As the publisher of Watching America, the website that translates foreign news and views about the USA, I spend a lot of time thinking about the systemic inadequacies of the media in communicating events on the ground to the American public. Indeed, one of the core theses of a book that I have recently finished writing is that media content reflects prevailing paradigms (cultural, political etc.) more than it ever captures the meaning of events on the ground.
One of the most obvious reasons for the media’s inadequacies as a communicator of fact is simply that the media are not on the ground where the events are occurring and (often more importantly) being interpreted, and where decisions are being made.
For that reason, I am always keen for the public to spend less time reading the newspapers (even though I am “in the media”) and more time trying to get to the “inside” of important situations. To that end, I am providing a link to an article that was sent to me by Bryan J., who was on the ground as US Marine.
In his email to me, he wrote,
I’m a former US Marine and I worked in the planning field from 2005 – 2010. Part of my work involved operational plans for the conflicts of the GWOT. I wrote an article that highlights our failures in Iraq and Afghanistan and I used them as the basis for a strong argument against the gross and wasteful spending in the area of defense.
His article is here.
The summary is as follows.
Keeping up with the Kardashians
This article explains the separate conflicts of the Global War on Terrorism in the full context of our nation. Specifically, it highlights the failures of Iraq and Afghanistan and uses them as the basis for an argument against the gross amounts of wasteful spending in the area of defense. My background does not provide any special insight towards the political causes for the Global War on Terrorism and my views do not represent the views of the federal government or our military. They are my own independent ideas based on my experience.
Thank you, Bryan, for your service and for sharing your thoughts.
Robin Koerner is a British-born citizen of the USA, who currently serves as Academic Dean of the John Locke Institute. He holds graduate degrees in both Physics and the Philosophy of Science from the University of Cambridge (U.K.). He is also the founder of WatchingAmerica.com, an organization of over 100 volunteers that translates and posts in English views about the USA from all over the world.
Robin may be best known for having coined the term “Blue Republican” to refer to liberals and independents who joined the GOP to support Ron Paul’s bid for the presidency in 2012 (and, in so doing, launching the largest coalition that existed for that candidate).
Robin’s current work as a trainer and a consultant, and his book If You Can Keep It , focus on overcoming distrust and bridging ideological division to improve politics and lives. His current project, Humilitarian, promotes humility and civility as a basis for improved political discourse and outcomes.