What can a military force defeat?

United States armed forces have superior morale, leadership, training, and weapons systems.

After the Vietnam era, the U.S. military resolved to never again become engaged in that type of quagmire. Efforts were made to develop procedures making it difficult for Congress or the president to commit U.S. military forces to a task not appropriate for military force. The U.S. Army reoriented to maximize effectiveness when deployed against a conventional enemy military force fielded by a nation-state that has a capability to present a serious threat to the United States.

In August 1990, Iraqi ruler Saddam Hussein, being short on revenue, dispatched his army to seize Kuwait’s oil fields. President George H. W. Bush quickly organized a coalition of countries and deployed U.S. and other coalition military forces in January 1991, and they quickly shattered Iraq’s army. The objective was clear and attainable. The definition of success was clear: defeat Iraq’s military forces.

Defeating an “ism” is not a suitable objective for a military force. That holds for any “ism,” e.g., communism, Mohammedanism, capitalism, authoritarianism, etc. The Allied Forces soundly defeated the Axis military forces in World War II. But some of the philosophy of Hitler’s Nazi followers can still be observed today, including ideas of racial superiority, anti-Jewish expressions, and ultra-nationalism. If an “ism” is undesirable, it needs to be countered with better political, economic, and intellectual ideas and actions.

Why would the United States feel compelled to send military forces to Vietnam, a place most of us had never hear of? It was fear of an “ism,” communism, a fear that if Vietnam adopted communism, all of the Southeast Asian countries would topple to communism like a line of dominos. We killed a lot of people, but the “ism” escaped.

The second Bush president, George W. Bush, launched a “war on terror.” A war on terrorism has about the same probability of success as a war against sin, as futile as Cervantes’ knight tilting against windmills.

Osama bin Laden was a Saudi Arabian, as were most of his agents who attacked the United States on September 11, 2001.  Those agents came to the United States legally, and they learned to fly commercial airliners in the United States. An FBI field agent noted and reported one of the Saudis taking flight instruction in the U.S., but the FBI didn’t act on that information. Terrorists can operate from any place. Bin Laden set up his headquarters in Sudan, then moved to Afghanistan, and finally to Pakistan. Osama bin Laden was motivated by religion. Religion can easily become a source of conflict because religion is based in faith — belief that transcends reason. Bin Laden carefully selected from among his followers agents who were susceptible to the most radical interpretation of their religion. The religious faith of bin Laden’s agents in the U.S. caused them to commit both mass murder and suicide.

Good governance, education, and intelligence services are the best tools in our inventory to limit terrorist activities. There was an unwarranted degree of arrogance and over-confidence in the federal government, especially in the defense department, at the beginning of the 21st century. We have now updated our understanding of ourselves and the world — at considerable expense. Let us hope that the next generation remembers the lessons learned.

Now retired, Jack Stevenson served two years in Vietnam as an infantry officer, retired from military service, and worked three years as a U.S. Civil Service employee. He also worked in Egypt as an employee of the former Radio Corporation of America (RCA). Currently, he reads history, follows issues important to Americans, and writes commentary for community newspapers.