National Security—Brian Klunk
“specific, detailed, focused argument about how your language study relates to US
national security.”
A “compelling case for why you will be qualified for employment”
Traditional view of national security is tied to the modern idea of the state, which is
in the first place an idea about territory: modern states have borders. “This is mine
and that is yours.” The modern view also includes the fact that there are people that
go with the territory, and a political system that organizes all that.
What potentially threatens any of those three?
1) War
2) Subversion (from inside)
RAND is the first national security-related think tank. They began with that and then
branched out. You can look at their website. 72 sub-topics for national security.
Most are on the military or espionage. Part of the traditional notion of national
security.
US National Security Council: all the agencies are from the Pentagon or the
intelligence community.
Threats to US global dominance would fall under this rubric. Anything that would
involve the military.
What might bring on a nightmare?—military confrontation
Neo-traditional topics: terrorism and counterterrorism; cyberwar; the problem of
failed states (eg, possibility of North Korea collapsing). The failure of the Afghan
state is partially related to 9/11. Rise of ISIS related to failed states in the Middle
East.
1973: first OPEC oil embargo (Yom Kippur War). US policy says officially, “loss of
access to oil resources would be a reason for the US to go to war.”
Different economic factors are relevant to USNS: climate change, for example.
Pentagon has done a number of studies on how climate change threatens our
national security and lead to war. If people cannot make their living the way they
used to, they move. Traditional demographic arrangements are overturned and
conflict can result. Access to water supply.
Global public health: travelers can carry infectious diseases. SARS, , Ebola
Global organized crime, migration, refugee movement.
US National Security Strategy (find it via Google): report comes out annually. Blends
traditional definitions with new areas. Build your essay out from this document.
Federal employment
Don’t hand-wave at the security elements, It is not enough to “know the culture” to
make real conflicts go away.
Read CRF.org --good source Council on Foreign Relations
NY Times
Washington Post