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Policy Blog
- U.S. Army’s Project Convergence Resurrects Military Transformation, Revolutionizes Warfare (From Forbes)
The U.S. Army’s Futures Command is sponsoring a long-term exercise in testing new warfighting concepts called Project Convergence. Although often characterized as a sensor-to-shooter project it is really much broader, in effect heralding the return of military transformation. Military transformation originated at the turn of the century as a melding on new information technologies with joint teamwork, but then was [ Read More…]
- Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D
- Caveat Emptor: The Danger Of Using Commercial Technologies In Combat (From Forbes)
There is much enthusiasm among military planners these days for tapping into the innovations of the commercial sector. That’s fine up to a point, but a wholesale adoption of commercial technology without due consideration to dangers could lead to operational disaster. For instance, China’s military undoubtedly has a detailed understanding of how to intercept, jam and degrade commercial satcom signals. [ Read More…]
- Paul Steidler
- The Universal Postal Union: A Discussion With Director General Bishar Hussein
The Universal Postal Union (UPU), a specialized agency of the United Nations comprised of 192 member countries, plays an important role in international commerce. It sets the framework for rates and regulatory requirements for the international shipment of mail and postal packages. The Lexington Institute’s Paul Steidler spoke with the UPU’s Director General, Bishar Hussein, about the organization’s importance and [ Read More…]
- Huge Stakes For U.S. Postal Service This Holiday Season
Postmaster General Louis DeJoy is leading an upbeat, audacious charge from the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) for the holiday season, also known as peak season. “We’re going to kill it,” he told The Wall Street Journal in outlining numerous investments and organizational steps USPS has taken since last year when mail and package deliveries were dismal for weeks. Similar comments have been made in other news interviews and speeches. The stakes are high for DeJoy and USPS. Without a dramatic [ Read More…]
- Sierra Space Rides The Wave Of A Rising Commercial Space Economy (From Forbes)
Sierra Space, a subsidiary of Sierra Nevada Corporation (SNC), disclosed last month that it is partnering with Blue Origin to establish a privately owned and operated space station that it hopes will become the “premier commercial destination” in low Earth orbit. This is the latest step in the commercialization of space, and illustrates the central role that entrepreneurs are playing in opening the cosmos to private enterprise. Billionaires Eren and Fatih Ozmen, co-owners of SNC, view space as more than [ Read More…]
- Are U.S. Missile Defenses Vulnerable To Cyberattacks? (From 1945)
The Chinese hypersonic missile threat has made the United States rethink its missile defense approach. U.S. defense officials recognize that America’s missile defense capabilities, while formidable, are designed to track and shoot down traditional ballistic missiles and would struggle with hypersonic systems. MDA is looking at developing a specialized sensor constellation, called the Hypersonic and Ballistic Tracking Space Sensor system that will provide continuous tracking of both hypersonic and regular ballistic missiles. The HBTSS network will provide high-quality tracking and targeting [ Read More…]
- Why Congress Should Stop Targeting Big Tech (From The National Interest)
It seems that one of the few things on which Democrats and Republics in Congress can agree is they want to put constraints on the U.S. technology sector. Members of both the House and Senate have put forth at least five bills directed at limiting how large technology companies operate. The most notable of these efforts is the American Innovation and Choice Online (AICO) Act. Rather than seeking to create a more open and competitive environment in online business, this [ Read More…]
- Italy Is Becoming More Important To U.S. Security. Here Are Five Reasons Why. (From Forbes)
Despite being a major military power, Italy has never quite attained the status in Washington enjoyed by other big NATO members like Britain, France and Germany. But that is about to change, partly because those other allies are becoming less useful as regional bulwarks against Russian aggression, and partly because of Italy’s intrinsic appeal. The country’s intrinsic appeal includes a strategic location in the Mediterranean, a foreign policy complementary to Washington’s, a forward-looking military investment plan, and emotional ties arising [ Read More…]
- Engage Big Oil For Lower Emissions (From RealClearEnergy)
These are heady days for bashing U.S. and European multinational oil corporations while also begging OPEC to increase oil production. While the U.S. House of Representatives is excoriating oil company CEOs, the Biden Administration is pleading for more oil from abroad. Talk about bizarre and mixed messages. A better course is to hold Big Oil accountable to its bold promises for cleaner energy production and to track how it is doing. The push for a cleaner oil and natural gas [ Read More…]
- Fire The Lasers? The U.S. Military Wants To Make Sure It Can Kill Enemy Drones (Form 1945)
The greatest challenge facing the U.S. military may not be Chinese nuclear-tipped ballistic missiles or Russian hypersonic weapons. Rather, it may come from unmanned aerial systems (UASs), or drones, in the hands of foreign militaries and violent extremist groups. The threat posed by small and medium sized drones is particularly acute. These platforms are extremely hard to detect and counter with traditional air defense systems. The U.S. military is fielding interim solutions to deal with these small UASs. A robust [ Read More…]
- Post-Pandemic Transformation Of Pentagon Processes Becomes Big Business For CACI (From Forbes)
The Department of Defense has been pursuing digital transformation for some time, but changes in work habits wrought by the global pandemic have given it a renewed sense of urgency. Many workers want to continue some aspects of working remotely; if the Pentagon resists it will be harder to recruit and retain talent. But if remote work is to become routine, business processes will need to be reengineered to deliver easy access, airtight security and maximum transparency. CACI, a major [ Read More…]
- Remarks Of Paul Steidler To U.S. Postal Service Board of Governors
November 10, 2021 Meeting Thank you for the opportunity to be here today. Thank you to Postmaster General DeJoy, Chairman Bloom, and all the Board members for your service. You do a great deal of work and frankly do not get compensated fairly for it. The Lexington Institute, though, respectfully, strongly, and profoundly disagrees with the decision to slow 40 percent of first-class mail. We urge you to reverse course on this pivotal matter. The Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) has [ Read More…]
- Drug Cartels Are Poisoning America, Data Analytics Can Stop Them (From The National Interest)
The opioid epidemic continues to ravage America. In 2020, 69,710 Americans died from opioid overdoses, up 49 percent from 2018. There is no indication this epidemic is subsiding; rather it appears to be getting worse. Illegal opioids are readily available via the international mail system. America has the technical know-how to better identify and seize larger quantities of these drugs in the international mail system. In fact, a 2018 law, the Synthetics Trafficking and Overdose Prevention Act, requires such action [ Read More…]