George Friedman
Encyclopedia
George Friedman is an American
political scientist and author. He is the founder, chief intelligence officer
, financial overseer, and CEO of the private intelligence corporation Stratfor
. He has authored several books, including The Next 100 Years
, The Next Decade
, America's Secret War
, The Intelligence Edge, The Coming War With Japan and The Future of War.
to Holocaust
survivors. His family fled Hungary when he was a child to escape the communist regime, settling first in a camp for displaced persons in Austria and then immigrating to the United States
, where he attended public schools in New York City
, and was an early designer of computerized war games. Friedman describes his family’s story as “a very classic story of refugees making a new life in America."
Prior to joining the private sector, Friedman spent almost twenty years in academia, teaching political science at Dickinson College
. During this time, he also regularly briefed senior commanders in the armed services as well as the Office of Net Assessments, SHAPE
Technical Center, the U.S. Army War College
, National Defense University and the RAND Corporation, on security and national defense matters.
Friedman pursued political philosophy
with his early work focusing on Marxism
, as well as international conflict, including examination of the U.S.-Soviet relationship from a military perspective. After the collapse of the Soviet Union
, Friedman studied potential for a U.S.-Japan conflict and co-authored The Coming War with Japan in 1991. He is also the author or co-author of books examining topics as diverse as the Frankfurt School
and warfare, including The Future of War, The next hundred years, The Intelligence Edge, and America’s Secret War.
He received a B.A. at the City College of New York
, where he majored in political science, and a Ph.D.
in government
at Cornell University
.
In 1996, he founded STRATFOR
, a private intelligence and forecasting company, and has served as the company's CEO and Chief Intelligence Officer ever since.
. Two of their children serve in the U.S. military, and one served two tours in Iraq
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
political scientist and author. He is the founder, chief intelligence officer
Intelligence officer
An intelligence officer is a person employed by an organization to collect, compile and/or analyze information which is of use to that organization...
, financial overseer, and CEO of the private intelligence corporation Stratfor
Stratfor
Strategic Forecasting, Inc., more commonly known as STRATFOR, is a global intelligence company founded in 1996 in Austin, Texas by George Friedman who is the founder, chief intelligence officer, and CEO of the company...
. He has authored several books, including The Next 100 Years
The Next 100 Years
The Next 100 Years is a 2009 non-fiction book by George Friedman. In the book, Friedman attempts to predict the major geopolitical events and trends of the 21st century. Friedman also speculates in the book on changes in technology and culture that may take place during this...
, The Next Decade
The Next Decade (book)
The Next Decade, by George Friedman, is primarily about the United States' relationships with other countries. The book also discusses the paradox of "the empire and the republic", and addresses some demographic, technological, and economic issues, primarily those that will affect the 2010s.The...
, America's Secret War
America's Secret War
America's Secret War: Inside the Hidden Worldwide Struggle Between America and Its Enemies, a book by Stratfor founder George Friedman, is an attempt to analyze United States foreign policy in 2004; specifically, the war efforts in Afghanistan and Iraq, and the war on terror.America's Secret War...
, The Intelligence Edge, The Coming War With Japan and The Future of War.
Biography
Friedman’s childhood was shaped directly by international conflict. He was born in HungaryHungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
to Holocaust
The Holocaust
The Holocaust , also known as the Shoah , was the genocide of approximately six million European Jews and millions of others during World War II, a programme of systematic state-sponsored murder by Nazi...
survivors. His family fled Hungary when he was a child to escape the communist regime, settling first in a camp for displaced persons in Austria and then immigrating to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, where he attended public schools in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, and was an early designer of computerized war games. Friedman describes his family’s story as “a very classic story of refugees making a new life in America."
Prior to joining the private sector, Friedman spent almost twenty years in academia, teaching political science at Dickinson College
Dickinson College
Dickinson College is a private, residential liberal arts college in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. Originally established as a Grammar School in 1773, Dickinson was chartered September 9, 1783, five days after the signing of the Treaty of Paris, making it the first college to be founded in the newly...
. During this time, he also regularly briefed senior commanders in the armed services as well as the Office of Net Assessments, SHAPE
Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe
Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe is the central command of NATO military forces. It is located at Casteau, north of the Belgian city of Mons...
Technical Center, the U.S. Army War College
U.S. Army War College
The United States Army War College is a United States Army school located in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, on the 500 acre campus of the historic Carlisle Barracks...
, National Defense University and the RAND Corporation, on security and national defense matters.
