In Cyber Command - Why Stop There? I pose for discussion the creation of a new force. A "CyberSpace Force", created from the other services for space and cyberspace operations, just as the Air Force was created in 1947.

The full article is too long to post here. An abridged excerpt is listed below - I encourage anyone interested in the topic to visit the Joint Chatter blog and offer your comments.

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The Pentagon is likely to take the rare action of adding a new combatant commander, this one for cyber warfare.

Why stop there?

Why create just a cyber combatant command? Why not step back and consider whether a more substantial reorganization is needed?

Last year the term cyberspace was officially defined and last fall elevated to a new domain.

cyberspace - A global domain within the information environment consisting of the interdependent network of information technology infrastructures, including the Internet, telecommunications networks, computer systems, and embedded processors and controllers. (CJCS CM-0363-08)

To further the discussion, it is also necessary to present the definition of another domain medium from the same publication:

space - A medium like the land, sea, and air within which military activities shall be conducted to achieve US national security objectives. (JP 3-14)

With all of the redundancies across the various services, why not consolidate them into a new service? Analogous to the National Security Act of 1947, which created the Air Force from the Army Air Force, a 21st century reorganization could create a CyberSpace Force. (The exact name is not significant, using CyberSpace Force as a generic moniker.) This new force, formed from components in all of the services, would concentrate the existing disparate and duplicative efforts into one organization. No service would lose capabilities, because we fight as a Joint team now. Personnel from the newly created force would join operations and command structures as dictated by mission requirements.

As it exists right now, each the services are devoting significant resources and efforts into solving the cyber challenges "in their own lane."

(Full blog article includes examples of redundancy)

In September 2001, a day prior to the terrorist attacks, Secretary Rumsfeld pointed out "Each service branch has its own surgeon general and medical operation. At the department level, four different agencies claim some degree of control over the delivery of military health care." in his Bureaucracy to Battlefield speech of 10 Sep 2001.

Similarly, why should each service recruit, organize, train and equip information assurance professionals and other related specialties?

Each of the services would resist this reorganization, just as the Army did over 60 years ago. Looking back, are there many today that would question the wisdom of having the Air Force as a separate service? (Funding issues and differences in MWR services aside...) In addition to eliminating redundancy, all the services would benefit in that they could each put more focus on their core mission.

I first asked this reorganization question seven years ago, while on a field trip staff ride to Colorado Springs, CO as part of a Space Operations elective. The general officer speaking to us answered along the lines of "it may happen eventually, but we're not there yet." That time it was more about a space reorganization. Last week, while in DC to attend Phoenix Challenge 2009, I asked a similar question regarding creating of a cyberspace force. Generally the response was "good idea, probably the right thing to do, but we can't afford it" and "maybe in 20 years." Others suggested that it should be an agency - incorporated into, or similar to, the National Security Agency.

If it's the right thing to do, why wait? The cumulative cost of duplicated efforts, followed by an eventual reorganization, surely exceeds the startup cost of doing the right thing now.

Additional Advantages

This new CyberSpace Force, if done right, could expand the pool of available personnel. Numerous reports over the last several years lament the shrinking percentage of high school graduates physically qualified for military service. Why does a programmer need to run 3 miles? We have an entire generation growing up comfortable using the complex controllers associated with Halo 3 and Guitar Hero, just to name a couple popular titles. Does it make sense to say to them, "Sorry, we can't use you to monitor and adjust the orbit of a satellite if you can't do 40 push-ups in two minutes?"

Consider the stereotypical images conjured up of "uber geeks", college IT support staff or attendees at a hackers convention (e.g. DEF CON): long (sometimes different colored) hair, may not pass a uniform inspection, may not even fit in a uniform. But does that mean we should keep them out of the cyber fight if they are willing to serve?

(Blog article includes links to images of DEFCON attendees)

Many Americans may choose to serve that otherwise would not consider traditional military service. As Noah Shachtman (Editor, Danger Room) said last week in his keynote speech at Phoenix Challenge: (paraphrasing) the military is not a popular option in Manhattan, but there a lot of people that want to feel like they are part of something.

This should be a service and not an agency. In our nation's defense we need the ability to send people where and when we need them - we can't afford to face the same challenges other departments have faced when necessary to send their personnel "down range."

Questions

What are the advantages and disadvantages of creating CYBERCOM as a new combatant command?

Is it time to perform a new reorganization of the Defense Department, creating a force focused on the Space and Cyberspace domains? What challenges would be faced in a large-scale reorganization? What opportunity costs do we continue to pay by a failure to address the root problems?

Further Reading

Additional references available in the full article