Just days before the Marine Corps 237th birthday, U.S. Marine Corp Commandant James Amos addressed a group of military scholars and peers about the present day efforts and future of the Marine Corps, and a warned them—against increasing cyber technology.
He painted a humanitarian image of the Marine Corps because of its response to natural disasters and other crisis.
“It can respond to today’s crisis with force today, not tomorrow, not two weeks from now but today,” Amos said. Now the Marines are focused on helping those affected by Hurricane Sandy.
“As we gather here this morning nice and warm and dry, Marines are still helping our fellow Americans in need in New York City and New Jersey,” Amos said.
The Marine’s hands-on approach to helping Hurricane Sandy victims is something Amos said is most effective.
“Virtual presence says something much less powerful,” Amos said.
It’s the specialization vs. division of labor argument and Amos warned the increase in cyber technology could be problematic if commanders in the future aren’t careful.
“The future commanders are really going to have confidence in what he or she is hearing, seeing is it really the truth,” Amos said.
Amos said the more the military relies on technology, the more cyber space will need to be protected, and since the core of the Marines is humanitarian issues, human interaction must be the key.
“There’s a lot we don’t know,” Amos said, referring to cyberspace.
He stressed since America is a super power, it’s the responsibility of America’s military to launch humanitarian efforts around the world.
“When I was in the process of taking this job, I sat with Secretary Gates and he said, ` Gentlemen, I want you to design a Marine Corps that focuses primarily on the most likely things that are going to happen,’” Amos said.
So will the future of the Marines be humanitarian missions carried out with technology, or will efforts continue remain on more of a personal level?
Although that is a question Amos said would have to be addressed in the future, for now he said the biggest issue is doing what needs to be done to help those in crisis at a small price.
He stressed this right as Obama faces the issue of dealing with the fiscal cliff.
For now Amos said as long as he is commander there is three questions that he wants to answer: What can America do as a global power, how can we do it, and
how can we do it at a reasonable price?
Amos said one of the goals of the Marine Corps is to save money but the most important issue is helping Americans and those around the world with crisis situations the fastest way possible.
“That’s our niche,” Amos said.
