I’d like to share about something that I learned while trying to recover from my brush with defense intelligence. This is a vast community that continues to evolve. I first considered working for it as a Marine security guard. I wanted to help defend diplomatic facilities in the Middle East from terrorist attacks. A gunnery sergeant who spent some time doing this convinced me this was a bad idea. He didn’t feel our diplomatic facilities received the support they deserved as this threat matured.

Years later, I’d learn the Naval War College sought the means to destroy the network al-Qaida that relied upon to grow extremism and carry out terrorist attacks. I was told electronic warfare officers would help us do that and chose to pursue that goal as I moved forward with the Marine Enlisted Commissioning Education Program. That is until I realized we’d never convince D.C. to hold Saudi Arabia responsible for the support it provided al-Qaida.

None of this matters, of course. We move forward whether our government behaves as it should or not. How well we do that depends on the support we give ourselves. This government isn’t the first to try our patience, and it won’t be the last. Every one does that. We can either be consumed by this or tune it out and devote our attention to something else. If we devote it to what helps us and those we care about, we’ll do better.

Jamie Beaulieu
Farmington