Post this in the Morgan Freeman declares war on Russia thread. I think it's important enough to have it's own thread. The Gerasimov Doctrine It’s Russia’s new chaos theory of political warfare. And it’s probably being used on you. By MOLLY K. MCKEW September/October 2017 Lately, Russia appears to be coming at the United States from all kinds of contradictory angles. Russian bots amplified Donald Trump during the campaign, but in office, Kremlin-backed media portray him as weak. Vladimir Putin is expelling U.S. diplomats from Russia, limiting options for warmer relations with the administration he wanted in place. As Congress pushes a harder line against Russia, plenty of headlines declare that Putin’s gamble on Trump has failed. Confused? Only if you don’t understand the Gerasimov Doctrine. In February 2013, General Valery Gerasimov—Russia’s chief of the General Staff, comparable to the U.S. chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff—published a 2,000-word article, “The Value of Science Is in the Foresight,” in the weekly Russian trade paper Military-Industrial Kurier. Gerasimov took tactics developed by the Soviets, blended them with strategic military thinking about total war, and laid out a new theory of modern warfare—one that looks more like hacking an enemy’s society than attacking it head-on. He wrote: “The very ‘rules of war’ have changed. The role of nonmilitary means of achieving political and strategic goals has grown, and, in many cases, they have exceeded the power of force of weapons in their effectiveness. … All this is supplemented by military means of a concealed character.” The article is considered by many to be the most useful articulation of Russia’s modern strategy, a vision of total warfare that places politics and war within the same spectrum of activities—philosophically, but also logistically. The approach is guerrilla, and waged on all fronts with a range of actors and tools—for example, hackers, media, businessmen, leaks and, yes, fake news, as well as conventional and asymmetric military means. Thanks to the internet and social media, the kinds of operations Soviet psy-ops teams once could only fantasize about—upending the domestic affairs of nations with information alone—are now plausible. The Gerasimov Doctrine builds a framework for these new tools, and declares that non-military tactics are not auxiliary to the use of force but the preferred way to win. That they are, in fact, the actual war. Chaos is the strategy the Kremlin pursues: Gerasimov specifies that the objective is to achieve an environment of permanent unrest and conflict within an enemy state. Does it work? Former captive nations Georgia, Estonia and Lithuania all sounded the alarm in recent years about Russian attempts to influence their domestic politics and security, as the Obama administration downplayed concerns over a new Cold War. But all three countries now have parties with Russian financial connections leading their governments, which softly advocate for a more open approach to Moscow. In Ukraine, Russia has been deploying the Gerasimov Doctrine for the past several years. During the 2014 protests there, the Kremlin supported extremists on both sides of the fight—pro-Russian forces and Ukrainian ultra-nationalists—fueling conflict that the Kremlin used as a pretext to seize Crimea and launch the war in eastern Ukraine. Add a heavy dose of information warfare, and this confusing environment—in which no one is sure of anybody’s motives, and pretty much no one is a hero—is one in which the Kremlin can readily exert control. This is the Gerasimov Doctrine in the field. The United States is the latest target. The Russian security state defines America as the primary adversary. The Russians know they can’t compete head-to-head with us—economically, militarily, technologically—so they create new battlefields. They are not aiming to become stronger than us, but to weaken us until we are equivalent. Russia might not have hacked American voting machines, but by selectively amplifying targeted disinformation and misinformation on social media—sometimes using materials acquired by hacking—and forging de facto information alliances with certain groups in the United States, it arguably won a significant battle without most Americans realizing it ever took place. The U.S. electoral system is the heart of the world’s most powerful democracy, and now—thanks to Russian actions—we’re locked in a national argument over its legitimacy. We’re at war with ourselves, and the enemy never fired a physical shot. “The information space opens wide asymmetrical possibilities for reducing the fighting potential of the enemy,” Gerasimov writes. (He also writes of using “internal opposition to create a permanently operating front through the entire territory of the enemy state.”) Not all Russia-watchers agree on the Gerasimov Doctrine’s importance. Some say this is simply a new and well-articulated version of what Russians have always done, or that Putin is inflated as an all-powerful boogeyman, or that competition among the various oligarchic factions within the Kremlin means there