Friedman pursued political philosophy
Political philosophy
Political philosophy is the study of such topics as liberty, justice, property, rights, law, and the enforcement of a legal code by authority: what they are, why they are needed, what, if anything, makes a government legitimate, what rights and freedoms it should protect and why, what form it...
with his early work focusing on Marxism
Marxism
Marxism is an economic and sociopolitical worldview and method of socioeconomic inquiry that centers upon a materialist interpretation of history, a dialectical view of social change, and an analysis and critique of the development of capitalism. Marxism was pioneered in the early to mid 19th...
, as well as international conflict, including examination of the U.S.-Soviet relationship from a military perspective. After the collapse of the Soviet Union
Dissolution of the Soviet Union
The dissolution of the Soviet Union was the disintegration of the federal political structures and central government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , resulting in the independence of all fifteen republics of the Soviet Union between March 11, 1990 and December 25, 1991...
, Friedman studied potential for a U.S.-Japan conflict and co-authored The Coming War with Japan in 1991. He is also the author or co-author of books examining topics as diverse as the Frankfurt School
Frankfurt School
The Frankfurt School refers to a school of neo-Marxist interdisciplinary social theory, particularly associated with the Institute for Social Research at the University of Frankfurt am Main...
and warfare, including The Future of War, The next hundred years, The Intelligence Edge, and America’s Secret War.
He received a B.A. at the City College of New York
City College of New York
The City College of the City University of New York is a senior college of the City University of New York , in New York City. It is also the oldest of the City University's twenty-three institutions of higher learning...
, where he majored in political science, and a Ph.D.
Ph.D.
A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
in government
Government
Government refers to the legislators, administrators, and arbitrators in the administrative bureaucracy who control a state at a given time, and to the system of government by which they are organized...
at Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
.
In 1996, he founded STRATFOR
Stratfor
Strategic Forecasting, Inc., more commonly known as STRATFOR, is a global intelligence company founded in 1996 in Austin, Texas by George Friedman who is the founder, chief intelligence officer, and CEO of the company...
, a private intelligence and forecasting company, and has served as the company's CEO and Chief Intelligence Officer ever since.
Personal life
Friedman is married to Meredith Friedman (née LeBard), has four children, and lives in Austin, TexasAustin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
. Two of their children serve in the U.S. military, and one served two tours in Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
.
Books
- The Political Philosophy of the Frankfurt School (1981). Cornell University Press. ISBN 0-8014-1279-X.
- Coming War With Japan, with Meredith LeBard (1991). St Martins Press. Reprint edition, 1992, ISBN 0-312-07677-0.
- The Future of War: Power, Technology and American World Dominance in the Twenty-First Century with Meredith Friedman (1996). 1st ed., Crown Publishers, ISBN 0-517-70403-X. St. Martin's Griffin, 1998, ISBN 0-312-18100-0.
- The Intelligence Edge: How to Profit in the Information Age with Meredith Friedman, Colin Chapman, and John BakerJohn Baker-Military figures:*John Baker , American Revolutionary War hero, for whom Baker County, Georgia was named*John Baker , British air marshal*John Drayton Baker , United States Navy officer...
(1997). Crown, 1st edition. ISBN 0-609-60075-3. - America's Secret WarAmerica's Secret WarAmerica's Secret War: Inside the Hidden Worldwide Struggle Between America and Its Enemies, a book by Stratfor founder George Friedman, is an attempt to analyze United States foreign policy in 2004; specifically, the war efforts in Afghanistan and Iraq, and the war on terror.America's Secret War...
: Inside the Hidden Worldwide Struggle Between the United States and Its Enemies (2004). Doubleday, 1st ed, ISBN 0-385-51245-7. Broadway, reprint edition (2005). ISBN 0-7679-1785-5. - The Next 100 YearsThe Next 100 YearsThe Next 100 Years is a 2009 non-fiction book by George Friedman. In the book, Friedman attempts to predict the major geopolitical events and trends of the 21st century. Friedman also speculates in the book on changes in technology and culture that may take place during this...
: A Forecast for the 21st Century (2009). Doubleday. ISBN 0-385-51705-X. - The Next DecadeThe Next Decade (book)The Next Decade, by George Friedman, is primarily about the United States' relationships with other countries. The book also discusses the paradox of "the empire and the republic", and addresses some demographic, technological, and economic issues, primarily those that will affect the 2010s.The...
: What the World Will Look Like (2010). ISBN 0385532946.
External links
- Bio of Friedman at STRATFOR's website.
- Bio of Friedman at America's Secret Wars website.
- Bio of Friedman at New Global Initiative's website.
- Friedman quotes at ThinkExist.com.
- The Iranian Election and the Revolution Test. George Friedman writes on Ahmadinejad's election and revolt against alleged fraud.