Sustainable Security - A 21st Century Approach to National Security

http://www.americanprogress.org/projects/sustainable_security Anyone not immediately caught up in the whirlwind of today's Beltway foreign policy punditry would be driven to hair-tearing at the back-and-forth between defenders of the Bush Administration and the multitude of critics arrayed against it. That's because while President George W. Bush's approach has obviously failed, too many of its critics refuse to focus on why. Their alternatives revolve around competence, with perhaps a bit of multilateral fence-mending thrown in. But they also assume as valid the fundamental tenet guiding the Administration's approach, as defined by George Kennan during the Cold War, that securing the national interest lies in protecting "the continued ability of this country to pursue its internal life without serious interference." While that approach might have been relevant to the era of Cold War containment, it is untenable today. In a globalized world, it is no longer enough to center our foreign policy on a narrowly-defined concept of "national security" that assumes the continued dominance of the nation-state. What is needed is a fundamental change in the terms of the debate to include a realistic assessment of a world that is both interdependent and increasingly fragmented. What is missing is consideration of human security;and why, if we are to promote effectively our sustainable security, it must be incorporated into a modern American foreign policy.

Category:

Nonprofits & Activism

Tags:

• africa
• american
• defense
• development
• diplomacy
• energy
• environment
• iraq
• progress
• refugee
• security
• sustainable
• trade

[lordofdarkdudes]

Usa dose not need the worlds biggest army, its almost impossibel to invade the usa to invade even with half of thiere army. why? Cus its a huge island. so you have to first invade with an Amfiban attack then you have to make sure that you have a constan floow of troops coming in and suplies frome were ever the hell you are... and that is not easy

[AznDuD333]

first approach- invade small weak countries for oil, then scare everyone else.

[mizzoulibertarian]

I agree. But the word "we" is problematic. I'm not sure "we" are interested in having an empire. Who is?

[mizzoulibertarian]

The Iraq war was about as far from America's interest as you can get

[mizzoulibertarian]

"What is security?" Allowing terrorist to walk across a Mexican border without having to break a sweat perhaps. Who pays for the military? Is Iran a huge threat to the US as pundits say?

[kalaisyng]

Btw, I wonder how many "thumbs down" marks for my previous comment I get before it will turn into a hidden post... :))

[kalaisyng]

"The best military in the world" and the weirdest country in the world! What a paradox! I've never met so many weird people with so many weird human traits in any other country, though i traveled a lot. Ask ANY foreigner what they truly think about Americans, and you'll get the truth! The international students studying in America will definitely understand what I mean. Others are not expected to understand.

[GeoliphicMedia]

high consumption of natural resources have anything to do with it??? 1:07 the biblical scholar says it right--you dont have to believe in salvation to see the writing all over the walls throughout human history. Greedy empires collapse thats why we dont want a global corporate empire ...

[MaxSafeheaD]

... all cause deep tribal divisions.

Religion ... is a meme, a political manipulative tool and worthless besides its quaint absurdities. Similarly though it causes the deepest and most pointless divisions.

With the aforementioned education I think most people would conclude the same and democracy can finally move in a constructive direction.

P.S. Birth control. It's not ideal but then neither is the Easter Island scenario.

[MaxSafeheaD]

I think it's the ability to view other people as of a different 'tribe' that allows for us to be simultaneously empathic to neighbors while being utterly unsympathetic to foreigners.

this is the root of warfare IMO. So long as humanity remains internally focused far more serious external threats (and co-operative opportunities) are ignored.

Racial distinction is of no practical importance unless you are allocating sun-screen or D-vitamin suppliments.

Nations are lines on maps

However ...