will allow the administration to claim victory and exit the country. They will, however, exact a horrible toll on Iraq and may persist for decades. This is a far cry from spreading democracy in the Middle East. Advocates of refashioning the American military for top-down nation-building, the current flavor of the month, should recognize it as a fatal test of the concept.
Interesting perspective. So much for our MBA president and his flowchart/flipchart management style.
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