david price

Learning from our failure at weaponizing anthropology

Summary: While we begin a new round of wars we still learn about dark aspects of the first round. For example, that psychologists assisted the US torture program in addition to the doctors and attorneys who participated. A book by David Price looks at another group violating their professional standards in join our wars — anthropologists …

Learning from our failure at weaponizing anthropology Read More »

We weaponized anthropology. Why didn’t it work?

Summary: Science provided massive advantages in our post-9/11 wars against the less-developed peoples of the Middle East. Not just the material science that created our wonder weapons, but the social sciences that gave experts the tools to manipulate these societies like children do legos. Or so said the writers of the COIN guide FM 3-24 …

We weaponized anthropology. Why didn’t it work? Read More »

A lesson about counterinsurgency that could change America’s future.

Summary: As we move forward to a new round of interventions let’s take a moment to look backwards. What can we learn from our failed interventions since 9/11, and more generally from the scores of failed counterinsurgency programs waged by foreign armies since WWII (when Mao brought 4GW to maturity)? There is a simple lesson, …

A lesson about counterinsurgency that could change America’s future. Read More »

More views of the events at Basra (2) – bloggers and war-bloggers

This post links to reports on events in Basra by bloggers, in addition to those I posted yesterday.  In the first post today, I – IV are links to what seem to me expert opinions.  This post, #V gives examples of what looks to me like simplistic speculation.  The last post, VI and VII, links to valuable background …

More views of the events at Basra (2) – bloggers and war-bloggers Read More »

Scroll to Top