October 26, 2004

GIVE WAR A CHANCE

This paragraph was the first thing to catch my eye:

Many writers, to be sure, have offered apologies for war. Under the title "Give war a chance", Edward Luttwak wrote in the Summer 1999 edition of Foreign Affairs, "Since the establishment of the United Nations, great powers have rarely let small wars burn themselves out. Bosnia and Kosovo are the latest examples of this meddling. Conflicts are interrupted by a steady stream of ceasefires and armistices that only postpone war-induced exhaustion and let belligerents rearm and regroup. Even worse are UN refugee-relief operations and NGOs [non-governmental organizations], which keep resentful populations festering in camps and sometimes supply both sides in armed conflicts. This well-intentioned interference only intensifies and prolongs struggles in the long run. The unpleasant truth is that war does have one useful function: it brings peace. Let it."

I won't even pretend to be a good history student -- it's always been my weakest subject -- but the article by Spengler that springboards from this quote is very interesting. (via The Corner)

Posted by Sarah at October 26, 2004 07:54 PM
Comments

As a former history major, i agree with the premise totally. Total victory is the only thing that leads to lasting peace, which is the lesson of the two world wars.

Posted by: annika at October 27, 2004 12:10 AM

Good point; however how does one wage an all out "war" on a "tactic" that is thousands of years old?? Yes the tactic of terror is thousands of years old, has never truly been defeated, and in all reality can only be "contained" at best. I remind all of you the the Ceaser's practiced terror, not to mention Ghengis Kahn, Attila, Timor and countless others. So I ask again how does one "defeat" a tactic.??

Posted by: BUbba Bo Bob Brain at October 27, 2004 03:34 AM

So I ask again how does one "defeat" a tactic.??

You go after the countries that support or offer sanctuary to terrorists and make their lives very uncomfortable.

Posted by: Jack at October 29, 2004 08:04 PM

"You go after the countries that support or offer sanctuary to terrorists and make their lives very uncomfortable."

Only problem with that is we do not have the resources to go against every terror sponsoring nation all at once. You try to do it one nation at a time, and as soon as we leave a nation, a new batch of terrorists will arise. As I stated before the best we can hope for is "containment", at least until we are honest enough to address the "draining of the swamp of world poverty and injustice, that breeds the mosquitos that are terrorists"

Posted by: Bubba Bo Bob Brain at October 30, 2004 05:42 AM