War And the American Military
Quote If you limit your actions in life to things that nobody can possibly find fault with, you will not do much. - Charles Lutwidge Dodgson
Brain Teaser i oo
The REAL mission of the Air Force We blow things up! We blow things up! We are the BEST at it! We are the BEST at it!
YOUR PROFESSIONAL RESPONSIBILITY Learn HOW to wage war: – In ALL of its forms – Against ALL of our enemies Regardless of your job!
Assumptions About War We will have wars in the future We will have wars in the future Worst possible TIME Worst possible TIME Worst possible PLACE Worst possible PLACE Worst possible ENEMY Worst possible ENEMY
OverviewOverview uDefinitions uBasic Themes uElements uEnduring Truths
There’s NO glamour! WAR
A nasty, ugly, bloody & expensive business! Takes its toll in blood & treasure! WAR
DEFINITION #1 Clausewitz: 1. War is an act of violence to compel our enemy to do our will 2. War is politics with the addition of other means To achieve political objectives
DEFINITION #2 Air Force Basic Doctrine (AFDD-1) –WAR is a struggle between rival political groups or nation-states to attain competing political objectives.
“ War is an instrument of national policy ”
WAR: BASIC THEMES The POLITICAL side The MILITARY side POLICY VIOLENCE
POLITICAL SIDE War is the LAST RESORT of policy War is the FAILURE of policy
POLITICAL SIDE Objective of war: – Overcome the enemy’s hostile will and ability – Achieve a better state of peace
“War is a complex and chaotic human endeavor”
MILITARY SIDE War is a human enterprise – Fierce emotions involved 3 factors dominating war: (Clausewitz) FOG FRICTION CHANCE
ELEMENTS OF WAR MOTIVES OBJECTIVES PARTICIPANTS MEANS USED LEVEL OF VIOLENCE SCOPE OF WAR ASYMMETRY
MOTIVESMOTIVES Secular ideology Ethnic/tribal hatred Religion Territory Economic gain Revenge Fear Mixture
OBJECTIVESOBJECTIVES TOTAL –Political overthrow/extermination LIMITED –Concessions
“War is a clash of opposing wills”
PARTICIPANTS State vs. State Groups within a state – Civil War Non-State entities – PLO, IRA, KLA
MEANS USED Weapons of mass destruction –Nuclear, Biological, Chemical (NBC) Conventional Tactics – Guerrilla – Terrorism
LEVELS of VIOLENCE TOTAL WAR –Destroy the enemy LIMITED –Restrain forces being used
SCOPE OF WAR GLOBAL – The Great War – WWII REGIONAL – Russia-Dagestan War – India-Pakistan or China-Taiwan LOCAL – Kosovo, Bosnia, Somalia,
ASYMMETRYASYMMETRY Adversaries NOT fighting the SAME war: Vietnam OBJECTIVES (Limited vs Unlimited) MOTIVES ( D ifferent from enemy motives) MEANS (Limited vs Unlimited)
3 Enduring Truths of War War is: – an instrument of national policy – a complex & chaotic human endeavor – a clash of opposing wills Unpredictable
SUMMARY uDefinitions uBasic Themes uElements uEnduring Truths