Will Wiser Heads Prevail?
Robust Discussion and Debate Must Survive.
Compass Points values the lessons of history. Past events inform us that wide ranging and rigorous discussion and debate lead to improved decisions, which make even the best document, policy, or organization better. Examples abound, but consider the following:
1. Debates to Ratify the U.S. Constitution. After the Constitution was presented to the states for ratification in 1787, a widespread period of public debate over the merits of the “experiment in American democracy” began. Newspapers, the principal media of the day, ran editorials expressing the opinions of those on by both sides of the argument. The public discussion and debate ensured the ratification and acceptance of the Constitution, but the numerous concerns about a too powerful federal government led to the adoption of the first ten Amendments to the Constitution, the Bill of Rights.
2. Debate over the policy of containment. By late 1945, the U.S. was already concerned about Soviet attitudes and actions in Europe. In response to a request from the State Department in February 1946, George Kennan, the Charge at the American Embassy in Moscow, drafted a telegram to explain Soviet actions and offer recommendations. Kennan’s recommendations were insightful but also controversial and were widely debated in the media and in Congress. Honed and enhanced by the discussions and debates, Kennan’s recommendations became the basis for the policy of containment or the so-called Truman Doctrine, which was announced by President Truman about a year after Kennan had sent his initial response. Containment was the policy that broadly guided America’s actions toward the Soviet Union until the successful end of the Cold War.
Discussion and debate help make any critical decision better. Most experts agree, rigorous discussions and debates: (1) Sharpens critical thinking about solving complex problems; (2) Enhances creativity; and (3) Leads to better decisions
Compass Points believes Force Design 2020 was instituted as the Marine Corps’ capstone concept before it was fairly and openly debated against an alternative concept. This Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, Compass Points will post an alternative concept: Vision 2035: Global Response in the Age of Precision Munitions. The hope is to begin the long overdue discussion and debate over what concept best supports America’s national interests. Vision 2035, as it exists today, is not the complete answer. It may not be the only answer. But it is the outline of a better way forward for a stronger Marine Corps.
Compass Points would prefer this debate take place in the pages of the Marine Corps Gazette, “The Professional Journal of U.S. Marines.” It is not too late. Wiser heads at the Gazette may prevail. Should the Gazette not step up, however, Compass Points will. Robust discussion and debate must survive because that is how we all help keep the Marine Corps strong.
The Gazette has, for some time, lacked dissenting discussion and began filling pages with mildly interesting articles that can be found in most training publications…Not at all what General Lejeune had envisioned.