Wow, maybe Dr. Carafano is reading FJ? Because I read through this thing and thought that this was right up there with all the MyPMC.com stuff that I have been talking about. So bravo for building that snowmobile!
A couple of things I want to add to this thing, just to put a sprinkling of salt on this dish. Millennials (Generation Y), smart phones, and Boyd’s good ol’ Destruction and Creation paper to be more specific.
Gen Y will have a huge impact on this country and the way we do business, and they already have had a big impact with the election of President Obama. They are also one of this country’s main brains and braun in today’s work force.
According to this article, there are three (suggested) core elements that drive the ambitions of Generation Y in the workplace :
Impact–Making a difference is a strong motivational force behind Gen Y’s efforts. Though salary and benefits continue to dominate the no. 1 and 2 on the importance list, making an impact ranks no 3.
Communication–The instant communication framework Gen Y developed through extensive computer usage has lead to a need for more professional feedback than that of past generations. Communication platforms such as SMS, e-mail, video chat, microblogging and blogging have engendered a mindset that necessitates constant communication with others. That mindset has carried over into the workplace.
Flexibility–The divide between work and life is continually growing narrower as more people shift from the bricks-and-mortar to a remote workplace. The rate of remote office workers has increased significantly in the past two years, according to WorldWideWeb.
In order to answer the needs of this kind of workforce, you must embrace the tools in which they depend upon. The benefit will be incredible, if these Network Scientists and social networking engineers can come up with the right framework for this crowd.
I have already made my case for how PMC’s/Countries could use this technology, and guess what, today’s contractor workforce are all Millennial Combat vets with iPods and laptops and Myspace/Facebook accounts. Embrace this stuff, or be left in it’s wake.
Next, smart phones. I mention this, because most everyone will have a smart phone here where they will be able to access their social networks, and they already do. And because each person is like a walking sensor in whatever environment they are in, to not take advantage of this is stupid. Emails, SMS, word processing, GPS, pictures and film, etc. are all possible on today’s smart phone. Language software, internet surfing, youtube, you name it, and it is on a smart phone. The more smart phones that flood the telecom market, the cheaper they get, and the impact of such a thing is that the Millennials will be even more connected and inspired by their environments. I say inspired, because if that individual wants to make a difference, it will require stimulus that is outside of their bubble or system. Closed systems suck, and smart phones are a way for people to maintain their connection online. It allows them to venture out into the world and not worry about missing communications, and if you take the time to watch today’s society in let’s say a mall, you will soon see what I am talking about. Everyone has smart phones or is wanting to get one, and it will have an impact.
Wait until the smart phone wave hits places like Afghanistan and Iraq. These phones are like a internet cafe in your pocket, and that is a very powerful tool for anyone out there. From the insurgent learning to make rockets from a Youtube video on a iPhone, to the English student trying to learn the language through a class on the phone, to a doctor looking up crucial information about a procedure–smart phones and all the open source applications that come with, will catch like fire in these countries and have an impact.
Finally, the wonderful paper called Destruction and Creation, written by Col. John Boyd, should get more mention when we talk about social networks. The concepts define exactly why closed systems are not good, and to me, a social network is an excellent tool to open up a system and get external influence. Think about it a little, and you start to understand why social networks are so powerful. If I was to take this to a grand strategy level, social networks will help us to not be isolated mentally compared to our enemies. –Matt
Edit: Dr. Carafano has just visited the site. (see comments section below)
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Social Networking and National Security: How to Harness Web 2.0 to Protect the Country
May 18, 2009
by James Jay Carafano, Ph.D.
Backgrounder #2273
Computers have changed how Americans do almost everything. Soon they may alter national security. There is much more on the information superhighway these days than information. There is a traffic jam of conversation facilitated by e-mail, Facebook, MySpace, YouTube, Flickr, Digg, Wikipedia, LinkedIn, Twitter, and other social networking tools (often collectively called Web 2.0) that facilitate discussion, debate, and the exchange of ideas on a global scale.[1] This unprecedented capacity to listen and respond is inexorably restructuring the ways in which information is created and used.