Bruce, regarding Neo's writing that; War is primarily about will, about resolve, about how much one can and will suffer and/or risk to achieve one's goals.
That's hubris. It's a horribly dangerous assumption. It's the reason that people make serious mistakes and, even worse, never recongnize them for years. It's like the claim that "anyone can make anything of themselves in this great country," when most of us can't be rocket scientists, heads of corporations, pro sports players, models or whatever. Our goals have to be consistent with our abilities.
The fact is that success in war is not "primarily" about will and resolve; success in war is primarily about never going to war unless, and until, you have the ability to win it. That means you must define a mission that is within your power to achieve. True, you must also have the support of those who will have to sacrifice lives, time and blood to win it, but that alone will not win a war whose mission is simply not achievable.
Vietnam and Iraq are prime examples of wars that we quit, or will quit, for what some will call a lack of will. The fact is, however, that long before we lost, or lose, our "will," there will have been a recognition that we are trying to push a string. When lives and treasure are being squandered in trying to push a string, will soon wanes.
The lesson; never enter a war where you do not have the capacity to close the deal. In Vietnam we did not have the capacity to force the Vietnamese to fight and die for the principles we established as exemplified in the form of the puppet government we propped up.
In Iraq we do not have the capacity to force the Iraqis to fight and die for a secular, woman's rights, minority rights and Israeli/Western Civilization-friendly puppet government we are trying to establish. Eventually they will end up wherever it is their history, culture, and religion will take them. We will not "win" a war that requires that we use our military to force them to become like us, unless, of course, we wipe most of them out. (Kill them for their salvation?) |
