Chapter 7 Reading Assignment: Terrorism And The World After 9/11

After writing his “long telegram,” George F. Kennan published an article in Foreign Affairs explaining his strategy of containment. So that his identity as a US Foreign Service Officer would not be revealed, he authored the article under the pseudonym “Mr. X.””
In 2011, two US military officers, using the pseudonym “Mr. Y,” authored A National Security Narrative meant to do for today’s foreign policy what Kennan’s article did during the early Cold War. They begin their article by saying that “The primary approach this strategic narrative advocates to achieve sustainable prosperity and security, is through the application of credible influence and strength, the pursuit of fair competition, acknowledgment of interdependencies and converging interests, and adaptation to complex dynamic systems.”
1 What “tools” do the authors seek to use to achieve sustainable prosperity and security? Which perspective would most likely emphasize those factors?
1 Based on the Y article written by Porter and Mykleby, the tools that are needed in order to achieve sustainable prosperity and security are economic, diplomatic, educational, military, and commercial. These are mostly emphasized in the perspective that the world is a closed system that needs to be controlled by mankind.
The authors conclude the passage above with the phrase “all bound by our national values.”
2 What do you make of their mention of “national values?” Do you think that makes this statement come from a different perspective than you initially thought?
2 I believe that the statement “national values” refers to America’s emphasis on Capitalism as compared to the communist ideologies that heavily characterized the Soviets. This is still the same with the perspective that the world is a closed system because in this perspective, the idea of meritocracy (through capitalist values) is highlighted in the very foundation of the state.
3 At this point, is it clear which perspective the authors are writing from? Why or why not?
They argue that “It is time to move beyond a strategy of containment to a strategy of sustainment (sustainabilit...