Mission Statement

We are citizen journalists with a deep interest in world and national security. We are opposed to violence but recognize the necessity and utility of war. We advocate diplomacy and compromise over force as a solution to conflict.

We are wary of partisan politics, skeptical of the military-industrial-media complex, calm in the face of extremists’ rhetoric and adamant that open debate almost always trumps secrecy.

We lament the passing of old media but embrace the emergence of New Media. As journalists, we abide by three simple rules:

* Be accurate
* Be honest
* As often as possible, observe first-hand

We are expeditionary, investing our own resources and those donated to us, in order to travel to current and emerging conflict zones.

We emphasize the developing world over the developed, counter-insurgency over Cold-War posturing, peacekeeping over war-making, and persistent land- and sea-power over air bombardment.

We read Tom Ricks and Tom Barnett and listen closely to General David Petraeus, General James Mattis and Admiral James Stavridis.

We try to avoid terms like “war-fighter,” “effects,” “Islamo-fascist” and “GWOT.”

Contributors

David Axe is a military correspondent living in Columbia, South Carolina. Since 2005 he has reported from the U.K., Iraq, Lebanon, Japan, East Timor, Afghanistan, Somalia, Chad, Nicaragua, Kenya, Gabon and other countries. He is a regular contributor to The Washington Times, C-SPAN, Wired and many others. His graphic novel war memoir WAR FIX made Amazon’s 2006 top ten list. ARMY 101, his nonfiction tale about Army ROTC, debuted in January 2007. His picture book WAR BOTS received favorable reviews. His next book, a graphic novel entitled WAR IS BORING, will be published in 2010 by New American Library. Also, in 2010, NBM will publish LOVE & TERROR, the sequel to WAR FIX. Around the same time, Potomac will publish David’s non-fiction book about logistics, FROM A TO B. David is a contributing editor at World Politics Review and Warships International Fleet Review. He can be reached at david_axe-at-hotmail.com.

Jason Reich is an Israeli journalist specializing in security and defense issues. He served as a NCO in the Israeli Defense Forces and fought in the 2006 war in Lebanon. Jason studied counter-terrorism at the Interdisciplinary Center in Herziliya, Israel and wrote his thesis on changes in Israel’s operational doctrine from 1982 until 2009. Jason spent his childhood in New Jersey and New York and today lives in Tel Aviv, where he will soon begin studying for a master’s degree in Security Studies at Tel Aviv University.

Kevin Knodell is a student at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, Washington. He has been published on Michael Yon’s Frontline Forum, is an alumnus of the National Youth Leadership Forum on National Security, has completed two years of Army ROTC and was awarded an ROTC Certificate of Recognition.

Kyle Mizokami is a writer based in San Francisco.

Bryan William Jones is a retinal neurophysiology scientist. His work involves disorders of retinal degeneration and how those diseases affect the intrinsic retinal circuitry including the implications for rescue of vision via gene therapy, and retinal bionic or biological implants. Other research efforts involve exploring metabolomics for application in understanding physiology and medicine and for drug development.

Andrew Balcombe is an Australian freelance journalist based in The Hague, the Netherlands. Much of his time is spent reporting on the city’s international courts and law enforcement organizations. Andrew is currently completing a degree in journalism at Griffith University. Since 2006, he has reported extensively on the joint Dutch and Australian military missions in Afghanistan. Andrew can be contacted at andrewbalcombe@hotmail.com.

Zach Rosenberg is from Chapel Hill, North Carolina. He received a degree from UNC-Asheville in political science. He has been a freelance writer for three years, focusing on national security and transportation.

Sam Abrams is a second-year MA candidate at the Strategic Studies program at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). He is the managing editor of the SAIS Review of International Affairs, the school’s policy journal.

Una Moore is an international affairs writer with a background in international development and governance research. Her regional expertise is in Eastern Europe and Central Asia and she has lived and traveled widely in the Balkans.