An Army for the Day After
28 Nov. New York Times editorial - An Army for the Day After.
Quote:
... It is therefore encouraging to learn that Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld is now weighing proposals to prepare American forces for this kind of role by elevating what the Pentagon calls "stability operations" to a level comparable to traditional combat. That marks a welcome change from a Pentagon leadership that disparaged long-term security and reconstruction tasks as something others could do after American forces moved on...
Stability operations are meant to provide the basic day-to-day security that is absolutely essential for physical and political reconstruction to proceed. They use people trained as engineers, civil affairs specialists, foreign language speakers, military and police trainers, and special operations forces to work closely with local populations and to coordinate with foreign service officers and aid agencies...
