AFRICOM: forward and back

ARTICLE: Pentagon scales back AFRICOM ambitions, By Gordon Lubold, Christian Science Monitor, May 16, 2008

Don't be surprised by the back-tracking. This was the military's reach, not the rest of the government's.

Here's the key realization:

Officials have had to make other adjustments. Initially billed as a "whole of government" approach to solving the region's problems, the new, hybrid command had sought to marry military and civilian expertise.

"To make it more effective, we want to incorporate other nonmilitary US players working in Africa so the security piece is optimized," says Col. Pat Mackin, a spokesman for US Africa Command. But, he adds, "There is no government mechanism to create a true interagency headquarters." [italics mine]

The command of about 1,300 people will still be half civilian and half military, and agencies such as the US State Department will be given senior positions.

Enough is done by this administration simply to set it up and start the evolution. Proof will come in deeds, not promises. Resistance from locals will weaken if we do our job right, and harden if we do it badly.

It's as simple as that.

But good instincts and clear signaling of bureaucratic desire by the much put-upon U.S. military.

Comments

[Gerry]

This still seems like there needs to be a Department of Everything Else to do this kind of thing. It needs a name that politicians and bureaucrats could accept. Like the guys at http://freakonomics.blogs.nytimes.com/ maybe Tom could run a name the Department of Everything Else contest with a signed copy of one of his books as a prize. The new book would be especially nice.

I would like to suggest a few:

Department of Reconciliation,

Department of Reconciliation, Recovery and Reconstruction,

Department of Reconciliation and Connectivity

[Brian H]

Seems like State is still trying as hard as it can to get out of involvement with problem-solving. Locals who can't be adequately dazzled with bovine feces are not worth getting close to.