is no central strategic purpose to their activities. But there’s no question that Russian intervention is systematic and multi-layered. This structure challenges us, because we don’t necessarily understand how it has been put into practice; like all guerrilla doctrine, it prioritizes conservation of resources and decentralization, which makes it harder to detect and follow. And strategically, its goals aren’t the ones we’re used to talking about. The Kremlin isn’t picking a winner; it’s weakening the enemy and building an environment in which anyone but the Kremlin loses. Herein lies the real power of the Gerasimov-style shadow war: It’s hard to muster resistance to an enemy you can’t see, or aren’t even sure is there. But it’s not an all-powerful approach; the shadowy puppeteering at the heart of the Gerasimov Doctrine also makes it inherently fragile. Its tactics begin to fail when light is thrown onto how they work and what they aim to achieve. This requires leadership and clarity about the threat—which we saw briefly in France, when the government rallied to warn voters about Russian info ops in advance of the presidential election. For now, though, America is still in the dark—not even on defense, let alone offense. Molly K. McKew, an expert on information warfare, advises governments and political parties on foreign policy and strategic communications. She advised Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili’s government from 2009-13, and former Moldovan Prime Minister Vlad Filat in 2014-15.
I don't even know why you posted this here. Folks in D&D are so far gone with the programming they have basically lost their humanity and have transcended into "anger robots" Who would have thought a couple facebook and twitter ads/memes could just destroy the easily influenced brains?
Some insight and knowledge of how external factors are playing all of us to hate each other might. Wishful perhaps but it can't hurt and I don't believe people are that far gone at all.
I agree. I think people using their internet face are close to that far gone. I think very very few people are that far gone when seeing others face to face. One on one almost nobody is that far gone. In group settings it's a few of them are that gone.
I might read that mil article on a whim but nothing politico mentioned is anything extraordinary or ground breaking. It's just fuel for heighted Soviet paranoia with the pendulum shifted left. Instead of blaming a lazy public who isn't taking responsibility for Trump nor the Congress, let's blame foreign invaders to feel better and in control of the shitshow going on right now. The best propaganda machine is still American marketing. The Ruskies didn't convince Americans for decades that chronic smoking wasn't correlated with lung cancer or that big fat lie about our flat earth getting warmer from greenhouse gases. We just have **** priorities and will mostly sell ourselves to the highest bidder or for the best value.
This, and I'm almost sympathetic to them as well as I know its very very hard as a prideful person to realize how you're being duped. Imagine if an internet poster in the GARM was making a case for a player to make the NBA all-star team using stats, and you went along championing in agreement thinking it was a Rockets player, and then found out that poster was actually a Mavs fan posing as a Rockets fan on CF making a case for a Mavs player? At the end of the day there is almost no way of avoiding the fact that Russia is like the Mavs to the Rockets. Completely conflicting ideological positions, and enemies in many ways. I'm sympathetic to the shock and disbelief they must feel when they are told that this talking point they have been told about is actually from Putin's bots. It can't be easy to believe. I think us on the other side have really think about how we engage the other side knowing how hard it is for them too.
Wait. So you are telling me that Russia really doesn't support Trump and only wanted the candidate who was going to be less anti-Russia? And by only continuing this Russia Russia Russia mantra we are only feeding into their mass hysteria? Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa???? Russia compromised (not hacked) and tricked a stupid DNC chairman into giving his credentials to a phishing scam which resulted in the proof of DNC corruption. THAT IS IT. Nothing more to this story. Trump and Clinton spent almost 2.5 billion (1/3 Trump. 2/3 Clinton) in the election. Russia allegedly spend .000025% of that on fake news ads ... and we are suppose to be outraged? I am much more outraged we spend more than 10 million on either of these two idiotic candidates. Period. Russia allegedly tried to 'hack' our election databases. No ****. Russia, China, our allies, our own government, our allies and the nerdy 7th grader will try to hack any electronic device connected to the internet. This is why we have cyber security and this is why we should take it serious, regardless of who ignores these standards. Its time we move on from this story and quit giving Russia the credit for the ****ed up politics our nation chooses to harbor.
