SDFM The Business of Defense

  • The Wikileaks documents presents more evidence that Iran is becoming increasingly more isolated not just because of the sanctions aimed strangling it\'s nuclear pursuits, but diplomatically too. The crown prince of the United Arab Emirates said in one of the cables, \"Iran would obtain a nuclear weapon unless the regime could be \'split from inside\' before nuclear capability was achieved.\" That same documented pointed out as well that Iran has a major fear of improving relations with the U.S. because it would threaten the government\'s control over the country.

    December 01, 2010
  • Even though senior NATO and Pentagon officials have expressed doubt that Afghan forces will be ready to take over security for the country in 2014, NATO leaders say thery will move ahead with step one of the plan to do just that. Britan, Canada and other allied countries say they do not want to be in a combat role in 2014 and are beginning to phase out their troops. The U.S. says it will begin it\'s withdrawal from Afghanistan next year.

    December 01, 2010
  • How will the U.S withdrawal from Iraq next year affect security there? Colin Kahl, deputy assistant secretary of defense for the Middle East, told the House Foreign Affairs Committee security remains strong and the pullout at the end of 2011 will not ignite a dramatic increase in violence. Al Qaida, while successful in pulling of several high profile attacks in recent weeks, killing hundreds has not succeeded in ingniting widespread sectarian violence.

    December 01, 2010
  • Telework provides ideas to bring a piece of peace into the office.

    November 29, 2010
  • A very curt message for Defense Secretary Robert Gates yesterday. Bolivian President Evo Morales said Latin American nations will pick their own friends and business partners, including Iran, regardless of U.S. opinion. The remarks came during a welcome ceremony for delegates at a regional defense conference Morales never mentioned Gates. But observers say most of the speech, and all of the applause lines, obviously aimed at Gates.

    November 22, 2010
  • November 29th and December 1st Professor Davenport is the President\'s Chair in Information Technology and Management at Babson College.

    November 22, 2010
  • November 22nd and November 24th RITA\'s mission is to promote transportation research, solid analysis, and education across the different operating agencies within the USDOT.

    November 22, 2010
  • Under all the good telework is expected to bring to government, there are some limitations built into the new law.

    November 22, 2010
  • November 22nd and November 24th, 2010 Join us for a conversation with authors.

    November 22, 2010
  • With recent statistics reporting high attrition rates for those new to public service, what can agencies do to support and keep young feds? What do millennials want out of their federal career? Young Government Leaders Vice-President Dave Uejoi and Press Secretary JR Wycinsky and Steve Ressler, president and founder of GovLoop, are the guests this week. November 19, 2010

    November 19, 2010
  • John Gage AFGE National President J. David Cox AFGE National Secretary-Treasurer Jane Nygaard AFGE 8th District National Vice President Sharon Pinnock AFGE Membership & Organization Director

    November 19, 2010
  • The U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, a congressional advisory commission says in its annual report that lawmakers should require a Pentagon assessment of the military\'s capacity to withstand a Chinese air and missile assault on American regional bases and the implications of a similar assault on Taiwan\'s air defenses. The commission was set up by Congress in 2000 to advise, investigate and report on U.S.-China affairs.

    November 17, 2010
  • Canada confirmed Tuesday that 950 soldiers and support staff will remain in Afghanistan in a training role after Canada\'s combat mission ends in 2011. Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon said they will be stationed in the Kabul area and will stay until 2014. The pledge of support may help plug a critical shortage of trainers for NATO\'s year-old mission to bolster Afghan security forces. The training mission would be confined to military bases.

    November 17, 2010
  • In theory, plants could be the ultimate \"green\" factories, engineered to pump out the kinds of raw materials we now obtain from petroleum-based chemicals. In reality, its been an elusive goal. Now, in a first step toward achieving industrial-scale green production, scientists from the Department of Energy\'s Brookhaven National Lab and their collaborators report engineering a plant that does produce the levels of compounds that could potentially be used to make plastics. The raw materials for most precursors currently come from petroleum or coal-derived synthetic gas. Additional technology is needed, but researchers say they\'ve now engineered a new metabolic pathway in plants for producing a kind of fatty acid that can be used as a source of precursors to chemical building blocks for making plastics such as polyethylene.

    November 15, 2010
  • The Department of Commerce and National Telecommunications and Information Administration have released a report called \"Digital Nation II,\" that analyzes broadband Internet access across the United States. The study is the the most comprehensive of its kind. It finds that even after accounting for socioeconomic differences, large gaps persist along racial, ethnic, and geographic lines. The report analyzes data collected through a survey of 54,000 households conducted by the Census Bureau. It shows that while virtually all demographic groups have experienced increases of broadband Internet use at home, and 64 percent of households overall have the service, there are still historic disparities among demographic groups. Officials worry that Americans who lack broadband Internet access are cut off from educational and employment opportunities.

    November 15, 2010