Intelligence, Data, COIN and CT

[Entropy]

An interesting book from NDU I ran across today and skimmed:

Registering the Human Terrains: A Valuation of Cadastre

Abstract:

Land is often a significant factor in widespread violence and is also a critical element in peace-building and economic reconstruction in post-conflict situations. This book examines how cadastral information (land and property records) can predict threats to regional stability, world peace, and national sovereignty. Beyond its application to the refugee situation six years into Afghanistan’s reconstruction, cadastral data can also aid in recovery from natural disasters or wars. The book considers how causes of 21st century conflicts are related to land questions, and it introduces a new land administration tool. Significant inventiveness on the part of Lemmen, Augustinus, van Oosterom, and van der Molen has resulted in the Land Administration Domain Model (LADM). The LADM is compelling because it makes explicit various types of land rights, restrictions, or responsibilities. It is flexible enough to record both Western-style, registered land rights and customary, informal socio-tenure relationships typical of the developing world. In a word, the LADM aspires to address the myriad land issues faced by civil-military Reconstruction and Stability personnel in postconflict societies. It merits close attention by NATO, the U.S. State and Defense Departments, and USAID because it represents one of the most important tools
for countries where land administration has been weak or totally absent.

The book uses Afghanistan as a case study.

[120mm]

In scanning the index, I'm struck by what a solid piece of academic research that volume appears to be.

I've downloaded and will get to it when possible.

[slapout9]

Entropy thanks for posting.This is a Strategic paper. It is a key part of SBW (Slapout Based Warfare) and I was shocked to something like this in print. The people are not the COG !!!! It is the land with the people and how they interact with it. IMHO this is a war winning paper.


Norfolk: remember my paper about Strategy....Seize Terrain That has Political Value!!!!!

[Entropy]

Entropy thanks for posting.This is a Strategic paper. It is a key part of SBW (Slapout Based Warfare) and I was shocked to something like this in print. The people are not the COG !!!! It is the land with the people and how they interact with it. IMHO this is a war winning paper.


Norfolk: remember my paper about Strategy....Seize Terrain That has Political Value!!!!!

If you haven't yet, you really should put out a SBW reading list!

[slapout9]

Entropy, I will have to work on that list

[slapout9]

Entropy, to get you started he is a link to place based policing...it's focus is on micro-geography. A lot of this would apply to COIN I think. It is not just the paper I like but it matches a lot of my personal LE experience.
Would also go well with a paper Jedburgh posted awhile back called Ungoverned Spaces.

http://www.policefoundation.org/pdf/...edpolicing.pdf

[Ron Humphrey]

Entropy thanks for posting.This is a Strategic paper. It is a key part of SBW (Slapout Based Warfare) and I was shocked to something like this in print. The people are not the COG !!!! It is the land with the people and how they interact with it. IMHO this is a war winning paper.(Emphasis added Ron H)


Norfolk: remember my paper about Strategy....Seize Terrain That has Political Value!!!!!

But Slap we gonna have to go at it on this one.
I'm gonna read the book and get some points to debate on but I'll start out with this. Focus on capturing physical terrain such as land or even infrastructure is effective but not the COG. Reason being it simply provides job security for the armed force by creating a requirement to maintain that control. The people on the other hand own the land, the jobs, the causes, basically any factor which contributes to the end result of any given operations.

If you can define a way in which terrain (other than people) guarantees a particular action works both in gaining against the enemy and gaining buyin from the people long term even after your gone then I might be persuaded.

From what I can see though if your first focus isn't on the people and how to get them involved in the process thus leading to more informed and effective knowledge of what needs to be secured/destroyed/embraced/or just plain left alone; then your SWAG's tend to be be a lot more wild guesses and a lot less informed moves.

[slapout9]

But Slap we gonna have to go at it on this one.
I'm gonna read the book and get some points to debate on but I'll start out with this. Focus on capturing physical terrain such as land or even infrastructure is effective but not the COG. Reason being it simply provides job security for the armed force by creating a requirement to maintain that control. The people on the other hand own the land, the jobs, the causes, basically any factor which contributes to the end result of any given operations.

Hi Ron, My point was/is it's the people and the terrain "together" (which is what geography used to be about when I was in school) that equal the COG...you just said it better then me.

[Ron Humphrey]

Hi Ron, My point was/is it's the people and the terrain "together" (which is what geography used to be about when I was in school) that equal the COG...you just said it better then me.

Just as long as those setting forth the path don't allow the different parties to claim responsibility for one of the two and expect a different party to handle the other

Example:
Lanes, Not my job its yours, I'll take the ground then you diplomacize.

[Beelzebubalicious]

I haven't read the book, but I am suspicious of overly rationalized Western models for dealing with issues like land. On one hand, there is data and it lends itself to analysis and problem solving, but in my experience, that's the smaller part of the picture. Land administration and laws are paramount and a database of information, while useful, doesn't deal with the issues around the value of land (money), corruption, identity issues and so on...untangling property rights in some of these countries is a nightmare. I have a friend in Cambodia that owns a piece of land up by Siem Reap which was essentially siezed and squatted on by local authorities. She has a deed to the land, but it's not helping her much. She has no recourse beyond physically kicking off the squatter(s).