Viewed through Western eyes, the information-enabled 2009 Iran protest movements were an irresistible force pitted against a brittle and hapless regime. Such a view overemphasized the role of technology in what was fundamentally an old-school social uprising. Still, some authors see the failure of the Iranian protest movement...

It's official: the crowdsourcing backlash has begun. Influential technology blog TechCrunch's Paul Carr vociferously condemned Fort Hood soldier Tearah Moore's paparazzi-like tweetings, describing her tasteless and often incorrect information as "entertainment and tragi-porn."

Carr went on to declare, "for all the sound and fury, citizen journalism once...

It's become banal to argue we substantially overestimate our ability to influence the Middle East. But media commentary about the Iranian protests takes the usual unreality to a whole new level of insanity. Watching commentators fuss about whether Michael Jackson's death has "killed" the protest movement, pen dripping odes to...

Defense Secretary Robert Gates' military reforms are commonly portrayed in the media as a series of technocratic budget decisions. But Gates is doing something far more radical than just canceling big-ticket weapons programs: he's finally fusing theory and policy. The sad truth is that many of our soldiers and civilians...

When most Americans think of Mexico, they probably think of mariachi bands or Tijuana. If they're in a bad mood, they think about illegal immigration or drug gangs. But no one puts Mexico in the same category as a violent, unstable state like Pakistan. No one, that is, except the...

If Barack Obama wants to truly improve American national security, he should encourage a wide-ranging -- and public -- debate over military doctrine and strategy. The outcomes of obscure debates waged by military theorists and think-tankers have far-reaching effects on national security and foreign policy. We ignore these intellectual battles...

Written with Lt. John P. Sullivan

Washington is overflowing with foreign policy proposals for the next administration. Think-tankers of all political stripes are looking for a big idea to revolutionize American foreign policy. Missing from the equation, however, are new solutions for America's problems with counterinsurgency (COIN) and stabilization operations....

While world attention remains riveted on the ongoing slaughter in Darfur, another African bloodbath continues unabated. Unlike Darfur, Uganda hasn't attracted the attention of any celebrities, but there are plenty of abducted children, terrified refugees and limb-severing killers to go around. On June 5, elements of the Ugandan rebel group...

On May 29th, Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) head General Michael Hayden declared that al-Qaeda has suffered "significant setbacks globally" including "strategic defeat" in Iraq and "near-strategic defeat" in Saudi Arabia -- an upbeat assessment that instantly spurred controversy among intelligence and counter-terrorism experts. The fracas over Hayden's remarks mirrors...

With the quagmire in Iraq and the regeneration of Al Qaeda in the Pakistani tribal regions, it is easy to feel gloomy about national security. However, there has recently been an important document released -- unnoticed by most -- that points the way to a safer, more secure future....

The question of how to measure progress in counterinsurgency, once the sole concern of a tiny group of military theorists and academics, has now taken center stage in the increasingly acrimonious Iraq war debate. The Bush administration and its defenders claim that Iraqi security is improving. However, continuing instability...

Since the end of the Cold War, non-state threats have predominately consisted of terrorists, ethnic separatists, holy warriors, and transnational criminals. The leftist insurgencies and terror campaigns that once haunted the developing world have largely vanished due to the discrediting of Marxism and the collapse of the most prominent...

President George W. Bush has alleged numerous times that the Iranian government has directly aided and supplied anti-American terrorists working in Iraq. Many have argued that this is part of an attempt to lay the ground for war with Iran and justify his policy of ordering United States soldiers...

One of the most chilling parts of the recently released National Intelligence Estimate is its section on the oil-rich Iraqi city of Kirkuk. It noted that the Kurds are moving to cement their hold on the city, annexing it into the Kurdistan Regional Province against increasingly virulent opposition...

The major stumbling block to ending the genocide in Darfur is China. As the Sudanese government's largest ally, China consistently vetoes UN Security Council resolutions asking for sanctions on Sudan and resolutely opposes the introduction of a UN security force to protect Darfuris from the aggression of the Sudanese government...

In a few months, Kosovo will make a bid for independence after eight years of UN governance. In light of the horrific failures in Iraq and Afghanistan, the war in Kosovo seems worlds away. However, it's worth looking back to American involvement in Kosovo to understand the deadly misconceptions...