Thomas Barnett's imperial global police force

Thomas Barnett discussed his new book, Blueprint for Action, at the October 26 Second Life Future Salon and, taken with the venue, blogged extensively about the event. Blueprint for Action is the implementation and expansion of ideas Barnett initially proposed in an earlier book, The Pentagon's New Map. Or, the rationale for the US to lead a global police force in its last gasp for power in the new, new world.

Barnett can be chiefly complimented for coalescing a few key ideas from the geopolitical conceptual milieu of the present and last several years. He can also be applauded for his long-term vision, critical thinking about how could and should the international political economy evolve over the next several decades, and his concrete action plan.

Barnett's construct of the world is that there are Core and Gap countries. The Core is the traditional West plus the new Core, China and India. Gap countries are the two billion people disconnected from the Internet and the global economy, the lesser developed economies with bankrupt political leadership. His astute analysis highlights the shift in the dynamics of war and peace; that step one is a rapid, high-tech military strike followed by step two, a much longer and costly nation-building phase. Different teams, skills and knowledge are required for the two phases. He rightly points out that the global merchant class (e.g.; MNCs) should be willing to pay for the global warrior class (e.g.; military, nation-builders) that defends them.

One of the main challenges to Barnett's plan is the US political, economic and cultural imperialism inherent in the plan, unpalatable to both Core and Gap countries, especially at a time when the US has low credibility and initiative support on the international stage. Barnett's response to imperialism charges is to focus on the connectivity (e.g.; connecting Gap countries to the Core), not social Darwinism but there are many more nuances in international affairs decisions than pure commercial gains, security concerns and military strategy.

The main audiences for Barnett's work are US and international military organizations, government agencies and other government representatives. His WashingtonSpeak does not go over well with the liberal tech crowd and they are unlikely to get heavily involved with his initiatives. Techies have long had disdain for the political process and many are planning for a very different kind of tomorrow with singularities and uploading as opposed to the antiquated power jousting of old world nationstates; technology trumps politics or at minimum politics lags technology.

Certainly the linear future, logical possibilities flowing from the current world, needs to be planned for and shaped and Barnett is a visionary with a concrete plan, if a bit imperial and control-oriented, he just should not be surprised if leftist tech audiences do not rise up in support.