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TP Thomas PM Barnett Thomas PM Barnett New York Times-bestselling author of "The Pentagon's New Map" and 2023 book "America's New Map." Geostrategist with U.S. national security background.

“Turns out the cloud has a street address. And that's the strategic point now ricocheting around the Pentagon: you plan on waging AI-enhanced warfare and you've just added every data center on your territory to the opponent's targeting list.”

Thomas P.M. Barnett’s Global Throughlines · Geopolitics & World Affairs · November 2026

“Turns out the cloud has a street address. And that's the strategic point now ricocheting around the Pentagon: you plan on waging AI-enhanced warfare and you've just added every data center on your territory to the opponent's targeting list.” — Thomas PM Barnett, Thomas P.M. Barnett’s Global Throughlines

Context

Barnett is reading his own commentary on a Washington Post story about Ukrainian attacks on Russian data centers, including ones housing powerful supercomputers. His point is that AI ambitions create physical targets.

Listen to the episode → More from Thomas PM Barnett → More Geopolitics & World Affairs quotes →

Transcript

Thomas P.M. Barnett’s Global Throughlines
Thomas PM Barnett

Tom Barnett here. The date is 8 November 2026. This is the combination post and podcast entitled Sunday Cutdown 145, 8 November, 2026. Subtitle, Clearing My Inbox of Stories I Want to Document. Summary. From Ukraine targeting Russia's AI ambitions to Trump choosing confrontation over accommodation. This week's dozen mini-posts track a world where transformation outruns governance. As always, I like to remind this is a reader-supported publication. If you can help out on any level, please do. And I do now note I am open to Venmo donations, which has been a very pleasant discovery for me. Number one, Stephen Miller appointed Wright Defense Commissioner for DC. Citation, Washington Post. Stephen Miller's promotion angers industries reeling from immigration enforcement. A teaser for Monday's Post methinks. Trump faces a fork in the road. Go out beloved, if scandal-ridden, or go out hated. The first path is Clintonian. Absorb the electoral rebuke. Move toward the available middle. Give people reasons to remember prosperity…

Speaker 2

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Speaker 3

we got for Farm Film Report, farmers.

Speaker 2

So until next week, this is Big Jim McBuck. And Billy Saul Hurok saying, may the good Lord take a liking to you and blow you up real soon.

Speaker names come from our own diarization. The position is estimated from where the line sits in the episode.

More from Thomas P.M. Barnett’s Global Throughlines

“Beijing fears less the individual complaint than the shared diagnosis. You promised advancement. We did the schooling. Where's the future? That question doesn't require a revolutionary ideology, just enough people comparing notes. Censorship cannot manufacture a convincing answer. Only performance can do that.” — Thomas PM Barnett, Thomas P.M. Barnett’s Global Throughlines “You want entrepreneurs discovering what nobody anticipated, but you want cadres ensuring nothing politically unexpected happens. So it's innovation, please. Surprise, no thank you. … That's not an impossible combination, but it's sure as hell an expensive one.” — Thomas PM Barnett, Thomas P.M. Barnett’s Global Throughlines