Suggestions for Small Wars Essay Contest?

[SWCAdmin]

It's quite possible that in the near future, Small Wars Journal will be in a position to sponsor a writing contest with a significant cash award.

We are looking for some good topics that strike to effectiveness across the community of Small Wars practitioners, don't re-hash ground that's been adequately covered, and ideally have a collateral benefit of raising interest and participation in our community from some of the important but under-represented groups.

At this point, we're thinking that we'll probably run 3 or 4 topics that complement each other somehow, probably concurrent, maybe time phased. We will publish special editions of SWJ Magazine with the entries, and maybe some additional publishing with select partners.

Seeking your suggestions here for essay topics, or a family of topics. Not the topic of YOUR paper, but the question(s) in the Call for Papers that we put out. +/- any suggestions on contest ROE, logistics, etc.

For now, I'll just sit back and listen. I don't want to over-influence the brainstorming in this thread. But believe me, I'll be watching intently.

[SteveMetz]

--Leadership in small wars
--Nontraditional partners in small wars
--Small wars after terrorism
--A strategy for hybrid enemies

[selil]

--technology in small wars
--ethics in small wars
--the constraints of logistics in small wars
--warrior and dove in small wars

[SWCAdmin]

Thanks. All good suggestions and adding to my mental short list.

Even just the bumper sticker subjects are helpful, and I realize for some topics less is more. But as folks begin to frame their ideas, it might be useful for some topics to use a couple of sentences or a paragraph to really frame the questions.

[Rex Brynen]

The role of neoconservative Zionist-Arabist leftist environmentalist dhimmie globalization free masons in small wars?

Sorry.. I think I'm channeling a couple of the dearly departed from the SWC graveyard...

[selil]

Papers detailing the concerns and issues with proposed solutions in the continuing and advancing fields technolog fascilitated communication

Papers discussing issues and solutions surrounding the Internet as a command, control, communication, coordination and force multiplier of indigenous and contemporary small warriors.

Papers discussing the impacts of social justice and moral perils when engaging in small wars.

Papers that examine the issues of fielding a cadre in foreign enviornments engaged in small wars without the associate big military build up.


Is that better? I'm just pulling things people have said were issues over the last year or so.

[zenpundit]

The Economics of Small Wars
History's greatest "Small Warrior"
Nation Building, State Failure and Small Wars
Preventing Small Wars
Where Does Political Conflict Stop and Small Warfare Begin?
Small CyberWars
Do Small Wars really exist in the Age of Globalization?
Small Wars and Sea Power
Small Wars and Superempowered Individuals
When Does a War Stop Being "Small"?

and my personal favorite:

"It's 10:00. Do you Know Where Your Small War Is ?"

[Norfolk]

The effects of long-duration Small Wars upon troop retention and the subsequent knock-on consequences of that upon manning, leadership, doctrine, and professional competence, in volunteer armies.

...And the role of Rednecks in Small Wars - YYEEEHHAAAHHH!

[Gian P Gentile]

The role of neoconservative Zionist-Arabist leftist environmentalist dhimmie globalization free masons in small wars?

or, how about the role of graudates from UC Berkeley in Small Wars?

Seriously here are a few humble suggestions from a student of history

--Historical uses of coersion and its effectiveness in Small Wars
--Historical view of underpinning theories of small wars: e.g., enemy centric, population centric
--A duPicq view of the moral domain of small wars

and of course i am in agreement with Norfolk's "role of rednecks in small wars."

[LawVol]

-What is the difference between counterinsurgency and counterterrorism? Can/should the military do both?

-The role of human security in preventing/winning small wars

-Is the law enforcement approach (i.e. knock and announce, constrained use of force) a better approach to the application of force in small wars? Why or why not?

-The Marine Corps has a mantra of "every Marine a rifleman." Can/should all branches of the military follow a similar training regimen to facilitate the augmentation of the Army when necessary to fight a small war? In other words, should non-combat career fields train to take up the slack given the Army's issues with continual deplyments?

-How can air and space power be more effective in small wars (you knew I'd add this)?

[Ron Humphrey]

Which Wars aren't Small Wars?, or at least several small ones tied together?

Walking the line between career and mission

Defining accountability,rationality, and feasability in Foriegn intervention's

[davidbfpo]

1) How did civil & military institutions learn from small wars in the Imperial age (1860-1960)? How do those insititutions learn now in the Internet age? Are the obstacles similar?

2) Can we (the West?) identify a possible small war / insurgency before violence occurs? If identified what do we do first and what do we not do?

3) Fighting small wars a national or international responsibility?

4) The fast technological fix -v- the slow human fix for intelligence in small wars. Can we wait? I'm mindful of Northern Ireland and some CT lessons in Western Europe, e.g. ETA in Spain and the Italian Red Brigades.

davidbfpo

[invictus0972]

Role of religion in conflict resolution
Role of religion in counterinsurgency

Some feel that the soft power of religion is often overlooked in the politics of societies. It would be interesting to see this issue explored.

[SethB]

Microfinance in counterinsurgency.

[Mike Innes]

Microfinance in counterinsurgency.

Intriguing. Gets into the soft side of COIN, development, etc. Question: licit or illicit microfinance?

[Mike Innes]

Role of religion in conflict resolution
Role of religion in counterinsurgency

Some feel that the soft power of religion is often overlooked in the politics of societies. It would be interesting to see this issue explored.

Also intriguing. But I'll bring it back to my earlier suggestion about terrain complexity. Religion is cognitive terrain, and if we're to follow Anthony Smith on the sacred sources of nationalism, it's a tight fight with material/physical terrain. And neither view exists in the absence of human terrain.

Sorry, yes: I'm a reductivist. ;0