Posted on 12/31/2003 9:11:06 AM PST by Calpernia
If you ask retired Navy Vice Admiral Arthur Cebrowski why service members and Defense Department civilian employees should care about efforts to transform the military, he is neither hesitant nor uncertain in his response.
"There are two ways of looking at it. First, with so much transformation going on today, and so many efforts so broadly dispersed throughout the operating forces, all of our people – soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines, Coast Guardsmen and civilians – have the opportunity to get in on the ground floor," Cebrowski said. "They have the opportunity to not only see change take place in front of their eyes, but to actually make it happen.
"The second point of view is closely related to that," he continued. "You have a choice: you can either create your own future, or you can become the victim of a future that someone else creates for you. By seizing the transformation opportunities, you are seizing the opportunity to create your own future."
Cebrowkski is the chief of DoD's Office of Force Transformation.
He said that it's important for all to embrace transformation, not only because transformation of the military is inevitable, but also because it's people who make transformation work.
"Keep in mind that at the heart of transformation is behavioral change – that is, the forces are able to behave in a different way," Cebrowski said. "Frequently, new equipment can catalyze new behavior and make new tactics possible, and that's laudable. But it's the behavior that counts – new tactics, new processes, new doctrine, new organizational structures, new information flows. That's where the transformation is, and it all involves people advancing new ideas."
And he said there's no reason for service members not to embrace transformation.
"This is a very exciting time to be in the operating forces," he said. "In addition to all the transformation programs already under way, there are many more interesting transformation efforts that we're looking at for the future."
He cited several areas that could result in significant transformational change in the future, to include:
Advancing alternatives to increase the capabilities of the military's space program.
Improving information-age approaches to logistics.
Integrating new capabilities into fighting vehicles for the Army and Marines.
Marrying up lethal and nonlethal weapons into the same platform so troops can accommodate a broad range of circumstances.
Developing new ship designs to aid naval special operations forces and water-borne logistics.
Experimenting with direct-energy weapons. Cebrowski said the direct-energy weapons area looks particularly promising, as well as revolutionary.
"If you like the speed of heat, you'll love the speed of light," he said. "And speed-of-light weapons are potentially very exciting. It's a whole new area that will change the character of warfare. And all the services now have programs in direct-energy in various levels of development."
The opportunities are there for every member of the Defense Department to embrace transformation efforts, he said. All they have to do is reach out and grasp on to them.
"There are two ways of looking at it. First, with so much transformation going on today, and so many efforts so broadly dispersed throughout the operating forces, all of our people – soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines, Coast Guardsmen and civilians – have the opportunity to get in on the ground floor," said retired Navy Vice Admiral Arthur Cebrowski. "They have the opportunity to not only see change take place in front of their eyes, but to actually make it happen.
"The second point of view is closely related to that," he continued. "You have a choice: you can either create your own future, or you can become the victim of a future that someone else creates for you. By seizing the transformation opportunities, you are seizing the opportunity to create your own future."
Are they speaking of phasers here? The stun setting is especially exciting but I've noticed that one can step out of the way of incoming phaser fire. Disruptors are, of course, more feared but still maintain the drawback of allowing a target to evade the incoming pulse.
We are now in one of those periods of history where technology is advancing faster than all but a hand full of First World nation-states can keep up with. Few nations-states have the technological base to stay competitive, and fewer still have the political will to fund a state of the art war machine. The whole concept of the nation-state, with professional military forces commanded by a sovereign king/president/premier/chancellor/chairman prepared to wage war on their counterparts in another nation-state is under attack by Transnational Progressives, while non-state actors like terrorist groups, narcotics cartels, pirates, war lords and murderous religious cults engage in large-scale violence which may be war or may be crime, depending on your point of view.
The Armed Forces of this Republic have traditionally oriented on fighting wars against their counterparts from an enemy nation-state. They maintained this orientation even though for many decades they were mostly engaged in Indian-fighting and supressing piracy. Peace keeping, restoring and maintaining law and order, rounding up renegades and killing bandits are not new missions. What is new is the technology-driven militarization of civilian law enforcement coupled with the push to convert so many of our warfighters into Military Police.
This Republic has lasted longer than any other. How long it will continue to last may very well depend on what our armed forces transition into.
Can anyone explaing what this article means? Does it mean anything?
What is the endstate of the transformation? Does anyone know?
If you don't know what you are transforming into, how will you know you transformed?
Bump? What?
That statement is nonsensical.
I'm seizing the opportunity to transform into my own future. Stupid...
Transformation is a process, not an end. No one can tell me what the end of the transformation is--I don't think anyone knows....
It's stupid it's like saying: 'Get out there and start driving!' Isn't the first question: "Driving where?"
Get out there and transform!
Pulse-laser in the 60 watt range ???
Reminds me of a youngster who chatted with his recruiter about his interest in lasers and his desire for a military career working with their military applications.
No problem. The old recruiter signed him up for a six-year hitch as a light weapons infantryman.
-archy-/-
It's not a good statement. It's nonsense--transformation without an end goal is pointless.
I would seize the opportunity to transform into a millionaire. I would seize the opportunity to transform into The Greatest Guy in the World, but 'seizing the opportunity to transform' is meaningless.
Is this a great statement: "Seize the opportunity to change!"
Change into what?
Now go out there and Transform!
For me, it just meant, as I said: 'Take the opportunity to change!' Besides being a crappy fortune cookie fortune, it is a non-sequitur.
If what you are, and what you are doing, is successful: don't change a thing!
An exhortation to transform for transformation's sake is a waste--it says to me:
'I don't know if I am successful. I don't know how to be successful so I will flounder around 'transforming' hoping that somehow I will swerve into success.'
Actually, that sentiment is probably closer to the spirit of the original comment by the Secretary of Transformation (such a stupid title...)
Oh well. Happy Transformation everybody!
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