Posted on 08/13/2006 11:29:04 AM PDT by oldtimer2
August 13, 2006 -- ISRAEL'S war against the Middle East's first true terrorist army provides tough military and strategic lessons - old, new, and all too often disheartening. Israel's been winning on the ground. And still losing the war.
Lesson 1: You can win every tactical engagement and still lose at the strategic level.
Lesson 2: The global media can overturn the verdict of the battlefield.
Lesson 3: If you start off on the wrong foot in war, you may never recover your balance.
Lesson 4: Technology alone can't win 21st-century wars.
Lesson 5: Never underestimate your enemy.
Lesson 6: In war, take the pain up front, and the overall suffering will be far less.
Lesson 7: Terrorism is no longer a limited, diffuse, disorganized threat.
Can a military that relies heavily on reserve call-ups win this new kind of war?
Can we win "Eastern" wars with Western values? I doubt it.
This question is going to eat at our consciences for years to come - even as we learn to do what must be done.The wars of the future will be won by those with the greater strength of will. And boundless determination is one weapon that Islamist extremists unquestionably possess.
Do we?
(Excerpt) Read more at nypost.com ...
(Go Israel, Go! Slap 'Em Down Hezbullies.)
Counter Insurgency is different then Total War. This mindless ranting by the Know Nothings on a topic of this complexity is really really getting OLD. Maybe JUST one time we could wait and see what actually goes on ONE time instead of everyone leaping into the same old knee jerk hysterics and Chicken Littlest
"Can we win "Eastern" wars with Western values"
i.e. The Clinton/Wesley Clark type of waging war.
i.e. The TRENT LOTT version of Capulation.
Me, I'm a General US Grant and William T. Sherman guy. War is hell. Once commited, get it over with as soon as possible by completely destroying the enemy and his families. Anything less and you lose. We are at war and our people do not have a clue.
I found the article informative and very thought-provoking. I must just be stupid.
Good article. He says that "our civilization has been forced into a defensive war to the death with fanatical strains of Islam" but, like everyone else, he isn't very clear about the path to victory over these parasites.
The fact is that the Israeli leadership started to buckle and agree to a ceasefire after only 4 weeks, even though they were winning!
This type of campaign will take 3 months or so. The true winners are the media who hyped to conflict on TV.
Let me guess--he's whining? Peters always seems to be on the verge of a nervous breakdown.
The UN doesn't represent Western values. Much of the west doesn't, either.
Imagine. You are in your backyard swing. In north Israel, a little village, your well-tended pleasant garden surrounds you. You read this article. Thoughts are provoked. Deep thoughs. Existential considerations. The sirens sound. But these deep thoughts have a lot of inertia. These thoughtful thoughts, they are, well, compelling. You must pause to consider them.
Then an informative Katyuska drops in.
Well, he makes a statement that counter insurgency [at least in identity wars, aka "clashes of civilizations"] is winnable only by the means of total war. After all, the Israelis have been conducting their 'counterinsurgency war' for 60 years by now - and has that war been won?
The wars of the future will be won by those with the greater strength of will. And boundless determination is one weapon that Islamist extremists unquestionably possess.
Do we?
The Islamist will make Pol Pot look like Don Knotts.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.