The art of war is simple enough. Find out where the enemy is. Get at him as soon as you can. Strike him as hard as you can and as often as you can, and keep moving on.General U.S. Grant
Graphic source: www.ushist.com.
It may seem strange that today I am reflecting on how to increase U.S. troop levels in the wake of Bush's reluctant acquiescence for the necessity of a troop withdrawal. Readers of this blog should be accustomed to the oddness of my perspective by now though. Today I wonder why we are not increasing the level and lethality of our troops.
We are convincing worldwide insurgents that America has not the will nor the stomach for warfare.
Americans, for their part, sated with their congratulatory self-satisfaction in their humaneness and civilized conduct of war are relieved with the satisfaction that the desultory Bush has finally seen the light of day.
If only things were that simple.
Grant, who knew a thing or two about war, during the Civil War showed Americans how war is conducted and he was successful in eliminating the Confederacy.
Through their shock and awe, horrifying for the time, Grant and Sherman demonstrated to the American people how to decapitate, destroy, and obliterate the enemy: the Confederacy.
American democracy was all the stronger as a result and the U.S. lost none of its moral strength for unleashing the full fury of finally and completely mobilizing the North's might through the Union army.
Americans have lost their killer instinct and seem to believe war can be conducted cleanly, clinically, and safely illustrated on CNN in sound bites. The illustrations reassure Americans that we are systematically tracking down the enemy, as false as that conclusion is, and it demonstrates to the enemy, who is also watching, that though some die--rewarded by entering paradise no less--America can be beaten, since the deadly might of America is tempered by public opinion and restrained from unleashing its fury. The conclusion, `this too shall pass,' is clear.
War is hell according to General Sherman but once engaged stopping and engaging in half-military measures only makes America less secure and ensures that more American soldiers will die needlessly in subsequent deployments.
Debate all you want about the reasons for originally engaging in the conflict in Iraq but we are failing to conduct war as Americans have found to be necessary in order to successfully bring about the desired result.
Also, Americans are not convinced we are at war in any case. We fail to accept bin Laden as he is, true to his word, lethal, patient, clever, and long-suffering in seeking a death blow to American.
The import of his latest videos is a warning, convert to Islam before it is too late, the standard Muslim announcement before an attack which justifies to an Islamic audience that the devastation to be inflicted can be avoided if only the infidel would have listened. The next spectacular al-Qaida attack is coming. 9/11 was just a warm-up.
In the announced troop withdrawal, none of Grant's precepts are being followed.
We don't know where the enemy is. We are not pursuing the enemy with all deliberate and lethal speed. Our tepid attacks have not dented the enemy's resolve. We are not hitting often, and we are bogged down in both Iraq and Afghanistan, even retreating.
Our modern distaste for historic American military violence notwithstanding, we will have to go back, we will have a more devastating attack on mainland America, and more innocents and soldiers will needlessly die for no visible gains.
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