IS 401 “Culture, Strategy, and Security” can be described as an in-depth investigation as to whether culture influences strategic decisions and if so, how and to what degree? Ultimately, I believe that this course led us to the conclusion that culture must reign universally over strategy because all strategy is constructed and executed by “encultured”…

Culture, and all of its inputs, influences our strategic decision making and security behaviors in unmistakable and unavoidable ways. Our historical experiences, beliefs, values, traditions, language, and even our geography (all cultural inputs) are ingrained in our identity and it is impossible to fully divorce ourselves from them when making decisions. As Ken Booth reminds…

The denialism of Japan’s war crimes by high-ranking Japanese authorities has been a strong point of contention over the past decades—particularly since the recent testimonies of former Japanese soldiers and comfort women. According to perceptions of Japanese culture as a homogenous, hierarchical culture, all echelons of Japanese society would echo statements made by officials and…