I once had a dinner conversation with a Soviet officer in 1986. He was ecstatic about President Reagan and his Mikhail Gorbachev coming together in an effort towards glasnost ("openness") and perestroika ("restructuring"). He was confounded by the fact that we were supporting the Mujahideen (One engaged in Jihad) in Afghanistan. He said, "One day we will leave there and then you will be there fighting the same people. You'll see."
If I were to tell you that the headlines read in the newspapers across the country included the following…
· “Oil spills pollute ocean waters in Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico.”
· “Ohio agrees to pay $675,000 to families of dead and injured in University shootings.”
· “Revolutionary forces under Muslim leader take over embassy.”
· “Nuclear power plant accident releases radiation.”
· “Militants seize U.S. embassy and hold hostages.”
· “Invasion of Afghanistan stirs world protests.”
· “Six U.S. aides escape from Iran with Canadian help.”
· “F.B.I.'s undercover operation implicates public officials.”
· “U.S. breaks diplomatic ties with Iran.”
· “Eight U.S. servicemen are killed and five are injured as helicopter and cargo plane collide in abortive desert raid to rescue American hostages.”
· “Supreme Court upholds limits on federal aid for abortions.”
…You might agree that these could easily be from today’s headlines. In fact, these headlines are from nearly thirty-six years ago. The years were 1979-1980. I joined the Army in 1980 in much the same way many soldiers joined after the 9/11 attacks.
The Muslim leader who sanctioned revolutionary forces to take over an embassy was none other than Ayatollah Khomeini when they took over the U.S. Embassy. The Nuclear power plant disaster was at Three Mile Island in the United States, the world protested the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, and the rescue attempt of Americans was in Iran to free the hostages.
Today’s headlines are still eerily similar in many ways. Strategists still wonder if there will ever be war or peace in Iran, as the U.S. and other countries negotiate a comprehensive agreement to stop their development of a nuclear weapon. This concern affects U.S. and regional security needs, principally regarding Israel.
The Tumultuous Middle East is in the state of transformation as several unparalleled crisis stirs the region, the latest being the threat of ISIS. The international community seems perplexed by the shifting forces throughout the region and unless they intervene in other ways besides war, (entrepreneurialism and cross-cultural understanding for example) a ticking time bomb not diffused will eventually explode.
The EU and NATO needs a new thinking strategy on Russia, once ignored, now considered a major threat again after the annexation of Crimea and military support for the rebels in Eastern Ukraine. How does Russia flexing its muscle affect the American power and influence in the globalized 21st century? Turn back the clock to 1979 and 1980 when the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan. The only difference between now and then, is the global cyber threat.
If I were to tell you that the headlines read in the newspapers across the country included the following…
· “Oil spills pollute ocean waters in Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico.”
· “Ohio agrees to pay $675,000 to families of dead and injured in University shootings.”
· “Revolutionary forces under Muslim leader take over embassy.”
· “Nuclear power plant accident releases radiation.”
· “Militants seize U.S. embassy and hold hostages.”
· “Invasion of Afghanistan stirs world protests.”
· “Six U.S. aides escape from Iran with Canadian help.”
· “F.B.I.'s undercover operation implicates public officials.”
· “U.S. breaks diplomatic ties with Iran.”
· “Eight U.S. servicemen are killed and five are injured as helicopter and cargo plane collide in abortive desert raid to rescue American hostages.”
· “Supreme Court upholds limits on federal aid for abortions.”
…You might agree that these could easily be from today’s headlines. In fact, these headlines are from nearly thirty-six years ago. The years were 1979-1980. I joined the Army in 1980 in much the same way many soldiers joined after the 9/11 attacks.
The Muslim leader who sanctioned revolutionary forces to take over an embassy was none other than Ayatollah Khomeini when they took over the U.S. Embassy. The Nuclear power plant disaster was at Three Mile Island in the United States, the world protested the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, and the rescue attempt of Americans was in Iran to free the hostages.
Today’s headlines are still eerily similar in many ways. Strategists still wonder if there will ever be war or peace in Iran, as the U.S. and other countries negotiate a comprehensive agreement to stop their development of a nuclear weapon. This concern affects U.S. and regional security needs, principally regarding Israel.
The Tumultuous Middle East is in the state of transformation as several unparalleled crisis stirs the region, the latest being the threat of ISIS. The international community seems perplexed by the shifting forces throughout the region and unless they intervene in other ways besides war, (entrepreneurialism and cross-cultural understanding for example) a ticking time bomb not diffused will eventually explode.
The EU and NATO needs a new thinking strategy on Russia, once ignored, now considered a major threat again after the annexation of Crimea and military support for the rebels in Eastern Ukraine. How does Russia flexing its muscle affect the American power and influence in the globalized 21st century? Turn back the clock to 1979 and 1980 when the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan. The only difference between now and then, is the global cyber threat.