Where do you stand on the issue regarding the use of anthropologists in intelligence gathering for the military?
Is it reason or treason that motivates the efforts of anthropologist that chose to assist the military? Indeed there are certain parts to gathering intelligence that may go far beyond the political perspective the government has. Military officials have to be aware of all the details that make up the cultures of the countries that they are instructed to interact with. By anthropologist being the social scientists that specialize in studying the origins and social relationships of human beings they are the perfect source for that type of information (Nowak & Laird, What is the Anthropology: Defining Cultural Anthropology, 2010). However, when it comes to being involved as an enemy rather than an ally of the country being studied by the anthropologist or infiltrated by the military then they become informants rather than advocates for the people that allowed them access into their world.