Hi Rob,

Quote Originally Posted by Rob Thornton View Post
Also from a strategic history perspective, we might do well to remember the course of the Reformation in Christianity - it was not instantaneous, it was not entirely passive, and it created social ripples which were not well understod for hundreds of years. While the article uses the the qualifier "reformation" like, the end quote still shows the understanding of the fundamental changes in perspectives this could lead to.
Oh, my... been practicing "understatement" as a discursive genre ? Yeah, given that the history of reformation moves inside the Catholic Church parallels most of the military history of the same time period, "not entirely passive" is a phrase that is just so.... "British" !

Quote Originally Posted by Rob Thornton View Post
Overall I'd classify the role as "supporting", but at times in related efforts - such as ensuring AQ and like organizations (or other regional players) do not have the strategic freedom of movement to disrupt this effort to further qualify itself over time - a more engaged role may be required.
Agreed - my guess is about 100-200 years. Turkey is an excellent start point, but there are also other areas we should be looking at in this situation: Dubai and Brunei come to mind.

Quote Originally Posted by Rob Thornton View Post
I think this is where the term "Grand Strategy" comes into play - that gets us beyond the sole use of military strategy to help us and our friends, partners and allies acheive their goals (in this case the freedom to conduct its own affairs). This won't be easy for us, we don't have a form of government that lends itself to unified purposes - we are purposefully at odds with ourselves in many ways. Minimizing the potential internal disruptions we might represent will be tough I think - we're not culturally attuned to letting things develop if they seems be in our interest to intervene - demonstrating strategic patience will be tough.
Again, agreed. It is unfortunate that democracies and republics are notoriously poor at Grand Strategy on the whole - at least when they are in a "major player" spot (it works better when you are a minor player).