Giving waaaayyyyy to much credit to the Russians. They're barely relevant and that's only cause they have nukes. Here's my doctrine, continue to blame others instead of fixing yourself and you'll lose again.
Again with the red herring straw man that people are blaming the loss on the Russians. The Democrats fixing themselves can and should be done on its own. That issue is separate than espionage attacks from the Russians. Worrying about a nation trying to undermine our democracy is an issue on its own aside from who won or lost the election. It is an issue worth addressing and taking steps to prevent and reduce in the future. Democrats like Republicans and all Americans can and should be concerned about that, and they can devote resources to dealing with the issue. A political party fixing its mistakes is a separate issue and isn't related. The sooner you and others stop acting like the two issues go hand in hand or that a significant population sees a causal relationship just isn't accurate.
This is not accurate and you have never shown any evidence of this at all. China has hacked economic concerns which is what most espionage tries to hack, or they hack government communications to gain information. Hacking in order to alter and overturn democracy is not commonplace and though you keep acting like it is, you haven't shown a single modern example of this happening.
All fears and anger toward each others are dropped and everyone help everyone else in a natural disaster. Something about less judging and empathize with other people immediate suffering. Everyone has the potential to be very good, and to be very bad. Play up on the fear and help people become angry is quite easy. It happen all the time, but is now an awesome tool to help destabilize nation. The internet social network with instant and communication to mass makes it so much more powerful (in a fully open society). So in a way, it's a one-way attack. You can't do the same to said China or NK where they closely monitor and lock down what get to their people. We should do the same, not among us, but block foreign power from open propaganda and fake news to divide us inside our borders.
i'm warning you, move off last election and the russia thing and get your **** together. trump is having rallies and raising money already and the dems don't even have a solid list of candidates let alone a consensus candidate yet. trump is being such an ******* right now that if the dems would unite against a strong, clean candidate it would be an easy campaign and eventual victory. they're blowing it just like they blew the last one and it's nobodies fault but theirs. move and do something that will matter ffs.
You are again talking about a separate issue. If you want to talk about that start a 2020 thread. I'm actually talking about a foreign adversary taking actions that have never been done before in an effort to undermine our democracy. Why do you keep bringing up who won or lost the last election? It has absolutely nothing to do what is being discussed with the topic of this thread.
this has been done from time immemorial... pick any civilization, empire, state, etc... it's always been done. different name, different tools, different technology but the exact same thing. you can't stop it and actually publishing it and discussing it in the public arena is a complete failure on our intelligence agencies. the goals has always been our espionage is better than your espionage and that should never stop being the plan because it will never stop. learn what and how they do it, keep it to yourself, go do it better. or discuss it in the media, politicians, while even more advisories laugh and plot against our ridiculousness. honestly if the losing side cared about america (they don't, only care about themselves) they would have kept their theories to themselves and shared info only with our agencies and strike back. act like nothing happened and we didn't notice. but bad losers make the enemy see that it worked so be prepared for more. i swear our government folks are morons with big mouths. so hopefully you're just as mad if not more at our reaction to foreign adversaries actions because only one is in our control and it 'aint the foreigners.
Show me a recent example of a foreign adversary taking concerted effort to change our democratic election. Espionage usually happens in terms of the economy, govt. intelligence etc. But it is not normally used in an effort to undermine democratic elections. Military force has been used for that purpose in the past, but this is something new.
dude go study history, not new at all. not even close. so many examples and if you must have one go look at nazi party rising from nothing to completely usurping democratically elected wiemer republic political parties in less than 20 years. it took "luck," (great depression happened) espionage, propaganda, undermining, dividing, etc... everything we see here. honestly, what russia "did" (basically nation sponsored internet trolling) was not even close to what the nazi party did, it was t-ball compared to the majors. so again, not new and not even that good or large of an attempt. i mean seriously, in less than a year we know all about it and how they did it. that's how **** their attempt was. i mean the germans didn't even know what they were accomplices in while here everybody and their mother knows about it. t-ball attempt compared to major leagues dude. so if by "new" you mean really really shitty attempt at an old thing, then yea it's "new."
