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Document created: 1 March 06
Air & Space Power Journal - Spring 2006
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Prelaunch Notes |
Lt Col Paul D. Berg, USAF, Chief, Professional Journals
In air combat, “the merge” occurs when opposing aircraft meet and pass each other. Then they usually “mix it up.” In a similar spirit, Air and Space Power Journal (ASPJ) is launching a new category of “Merge” articles in which contending ideas meet in the same forum. Readers will see both sides of the argument and draw their own conclusions—or join the intellectual battlespace if they wish.
Vigorous professional debate of contentious issues is important to today’s US Air Force because we face many complicated challenges as we adapt to a fast-changing world. We need to make tough choices about how best to organize, train, equip, and employ airpower and space power in pursuit of national goals. Everyone agrees that resources are limited and the stakes are high, but reasonable people can disagree about which choices they should make.
As the Air Force’s professional publication, ASPJ is a logical place for Airmen to debate these hard choices; therefore, the ASPJ staff is soliciting Merge articles that succinctly present opposing viewpoints about controversial topics concerning airpower and space power—especially those related to each issue’s focus area. For example, the summer 2006 ASPJ will address “Space Power for War Fighters,” and the fall 2006 issue will consider “Joint Air and Space Power Perspectives.” (See http://www.airpower.maxwell.af.mil/ASPJ/QtrlyFocusAreas.htm for a list of upcoming focus areas.) Thus, priority Merge articles for the next two issues would deal with controversial topics pertaining to space or matters of jointness. However, these articles need not always conform to the designated focus areas. We want to hear from any writer who has a strong opinion about how the Air Force should solve important problems and who can responsibly articulate the pros and cons of that opinion. We will match such articles with other ones that advocate divergent solutions. If appropriate, we may put opposing writers in contact so they can design their articles to rebut each other’s arguments. We also welcome writers who have the skill to argue alternative solutions to a problem in the same article.
Since we deal with airpower and space power, not even the sky is the limit to selecting potential Merge topics, which might include “Should a Separate Space Force Exist?” or “To What Extent Should We Replace Piloted Aircraft with Unmanned Aerial Vehicles?” We welcome anyone, anywhere in the world to write Merge articles in any ASPJ publication language (English, Spanish, Portuguese, Arabic, or French). Authors should e-mail their articles to aspj@maxwell.af.mil
All of the Air and Space Power Journal editions promote professional dialogue among Airmen worldwide so that we can harness the best ideas about airpower and space power. The Chronicles Online Journal (COJ) complements the printed editions of ASPJ but appears only in electronic form. Not subject to any fixed publication schedule, COJ can publish timely articles anytime about a broad range of topics, including historical, political, or technical matters. It also includes articles too lengthy for inclusion in the printed journals.
Articles appearing in COJ are frequently republished elsewhere. The Spanish, Portuguese, Arabic, and French editions of ASPJ, for example, routinely translate and print them. Book editors from around the world select them as book chapters, and college professors use them in the classroom. We are pleased to present the following recent COJ articles (available at http://www.airpower.maxwell.af.mil/ASPJ/COJ.html):
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The ASPJ editorial staff always seeks insightful articles and book reviews from anywhere in the world. We offer both hard-copy and electronic-publication opportunities in five languages, as noted above. To submit an article in any of our languages, please refer to the submission guidelines at http://www.airpower.maxwell.af.mil/ASPJ/submissions.htm . To write a book review, please see the guidelines at http://www.airpower.maxwell.af.mil/ASPJ/bookreviews/guide.htm .
Disclaimer
The conclusions and opinions expressed in this document are those of the author cultivated in the freedom of expression, academic environment of Air University. They do not reflect the official position of the U.S. Government, Department of Defense, the United States Air Force or the Air University
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