BUB: The Army's Human Terrain System

The Army's Human Terrain System program is, officially,

a new proof-of-concept program, run by the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC), and serving the joint community. The near-term focus of the HTS program is to improve the military's ability to understand the highly complex local socio-cultural environment in the areas where they are deployed; however, in the long-term, HTS hopes to assist the US government in understanding foreign countries and regions prior to an engagement within that region.
- HTS was developed in response to identified gaps in commanders' and staffs' understanding of the local population and culture, and its impact on operational decisions; and poor transfer of specific socio-cultural knowledge to follow-on units.
- The HTS approach is to place the expertise and experience of social scientists and regional experts, coupled with reach-back, open-source research, directly in support of deployed units engaging in full-spectrum operations.
- HTS informs decision making at the tactical, operational and strategic levels.
- The HTS program is the first time that social science research and advising has been done systematically, on a large scale, and at the brigade level.

Human Terrain System at Wikipedia



Hasn't stopped all sorts of things from being written about it...

Comparisons to the movie "Avatar"

One review in Counterpunch that caught my eye was an analysis of the elements of real world counterinsurgency doctrine, in particular the Human Terrain System, a new element of military counterinsurgency strategy in which social scientists are deployed to study restive populations and formulate strategies for pacifying and controlling them.

Blackfive goes off on lack of support from academic anthropologists

Our privileged class of pampered elites safely ensconced in their ivory towers is whinging again about those who dare contribute to our common defense. In this case one group of these wankers objects to our use of anthropologists in the Human Terrain System, a project designed to help the military understand the local populations so we can better work with them.

Other academics consider that it the opposition might not just be "we don't like war, therefore..."

Alternatively, the report hints that the real problem is merely a poor choice of words. "We should consider the work of HTTs to be sharply different, in its goals, from conventional disciplinary ethnographic pursuits and not to be 'ethnography' in any credible sense." (54) If HTS were re-branded to avoid the terms "anthropology," "ethnography," and "social science," and instead present itself as a counterinsurgency program pure and simple, then--it seems--CEAUSSIC would not expect it to follow either the AAA ethics codes or the Common Rule. All of this points to the need for clear definitions when discussing ethical and legal obligations.

A long article looks at the implications of expanding HTS within the context of the contractual specifications set out by TRADOC.

TRADOC G-2, citing documentation, envisions long term system integrator services for the program will occur in multiple geographical locations around the globe. This will include in-theater locations in support of the US COCOMS. HTS will provide the critical human terrain or green layer in strategic and tactical defense plans, analysis of adversaries and potential threats and in the analysis of threats to ground, air, sea and space in support of information operations capabilities for STRATCOM and other major Commands. The contractor shall provide support to analyze concepts, architectures, plans, doctrines, and requirements studies. The contractor shall analyze missions and mission areas as they are promulgated and provide support to the drafting and review of requirements documents (e.g., Concepts of Operations (CONOPS), Mission Needs Statements (MNS), Operational Requirements Documents (ORDs), etc.). The contractor must consider intelligence threats and coordinate with integrated strategic and tactical defense plans, and other related studies, plans and programs. The contractor must consider all battlefield operating systems issues in coordination with integrated strategic and tactical defense plans as well as other related studies, plans and programs.

Further, data collection and dissemination of the HTS products is essential in building a Common Operating Picture for the warfighter. The HTS effort includes coordinating data collection efforts with Battle Command (BC) ; oversight of deployed team collection efforts to ensure a process is established to support staffing and implementation of future spirals and requirements; ensuring the HTS fills the Combatant Commanders requirements; development and implementation of doctrine, organization, training, materiel, leadership and education, personnel and facilities (DOTMLPF) solutions; implementation of DOTMLPF to leverage the strengths of the capabilities while improving theater operations; capability development; and Force integration of a “System of Systems” which provides intelligence and information to small unit leaders to increase Force effectiveness and influence operations.

Even the far-left nutjobs get to weigh in.

Yes, it takes a village to win the war, but what about that troublesome "localized" Afghan culture, an attachment to place, religion, and family that is part and parcel of their stubborn refusal to embrace "modernity"? How will we navigate the shoals of such savagery? As part of this effort, we’re sending in nearly a thousand civilians, in part to carry out the political side of this war – a major aspect of the new counterinsurgency strategy in vogue at the Pentagon these days. Some of these civilians will be anthropologists – and, yes, you read that right.
Indeed, the anthropologists have already arrived – with at least three such specialists among the US casualties. To my knowledge, 36-year old Paula Loyd, anthropologist and US Army reservist, is the third social scientist to be killed in Afghanistan, where she was working with the so-called Human Terrain System (HTS), one of the US military’s more Orwellian project

And just when it couldn't get any weirder...
Pravda(?!) weighs in on a tabloid-news angle to the whole shebang.

Just when it seemed that the US Army’s Human Terrain System (HTS) could not provide any more drama/distractions, on October 20th, in the District of Columbia Superior Court, Mrs. Montgomery McFate (Plaintiff) filed for divorce from Mr. Sean McFate (Defendant). The case will be heard on January 14, 2010 at 8:30 AM according to a court spokesperson (case number 09DRB3126). Sources say this was precipitated, in part, because Ms. Montgomery McFate, Senior Social Scientist, is expecting a child out of wedlock. Sources are adamant that this is the case though, for obvious reasons, the results of any “medical test” to confirm those reports can’t be verified. Whether true or false, the impending divorce will provide yet another distraction for an already distracted US Army program.

That's a lot of press for a program that's about 550 people strong.

Also check out HarmonieWeb, the official public face of HTS for NGOs and others working with them.

By: Brant