Fascinating article here from this morning's WaPost on an effort by local authorities in Salinas, CA to combat a growing gang-violence problem using the tenets of the proliferating cottage industry of counterinsurgency. Deep in the heart of this approach are faculty and students from the Naval Postgraduate School (NPS), some of whom have operational experience in counterinsurgency.
A couple of things strike me about this initiative. First, I've never been a fan of the Naval Postgraduate School. Nothing personal, just a sense that it would be better for both the Navy and the society it serves if we sent those officers out into civilian universities to gain graduate degrees. I'm sorry if this opens a huge can of worms here--and I assure you, I won't be drawn any further into the argument. All that said--this is indeed an important initiative and something NPS can be justifiably proud of.
Second--this also seems like a logical application of counterinsurgency theory--which at ITS heart seems to me to contain a great many tenets of what has come to be called "community policing" or in some circles the "broken windows" approach. When I think about the problem of gang violence in America--and then think about what I know of modern counterinsurgency theory--there seems to be a good match here.
Finally, while there may be a good match HERE, I don't think there's a good match everywhere. I grow increasingly pessimistic about the success of a counterinsurgency strategy in Afghanistan, believing that the existence of a functioning civil society--at a very basic level--is the fundamental requirement for the application of COIN techniques. I question the broad existence of such a society in Afghanistan, and I believe that the Apostles of COIN are overselling the prospects for its success there.
So there you have it---one shot, two victims (NPS and COIN). Fire away.
Bryan McGrath
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