Author Archives: Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D

April 1, 2003Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D

After Iraq: Risks to U.S. Airliners Rising Fast Issue Brief Former Centcom Commander Gen. Anthony Zinni (USMC-Ret.) once observed that Saddam Hussein was just about the only foreign leader stupid enough to challenge America where it was strongest — on a conventional battlefield. Zinni was talking about Iraq’s [Read More...]

March 18, 2003Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D

Iraq: A Different Kind Of Ground War Issue Brief The success of the U.S. military campaign that begins this week in Iraq will depend on ground forces. Air power can defeat enemies, but it can’t occupy territory or impose a new political order. On the other hand, [Read More...]

March 12, 2003Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D

Iraq: How The Air War Will Unfold Issue Brief This year marks the 100th anniversary of manned flight. When the Wright Brothers first flew their fragile aircraft at Kitty Hawk in 1903, weapons of mass destruction, world wars, fascism and what Churchill later called the “foul baboonery [Read More...]

March 6, 2003Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D

Iraq: The Cost Of War Will Be Low Issue Brief The “sitzkrieg” phase of Gulf War II — the waiting — is nearly over. That’s a good thing, because the Bush Administration seems to be losing ground diplomatically with each passing day, and military forces in the Gulf [Read More...]

January 31, 2003Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D

Rumsfeld Budget Delivers On Transformation Pledge Issue Brief On Monday, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld will unveil a six-year spending plan that proposes to increase military expenditures to the unprecedented level of half a trillion dollars annually by the end of the decade. Under the plan, [Read More...]

January 22, 2003Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D

Coast Guard Counter-Terror Plan Undercut By Aging Fleet Issue Brief After 9-11, America rediscovered its Coast Guard. The nation’s smallest military service was buried in the byzantine Department of Transportation during the 1960s, and has been forced to operate on a shoestring budget ever since. From its isolated [Read More...]

January 17, 2003Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D

Iraq — The Consequences Of Not Acting Now Issue Brief U.S. efforts to remove Saddam Hussein are now thoroughly entangled in the United Nations process. Although Colin Powell’s campaign to dissuade the President from unilateral action was defensible on diplomatic grounds, the net effect of putting the issue [Read More...]

January 7, 2003Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D

Defeating Iraq With Photons Issue Brief Every military correspondent in America seems to be writing a story about how air warfare has changed since Operation Desert Storm in 1991. It’s a pretty compelling story. Thanks to weapons like the stealthy B-2 bomber and satellite-guided [Read More...]

December 2, 2002Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D

UAVs: How Revolutionary? Article published in Defense News Last month’s use of a Predator drone equipped with Hellfire missiles to kill Al Qaeda operative Abu Ali is being hailed by transformation proponents as further proof that future warfare will favor unmanned combat vehicles. [Read More...]

November 21, 2002Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D

Delay In New Spy Satellites Could Endanger Warfighters Issue Brief This week Pentagon policymakers will begin revealing the investment choices they have made in putting together the fiscal 2004 defense budget. Most of the choices are smart. The Air Force’s F/A-22 multirole fighter, essential to maintaining global air [Read More...]