Military Review English Edition January-February 2015 | Page 52

not reductionist. Systems thinking implies that measuring complex systems is difficult, if not impossible,
rendering quantitative approaches insufficient. Critical
realism supposes that the world as sensed by humans
is predominantly a social construction and thus can be
better appreciated only by incorporating multiple viewpoints. I am not advocating any one of these paradigms.
I think we should instead utilize a more comprehensive approach: appreciating multiple viewpoints and
paradigms.
This, of course, would not replace MDMP, it would
simply make MDMP a tool we would use consciously where it makes sense. Likewise, we would not

necessarily turn to a technically rational approach to
all things, especially warfare.11 Warfare has to be one
of the most social of phenomena in this world; a better
approach is to be reflective about ourselves and our
processes.
In Victor Bugliosi’s book, Divinity of Doubt, the
author asserts that an agnostic religious approach is
more rational.12 I assert that we should apply his thinking to warfare. We should doubt that our paradigm is
right and question assertions to the contrary. Creatively
thinking about warfare ought to be encouraged and
we must resist institutional attempts to codify how to
approach thinking.

Lt. Col. Grant M. Martin, U.S. Army, is assigned to the Directorate of Training and Doctrine at the U.S. Army John
F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. He holds a B.A. from The Citadel, an
M.B.A. from George Mason University, and an M.M.A.S. from the School of Advanced Military Studies. During his
career, Martin served with the 82nd Airborne Division, 7th Special Forces Group (Airborne), and NATO Training
Mission-Afghanistan. His last assignment was as the commander, Company D, 1st Battalion, 1st Special Warfare
Training Group (Airborne), also known as Robin Sage.

Notes
1. During my time at the School of Advanced Military
Studies (SAMS), then director Col. Stefan Banach was known
to advocate a more unconventional approach to design with
themes from postmodernism, systemic operational design, and
complexity theory. Later SAMS directors reportedly pulled
away from the more conceptual approach to design, ultimately
coinciding with the adoption of the term Army design methodology, effectively codifying one method for [