War is Always and Everywhere a Political Phenomenon

For the George W. Bushes and the Stephen Harpers of the world:

"Clausewitz's writing sometimes seem to reflect a disappointment that ideal war is spoiled by friction, but he does not regret that war is held in check by politics. On the contrary, he regarded war that has broken free of political guidance as 'something pointless and devoid of sense.'"

-Jonathan Schell, The Unconquerable World, p. 16

This really has nothing to do with democracy as we know it - Clausewitz would have been aghast at our government - but instead has to do with the nature of war. Everyone knows that Clausewitz said "war is politics by other means", which all too many have taken to mean that war is a normal act of government.

Clausewitz, I believe, didn't mean this at all. What he meant was that the state needed to have an achievable objective in mind when it went to war, just as it would with any other policies. If the government no longer has an objective - if we're just fighting to 'support the troops', or to bring 'peace with honour' - then we've reached the point where our battles have become "pointless and devoid of sense."

Debate needs to be a permanent fixture of any military act, whether it's peacekeeping or preemption. Those who seek to silence the debate because they fear they'll lose are already putting us on a course for disaster.

This doesn't seem to be something Gen. Tommy Franks understands, unfortunately:

Franks referred to the national media as “a bunch of suckers” in his speech, recalling a reporter who had asked him whether freedom for Iraqis and Afghans was worth more than 2,000 American lives.

“I thought ‘you idiot,’” Franks said. “Do you not understand what we’re talking about? It’s neither 2,400, 24,000 or 240,000 [lives]. Terrorism is a thing that threatens our lives. It doesn’t have anything to do with politics.

Tommy Franks demonstrates the biggest problem about "supporting the troops": Some of the troops - especially those who wear General's stars - can turn out to be lying Republican whores. I've said this before. Even when they're not, you can see how by "militarizing" the debate, Franks and those like him seek to de-politicize the debate. Because God forbid we bring politics in to matters of state, right?

And boy do I hope Tommy Franks is never President. A man who thinks that Iraq is worth a quarter of a million lives is certifiably insane. Jeebus.