I truly believe that this is a world governed by the aggressive use of force. I believe that the United States should do what is necessary to defeat its enemies. I also believe that, after 9/11, if there is a one percent chance that a nation or group is a threat then we treat them as if that threat is proven beyond a reasonable doubt. Having said that, though, I am questioning my view of war in the modern world.
A liberal friend of mine says repeatedly that aggressive war is obsolete in the modern world. I'm beginning to wonder if that is true. The American Civil War was won by the North when they began employing tactics that "civilized" countries today would consider war crimes. Sherman's march through Georgia was less a battle than it was a rape. By the same token, World War II was won because by the end of the war, Germany and Japan were incapable of fighting back. The Allies were more interested in winning and exacting revenge against the Axis than they were in avoiding civilian casualties. Not only did we crush their armies, we so devastated their nations that they lost their will to fight.
After Hiroshima and Nagasaki, though, I'm not sure that's possible. We pride ourselves on avoiding civilian casualties. We engage in measured responses rather than "total war". We attempt to be politically correct against enemies that blend into the scenery and do not share our concern for human life.
As a result, we put our own fighting men and women at more risk than they would be otherwise. Such an approach to war makes complete victory almost impossible. How do you achieve complete victory when you cannot, for fear of public opinion, crush your enemy? Limited war only serves to further motivate our enemy and get our troops killed a few at a time. It causes war to be neverending and the public loses patience.
However, the alternative is to engage in acts that would result in outrage here and abroad. The United States has the military might to defeat any nation on the planet even without resorting to nuclear weapons. We will never use that power, though.
Some may say that's a good thing. I don't necessarily agree. The point, though, remains. Perhaps, in the modern world, for a nation that strives to be politically correct, war is obsolete.
