Comments on The Dougout: Why America Can't Win Wars

"I think that the consequences of abandoning our f...

2008-05-01T18:02:00.000-05:00

"I think that the consequences of abandoning our fundamental ethical principles in wartime reduces the differences between ourselves and our enemies to the point of diminishing returns"

But thats what we should do, we SHOULD get rid of "OUR" Judeo-Crhistian moral principles, not just in wartime, anytime. And we should replace them with something more rational and self interested.

Thanks for the clarification.must risk soldiers be...

2008-04-28T14:04:00.000-05:00

Thanks for the clarification.

must risk soldiers before they kill civilians...

Seems to me that Walzer is making an, if you'll pardon the expression, ahistorical argument; the whole point of the COBRA bombing was that the use of infantry before bombing would clearly be a gross waste of soldiers and likely result in no fewer civilian casualties. I think he's misreading the proportionality argument, taking the strongest possible ethical position but not the strongest possible pragmatic position.

As far as your general critique of Just War theory, we have disagreed before. I think that the consequences of abandoning our fundamental ethical principles in wartime reduces the differences between ourselves and our enemies to the point of diminishing returns. But even I recognize that that warfare doesn't permit the application of procedural justice -- due process, adjudication, etc. -- in the same way that peacetime does.

Reading Lee's comments, by the way, I think the fu...

2008-04-27T17:38:00.000-05:00

Reading Lee's comments, by the way, I think the fundamental disconnect is between the normal operation of military contractors in conjuction with most peacetime overseas operations and the decidedly abnormal operation of armed security contractors in a decidedly unpeacetime environment.

Well, I haven't studied Normandy in detail, but lo...

2008-04-27T17:33:00.000-05:00

Well, I haven't studied Normandy in detail, but looking at the description you linked to, the only way I could see to condemn COBRA as a violation of the rules of war would be to argue that no civilian casualties should ever be risked even under literal battlefield conditions. Is he actually making this argument?