The article argues that recent executive overreach and politicization have severely undermined established norms of U.S. civil-military relations. To restore professional standards, the incoming Congress must actively exercise its oversight powers, moving beyond mere criticism to demanding transparency in defense policy and personnel decisions. Key reforms include enforcing meritocratic promotion processes, requiring documented justification for senior officer removals, and preventing the partisan use of the military. These actions are crucial for bolstering public trust and ensuring the military remains a nonpartisan instrument of civilian control.
Film screening: Oscar-shortlisted The President’s Cake
English Summary
The film 'The President’s Cake' examines how authoritarian power in Iraq was sustained through everyday social practices and internal control rather than through coercion alone. It highlights that regime durability often depends on the shaping of societal behavior to reinforce compliance under oppressive systems. These insights are critical for understanding contemporary Middle Eastern political trajectories, state-society relations, and the enduring legacies of authoritarian control on reform prospects.
中文摘要
電影《總統的蛋糕》探討了伊拉克的威權統治如何透過日常社會實踐和內部控制，而非單純依靠脅迫手段來維持。該片強調，政權的持久性往往取決於對社會行為的塑造，以強化在壓迫體制下的服從。這些見解對於理解當代中東的政治軌跡、國家與社會關係，以及威權控制對改革前景的深遠影響至關重要。
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