Strategic Military Control of Information As explained by Monique Skidmore (2004), there were four ways in which control tactics used by the Burmese military-state were experienced prior to democratization. I argue that the same control methods Skidmore discusses are still being used by the upper echelon of the Tatmadaw to maintain relevance and control despite the veneer of democracy. According to Skidmore, these key elements of state control are: “community organization, and the use of propaganda, censorship, and informers” (p. 64). Although she focuses on the ways absolute control is experienced by the Burmese populace (in pre-democracy Burma), her list is also relevant when examining the way the Tatmadaw exerts domination today. It is important to highlight that with regard to military control tactics, all four of the above-mentioned points blend together in a way that makes it difficult to categorize. Community Organizations. The first mechanism I examined is the insidious ways in which the military infiltrates and controls the everyday functions of society through the use of community organizations. Much like the USDA under the SLORC/SPDC reign, community organizations today are still used as tools for mass mobilization and the dissemination of Tatmadaw—and therefore State—ideology. Many community networks exist in Burma today, aiding the Tatmadaw to secure legitimacy and support from the civilian public. A major organization in the context of military control is the Patriotic Association of Myanmar (known by its Burmese abbreviation MaBaTha). In English, MaBaTha is translated as the Association for the Protection of Race and Religion. Described by Marte Nilsen (2015) as an ultranationalist Buddhist movement, this association of largely 80