Modest Proposal: Making Doctrine More Memorable

摘要

On the subject of doctrine, there are two problems to be solved. The first is to perfect the means for devising sound doctrine. The second is to perfect the means for insuring that the doctrine we devise is communicated effectively and internalized by the people who must apply it. I have spent the better part of my career in the Air Force trying to improve the process by which we formulate doctrine. In this I must confess I have been far from successful. But in recent months, I have come to realize that the way we go about instilling doctrine in the minds of Air Force decision makers is no less important than the way we devise doctrine out of experience. My thesis addresses the proposition that the way we articulate doctrine is flawed. My simple contention is that our doctrinal manuals consist largely of generalizations. They offer page after page of abstractions.