Divide to Destabilize

   

      Conventional warfare against the United States is foolish and a losing strategy. Our global competitors know this. The weapons are so powerful and technology so advanced that conventional wars would be much quicker and much deadlier. It is not in the interests of most world powers to pick a fight with the U.S. in the traditional sense.

     However, their are a few nation-states that stand to reap an economic and strategic benefit from a weakened and destabilized United States, like Russia or China. They know that it is counterproductive and detrimental to their objectives to start a war to weaken America, but their are other ways of weakening the United States.

      Since highly destructive weapons and advanced technology created the "mutually assured destruction" scenario, this has forced competing nation-states to fight wars unconventionally, through proxies or alternative forms of warfare, like chemical or cyber, and nations have been doing this for quite some time.

       The greatest vulnerability of the United States, and the most effective form of warfare used against us, is psychological and information warfare. If applied effectively and creatively, psychological warfare can circumvent our military might and target the source of our power and planning/operational capacity; our minds. If you conquer the mind of your enemy, you don't need to fire a shot. 

    Of course, this is easier said than done, but using psychology and information to fan the flames of division and create new division to destabilize the U.S. has been going on for years by both foreign powers and ideological groups within our own country. Divide and conquer is a lot easier thanks to the internet, and America has always existed in a precarious state of division between our two primary political parties.

Conquering minds outright may be difficult, but fanning the flames of division in America isn't exactly hard.

If you want to take down the United States, or at least greatly destabilize it, Divide America through the media and the internet on the following contentious conflict flash-points.

Race: this one's quite obvious and very prevalent in today's society. You use the media and the internet to intensify racial divides and flash up every racial issue or situation that can be contentious and inflammatory. Race is one of the easiest wedge issues because of America's history of slavery and racism, and disunity between different races are easily fueled by the media by reminding racial groups of the atrocities and sins of the past and the tragic continuous occurances of racial injustices. Racial bitterness is kept alive and atonement and forgiveness are not fostered or sought after because the division suits the interests of a few dividers. Since reconciliation and atonement hasn't been achieved, racial division is one of the easiest flashpoints in America to fan the flames of.

Class: Another massively contentious flashpoint. Wealth disparities and class divisions have been a conflict catalyst for much of human history. The difference between the rich and the poor is an easy difference to spot and creates an inequality that is often not very subtle. The "haves and have nots" situation. Fanning this division is easy. You fuel both the sense of being deprived of basic needs and a sense of oppression as well as envy in the minds of the less fortunate, and you fuel a sense of entitlement and status and the "self-made man" mentality in the minds of the rich and reduce their compassion and increase their callousness towards the poor and the sick and marginalized. Class conflict led to the rise of communism. With the gap between the rich and the poor widening and the middle class shrinking, class is still a particularly hot flashpoint in the United States and will continue to be so.

Religion: Religion is a major flash point for conflict and destabilization in the United States, albeit not as contentious as race or class. Religion has always been a divider, and many major wars in history have been religious wars. 

Gender: gender division isn't a new phenomenon, but with a 21st century spin and the diversification of the concept of gender, gender is now a major wedge issue in the United States.

Authority: whether you agree with authorities or not, they are necessary for a society's ability to function. As a result, deligitimizing authority and eroding its respect within the United States can very much contribute to an objective of division and destabilization. Much of the previous flashpoints have a connection to this.

Familial: dividing the family unit and creating strife within individual families are also a flashpoint of division. Broken and destabilized families often sabotage the economic and social prospects of their children. 

In short, using psychological warfare to fan the flames of division in many of its forms is a very effective tactic of the destabilization of the United States, and we are seeing its effects in our media and culture today. It's an excellent method to circumvent our strong defenses and strong military. Because of our nations inability to regulate deception and the media really having little check and restriction on its own power, the media is the primary vector for division and psychological warfare.

The only way to combat this kind of attack is attempt to foster a sense of unity within the nation. This can only really be achieved if all people feel like they are valued and respected to a significant degree. Also, callousness and elitism/superiority complexes must be greatly reduced in American society and compassion nurtured. But above all, the great healer of division is, and forever shall be, love. If we cannot learn how to love one another as brothers and sisters and fellow Americans, than our enemies can fan the flames of our great weaknesses all the more easily.