WRITING
17 . James A . Russell , Innovation , Transformation , and War : Counterinsurgency Operations in Anbar and Ninewa Provinces , Iraq , 2005 – 2007 ( Stanford , CA : Stanford University Press , 2011 ).
18 . Michael D . Formica , “ Building Irreversible Momentum ,” in Williamson Murray ed ., Army Transformation : A View from the U . S . Army War College ( Carlisle , PA : Strategic Studies Institute , 2001 ), 151 .
19 . Thomas X . Hammes , The Sling and The Stone , On War in the 21st Century ( St . Paul , MN : Zenith Press , 2006 ), 233 . 20 . Lythgoe , “ Flight Simulation ,” 49 . 21 . Desirae Gieseman , “ Effective Writing for Army Leaders : The Army Writing Standard Redefined ,” Military Review 95 , no . 5 ( September-October 2015 ): 117 , accessed 25 October 2016 , http :// usacac . army . mil / CAC2 / MilitaryReview / Archives / English / MilitaryReview _ 20151031 _ art016 . pdf .
22 . Thomas X . Hammes , “ Essay : Dumb-Dumb Bullets ,” Armed Forces Journal online , 1 July 2009 , accessed 25 October 2016 , http :// www . armedforcesjournal . com / essay-dumb-dumb-bullets /. 23 . Ibid . 24 . Lythgoe , “ Flight Simulation ,” 53 . 25 . Ibid ., 55 . 26 . Edward R . Tufte , The Cognitive Style of PowerPoint : Pitching Out Corrupts Within ( Cheshire , CT : Graphics Press , 2006 ), 3 . The study in question involved “ 10 case studies , an unbiased collection of 2,000 PP [ PowerPoint ] slides , and 32 control samples from non- PP presentations .”
27 . Craig Whitlock , “ Carter Summons U . S . Military Commanders , Diplomats to Kuwait ,” The Washington Post online , 22 February 2015 , accessed 25 October 2016 , https :// www . washingtonpost . com / world / middle _ east / carter-summons-us-military-commanders-diplomats-to-kuwait / 2015 / 02 / 22 / 0d06c36e-baab-11e4- b274-e5209a3bc9a9 _ story . html .
28 . Douglas A . Macgregor , Transformation under Fire : Revolutionizing how America Fights ( Westport , CT : Praeger Publishers , 2003 ), 214 .
29 . Jim Tice , “ Changes for NCOs : New Writing Test , Leader Course ,” Army Times online , 8 February 2015 , accessed 31 October 2016 , https :// www . armytimes . com / story / military / careers / army / enlisted / 2015 / 02 / 08 / army-nco-2020-projects-new-writing-test-leadercourse / 22799669 /. 30 . Lythgoe , “ Flight Simulation ,” 55 . 31 . Cox , “ Grey Eminence ,” 89 . 32 . Ibid ., 90 . 33 . Williamson Murray and Allan R . Millett , “ Armored Warfare : The British , French , and German Experiences ,” in Williamson Murray and Allan R . Millet eds ., Military Innovation in the Interwar Period ( New York : Cambridge University Press , 1996 ), 37 . 34 . Ibid ., 37 – 38 . 35 . Stavridis , “ Read , Think , Write , and
Publish ,” 16 – 19 .
WE RECOMMEND
Western officials and analysts can improve their understanding of Russian arms control priorities , peacekeeping agendas , military-to-military goals , and perhaps even intent by understanding how Russian military professionals think and express their ideas in writing . With this in mind , Timothy Thomas offers Thinking like a Russian Officer : Basic Factors and Contemporary Thinking on the Nature of War .
The first part of Thomas ’ s monograph demonstrates that Russian military writing typically begins by assessing trends in the character of war and then predicting how future conflicts are likely to unfold . The prediction is followed by assessing how the forces and the means to conduct war correlate for each side in a conflict . Russian military writers then examine the forms and methods of potential confrontation . They review historical lessons learned , foreign and domestic , and decision making about the initial period of war , which Russian analysts consider critical to success .
The second part of the monograph investigates four sources of Russian military thinking : official voices in the defense ministry , two groups of theorists who have regularly dominated thinking regarding the nature of war in Russian military publications , and individual and group thought . Interesting topics include emerging trends in armed struggles , bioweapons , indirect and asymmetric actions , futurology , new-generation weapons , military art , strategic deterrence ( both nuclear and nonnuclear ), and understanding the concept of geopolitical conditioning . A special interest is Russia ’ s new focus on new-type warfare , which appears to be different from new-generation warfare and is championed by Russia ’ s General Staff .
To view this monograph , visit : http :// fmso . leavenworth . army . mil / documents / Thinking % 20Like % 20A % 20Russian % 20Officer _ monograph _ Thomas % 20 % 28final % 29 . pdf .
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