John Arquilla
Encyclopedia
John Arquilla received a PhD in International Relations from Stanford in 1991. He worked at RAND
for several years, before joining the faculty of the US Naval Postgraduate School
in 1993.
He has written many articles and books on the future of warfare. He continues to provide consulting for RAND
and was one of many advisors to former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld
, who like Arquilla is an admirer of Andrew Marshall
's RMA (Revolution in Military Affairs
).
He also points to the Roman
concept of organized legions
defeating the previous military paradigm of the Phalanx
. Likewise, terrorist networks have evolved while older Cold War
militaries hold on to antiquated paradigms. Network cells can share precise information on a need to know basis without a hierarchical structure. This gives them the ability to disperse and "swarm
" in an extremely effective manner, as witnessed by the 9/11 attacks.
, Arquilla co-authored Networks and Netwars, a book about this cyber threat.
Arquilla is interviewed at some length on the value of hackers in military roles in the documentary film Hackers Wanted.
Arquilla's arguments for the US to use cyber war as an instrument of conflict prevention in areas such as South Asia, as described in a recent Wired article, have earned him serious criticism from Pakistani writers and web journals, such as TechLahore.
RAND
RAND Corporation is a nonprofit global policy think tank first formed to offer research and analysis to the United States armed forces by Douglas Aircraft Company. It is currently financed by the U.S. government and private endowment, corporations including the healthcare industry, universities...
for several years, before joining the faculty of the US Naval Postgraduate School
Naval Postgraduate School
The Naval Postgraduate School is an accredited research university operated by the United States Navy. Located in Monterey, California, it grants master's degrees, Engineer's degrees and doctoral degrees...
in 1993.
He has written many articles and books on the future of warfare. He continues to provide consulting for RAND
RAND
RAND Corporation is a nonprofit global policy think tank first formed to offer research and analysis to the United States armed forces by Douglas Aircraft Company. It is currently financed by the U.S. government and private endowment, corporations including the healthcare industry, universities...
and was one of many advisors to former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld
Donald Rumsfeld
Donald Henry Rumsfeld is an American politician and businessman. Rumsfeld served as the 13th Secretary of Defense from 1975 to 1977 under President Gerald Ford, and as the 21st Secretary of Defense from 2001 to 2006 under President George W. Bush. He is both the youngest and the oldest person to...
, who like Arquilla is an admirer of Andrew Marshall
Andrew Marshall (foreign policy strategist)
Andrew W. Marshall is the director of the United States Department of Defense's Office of Net Assessment. Appointed to the position in 1973 by United States President Richard Nixon, Marshall has been re-appointed by every president that followed....
's RMA (Revolution in Military Affairs
Revolution in Military Affairs
The military concept of Revolution in Military Affairs is a theory about the future of warfare, often connected to technological and organizational recommendations for change in the United States military and others....
).
Military Networks
Arquilla has promoted the idea of adapting militaries from a hierarchical structure to a network structure, suggesting that only the network military will be the most able to defeat terrorist networks.He also points to the Roman
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
concept of organized legions
Roman legion
A Roman legion normally indicates the basic ancient Roman army unit recruited specifically from Roman citizens. The organization of legions varied greatly over time but they were typically composed of perhaps 5,000 soldiers, divided into maniples and later into "cohorts"...
defeating the previous military paradigm of the Phalanx
Phalanx formation
The phalanx is a rectangular mass military formation, usually composed entirely of heavy infantry armed with spears, pikes, sarissas, or similar weapons...
. Likewise, terrorist networks have evolved while older Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
militaries hold on to antiquated paradigms. Network cells can share precise information on a need to know basis without a hierarchical structure. This gives them the ability to disperse and "swarm
Swarming (military)
Military swarming is a behavior where autonomous, or semi-autonomous, units of action attack an enemy from several different directions and then regroup. Pulsing, where the units shift the point of attack, is a part of military swarming. Swarming is not limited to the human military realm...
" in an extremely effective manner, as witnessed by the 9/11 attacks.
Cyberwar
As militaries become increasingly dependent on computer automation, they also become more vulnerable to computer attack. After the first Gulf WarGulf War
The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
, Arquilla co-authored Networks and Netwars, a book about this cyber threat.
Arquilla is interviewed at some length on the value of hackers in military roles in the documentary film Hackers Wanted.
Arquilla's arguments for the US to use cyber war as an instrument of conflict prevention in areas such as South Asia, as described in a recent Wired article, have earned him serious criticism from Pakistani writers and web journals, such as TechLahore.
Quotations
- "A resistance network has the power to prevail against an enemy whose strategy is based on territorial conquest."
- "Such organizational restructuring would take us from competing hierarchies to cooperating networks. It's a win-win solution, giving us our best chance of heading off a new attack on American soil."
- "The mass public is far more understanding of the exigencies of wartime than they are given credit for." - from a July 2010 class held by Arquilla at the Naval Postgraduate School