In response to the irregular warfare challenges facing the U S in Iraq and Afghanistan in 2005 General James Mattis then commander of Marine Corps Combat Development Command established a new Marine Corps cultural initiative The goal was simple teach Marines to interact successfully with the local population in areas of conflict The implications however were anything but simple transform an elite military culture founded on the principles of locate close with and destroy the enemy into a culturally savvy Marine Corps Culture in Conflict Irregular Warfare Culture Policy and the Marine Corps examines the conflicted trajectory of the Marine Corps efforts to institute a radical culture policy into a military organization that is structured and trained to fight conventional wars More importantly however it is a compelling book about America s shifting military identity in a new world of unconventional warfare