Tactics as a Means of Maintaining Democracy

When brainstorming real-life application of de Certeau’s idea of theoretical notion of strategies vs. tactics one of the first think that came to mind was the NSA and the leaks of classified information.

Strategies are created by power structures to create a sense of organization, a set of rules and regulations, and establish a sense of order for people to follow.

The National Security Agency is a intelligence agency of the United States Government. They were created in order to monitor, decode, and analyze exchanges of information and data both domestically and internationally. Theyr programs were put in place to protect the US government’s information systems.

This is an example of a strategy because the National Security Agency created global surveillance plans to accomplish the main objective of protecting the intelligence of the US Government. The purpose of strategy is to achieve control and maintain order and is exactly what the global surveillance programs of the NSA do. They are put in place to manage the communication of American citizens.

De Certeau states that strategies are created by the producers and tactics are created as a response by the consumers. Tactics are formed in opposition to the strategy. Many tactics have to be carried out in secret with great planning in order to challenge those who created the strategy who often hold much more power.

Throughout history many people who feel like their privacy has been invaded and feel threatened by the strategies enacted by the NSA have created tactics to oppose them. One of the most infamous tactics against the NSA’s strategies is the Edward Snowden Global Surveillance leaks of 2010.

This was an example of a tactic because by leaking classified documents Snowden challenged the strategic nature of the Global Surveillance Act. He found a way to undermine the strategy and challenged the idea that organizations such as the NSA should be able to manage the actions of American citizens.

An aspect that I found interesting about this assignment is how once again a concept we are discussing in this class can be linked to military theory. When brainstorming examples of strategy and tactics the ones that stuck out to me the most all had to do with the government, military, and issues of national security. I feel like the concept of strategy and tactics are easier to understand when you think of a strategy as the overall plan of action in order to “win the war.” Meanwhile, tactics are used in battles — they are put in place to take down the strategy a little bit at a time. A tactic is not powerful enough to take down the strategy in one fell swoop. Rather, they are used to erode the strategy and gradually take it down.

Something I appreciated about de Certeau’s article was his ability to show how strategy and tactics are used in everyday life. While it is easier for me to think of strategy in terms of the military or government, de Certeau’s piece made me realize that strategy and tactics can be seen on a much smaller scale — for example a hiker straying from a path that was designated by the National Parks Service.

It is human nature to people to adapt to their environment. When strategies are put in place to manage and subjugate people they will find a way around the organizational structures put in place. Overall, I believe that tactical actions are a necessary aspect of a democratic society.