After World War II, the looming threat posed by the Soviet Union caused the United States to drastically rethink its views on national security.
With the National Security Act of 1947, President Truman and his military leaders created a basis for new laws, export controls, military strategy, and a corresponding increases in defense spending.
But the Cold War eventually ended, the Soviet Union collapsed, and the United States was left without a real enemy that it could sink its teeth into.
So what does "national security" mean now? US leaders would be grateful if you'd tell them.
The Defense Department's National Security Study Group launched a Web site Monday that solicits public input in shaping national policy.
"I believe this is the first time a government study has had such a direct connection to the American public while the study is actually being written," said Jonathan Nemceff, the NSSG's director of information systems. "New times call for new tools."
The site will use the interactive capability of the Net -- a series of discussion forums -- to share public ideas as it redefines national security in the information age.
"We cannot possibly predict what the world will look like in 2025," Nemceff said. "And we recognize that we alone are not experts in every factor which might affect national security in the 21st century."
Previous studies have focused primarily on how military issues affect national security, he said. The purpose here is to transcend the typical concept of national security by investigating technology, cultural, environmental, and economic factors.
The NSSG, which has identified emerging technologies that will affect its work, launched the Future Tech Forum as its first discussion area.
The group sees open-source software development like Linux and Mozilla as something that will drive technological developments over the next 25 years and -- along with nanotechnology and biotech -- have a significant impact on issues of national security.
