ARTICLE: "Gates Sees Terrorism Remaining Enemy No. 1: New Defense Strategy Shifts Focus From Conventional Warfare," by Josh White, Washington Post, 31 July 2008, p. A1.

THE CONFLICT IN GEORGIA: "Attack on Georgia Gives Boost to Big U.S. Weapons Programs," by August Cole, Wall Street Journal, 16-17 August 2008, p. A6.

Gates really stepping out there to issue his own National Defense Strategy so late in an administration (somewhat odd). This is the secretary seeking as much lock-in on the evolution unwittingly launched by Rumsfeld (but purposely allowed by him over time) and very wittingly run to ground by Gates.

Gates believes in the "Long War," as do I. He is not much for trading real lives in the here-and-now for fancy hardware for the there-and-imagined wars of the future.

Naturally, that view is opposed by those who promote such big-ticket items. Retired Air Force general Michael Dunn, now president and CEO of the Air Force Association, counters that Gates' criticism of "Next-War-it is" is logically opposed by those who see his push to go long and deep in the Long War (i.e., into the postwar or SysAdmin territory) as "This-War-itis" (actually, a good comeback).

The Big War crowd is ecstatic over Russia and Georgia—especially the missile defense crowd, because—CANYOUBELIEVEIT!—tactical missiles were used!

Obama is more susceptible to being impressed with such arguments, one supposes, than McCain, except McCain is so hell-bent on his League of Democracies (that will be fun to watch in terms of its inglorious death—if attempted; I expect quite a summit, quite an official joint declaration, and a whole lot of nothing to follow) that you gotta believe it will be more of Bush-Rummy's "all my children" approach to defense spending—as in, everybody's happy.

Gates' position is harmed by Russia in the short term, but you know he's right. Any proxy wars we fight we Russia inside the Gap will still focus on the asymmetrical, the COIN, and the postwar rebuilds and stability ops. We will not be fighting Russia straight up conventionally, because that doesn't work between great powers loaded up with lotsa nukes.

And limited great power war is a chimera best left to academic treatises.