The Value of Doing Research for an Independent Researcher

I think the best case for an independent researcher is they still are able to somehow get an indication from a specific decision maker or actor that, oh, this project might be useful. But even in the absence of that, I think the often case study work is a pretty good thing to do. The way the National Security Council is set up has a big impact on what the US government actually does in certain circumstances. And I also think that things are probably very, very far from optimal in terms of how decisions actually get made.