Influence of the Western War on Current US Action

He looks at the army and warfare in terms of men, technology, valour and victory (Hanson 68). He also discusses the west?s militarism tradition. A tradition supports mobilization of citizen soldiers and animating them with principles of collective endeavor. According to Victor Hanson, it is the west?s tradition that has helped them develop and maintain a strong military power. Hanson struggles to recreate nine ?landmark? episodes of combat through which the west gradually started their rise to the top. In this approach, three classical period episodes are depicted to show the situational onset of the rise of the west as Salamis, Cannae and Gaugamela. Hanson depicts these battles to have manifested particular western lethal military machinery. Moreover, the chronology is given a vivid progression when the author depicts that gradual spread of the western style war machinery through three additional battles as Tenochtitlan, Poitiers and Lepanto. The author eventually examined the gradual mechanism of battle spread from Europe into the west. The distinct military style of invincibility is further traced through Midway, Rorke?s Drift and Tet.

There is a sense that modern weapons during the 20th century proved to be the most technological advancements and thus created competition in which sprawled into a new stage of warfare enlightenment. At the brink of the war and the salient of forces perhaps the most technological tool used had been the trenches. The pursuit of territorial conquest would halt at the trench lines inventing a new progression in how war is envisioned today. The disadvantages often outnumber the benefits of war, however, war managed to create a boosted in advanced warfare starting as early as the Franco-Prussian War. As the war progressed during 1914, items such as uniforms called for change. The sense of pride in nationality struck in numbers and not in bright colors. For the sake of duty and country was the most powerful drive including those who sought ground in the western lines.

In his book, Carnage and Culture, Victor Davis Hanson, a military historian and professor at California State University, reasons that the west and its armies have been the most lethal and effective force in the world because of the inseparability between armies and their cultures. He illustrates the cultural superiority of the west by explaining the tenets of western society (freedom, citizenship, right to property, capitalism, and individualism) and applies them to nine landmark battles in which the west take part. Hanson uses “the term ‘Western’ to refer to the culture of classical antiquity that arose in Greece and Rome; survived the collapse of the Roman Empire; spread to western and northern Europe; then during the great periods of exploration and colonization of the fifteenth through nineteenth centuries expanded to the

Ever since the beginning of time, there has been conflict and conflict will always play a role in the development of history. The world has experienced hundreds of wars with countless casualties, these wars date back to the 10th Century and forward to the present. The United States of America is no stranger to war having participated in over 100 wars either it being a small war or a world war. Michael C. C. Adams “The Best War Ever” gives a rational explanation on the events that led the U.S to become the powerhouse country after sacrificing so much for the war, or did they? In this paper we will support the argument made in Adams “The Best War Ever” Chapter four, appropriately titled “The American War Machine”, other primary sources used will be such as Harry S. Truman first speech to congress in April 1945 and General George S. Patton’s praise speech to the Third Army. The argument being that the U.S did in fact play an impacting role in the outcome of World War 2 but how it also used appearances as an advantage to further develop itself as an international force, just like the tale from the Trojan War, the Trojan horse was all about appearances but with a precise objective.

The Western military trajectory finds many of the impetuses for a military revolution stemming from non-Western stimuli. Innovations such as the composite bow (introduced by the Hyksos), cavalry (accredited to Assyria and Persia), the stirrup (attributed to China), gunpowder (China), crossbow (China), and cannons (China) have been attributed to non-Western regions; however, it is the Western militaries that exploited these innovations to their full deadly potential and in the process created military revolutions. This paper will discuss how some of these exploitations affected the Western military trajectory during the Gunpowder and First Industrial Revolutions, most often leaving the non-Western militaries lagging behind. It will also

Technology, Discipline, Unique System of War Finance, Highly Aggressive Military Tradition, and Emphasis on Innovation are the five principles of the Western Way of War. Having a unique system of war finance, emphasis on innovation, and discipline are the aspects of the western way of war that describe warfare in the age of Napoleon (1789-1815).

The western way of war consists of five foundations that have shaped a significant amount of military cultures; the foundations are superior technology, discipline, a finance system, innovation, and military tradition. Perhaps people believe that discipline is not one of the most important foundations of the western way of war, since people tend to emphasize technology. However, discipline is the key to maximizing the other four foundations before and during conflict. Historian Geoffrey Parker agrees that technology can give a military advantage, but it is not sufficient without superior discipline. That is because discipline consists of the ability of armies to act within battle plans even when not supervised, obey orders, exercise loyalty, and restrain their fears when faced with danger. Discipline as a western way of war has influenced military cultures from the Roman Empire to today’s militaries. Discipline shaped military cultures by how they prepared for war, effectively giving them the ability to act during combat and expanding commander’s operational reach, thus aiding in conflicts throughout history and increasing the likelihood of defeating the adversary.

Let us look first at the War on Terror. The War on Terror started after the terrorist organization Al-Qaeda attacked America on September 11th 2001. America responded with a military offensive against terrorist groups in Afghanistan. The primary targets in Afghanistan were Al-Qaeda and the Taliban. Many scholars agree with what America did in this situation. In Robert J Art’s

By doing so, the U.S. excel the western way of war by following the five factors, superior technology, superior discipline and training, continuity on the western’s military theories and traditions, the challenge and response dynamic, and adopting new technologies and expand their military or forces .

In an age when mankind has the ability to completely annihilate itself through nuclear combat, war can be a more terrifying and powerful thought than ever before. Unfortunately, because of the extent of the actions that the Taliban has committed against both America and its own followers, the United States’ war against terrorism seems to be a necessity. I do feel, however, as if there are many things that can be done by the American government in the near future to peacefully approach a more civil and politically involved Afghanistan. Although my feelings on a war against terrorism are mixed, I do feel that significant actions must be taken in order to restrict the spread of

At first, the European advantage began with massed archers and organized musketry. As army sizes grew, strategies advanced, and technology grew with it. Artillery became the focus rather than sheer man power and strategies evolved to direct assault to attrition. Long range cannons became the standard and the seas were European dominated. Navies shifted from having light guns on their ships of larger numbers to heavier ships with heavier and deadlier guns, allowing for sturdier ships and more firepower. Thus, the West moved ahead in power and grew to dominate the Eastern countries. This superiority over the Eastern powers relates to an increase in violence, an example being the Napoleonic Wars. As Western technology became more battle specific and deadlier, wars became more prevalent and lasted longer, e.g. the many battles and many years of the Napoleonic Wars. More specific case studies prove the domination of West over East and in turn, prove that modernity rested on

Terrorism brings about serious problems in a government which take a long time to be resolved. People have lost their lives, some have been displaced, properties destroyed and the government in general is affected as people live with fears of attack. The war on terrorism is a big challenge faced by most governments as they look for ways and means of controlling it. More efforts have been put in place to fight the war on terrorism but the outcome is not as effective as it is supposed to be since the attackers continue to develop new strategies as the current technology advances by day. Iraq and Middle East are the most threatening countries associated with terrorism and the United States government is trying to control the

When the September 11, 2001 attacks occurred the United States responded in a manner which was seen as a traditional reaction to such an attack; it used its overwhelming superior military to invade the nation of Afghanistan. As Afghanistan was the operating base of the terrorist group responsible for the attacks, Al Qaeda, the invasion all but destroyed the group's operating capacity. But in response to the United States' apparent victory the terrorists have re-organized themselves into a looser confederation and turned to alternative methods of finance and operation. One could say that the success of the American military's answer to the September 11th attacks have created a new environment in which terrorists currently operate. This includes the use of the internet, unconventional alliances with international criminal organizations, as well the inception of the "lone wolf" terrorist. Faced with these new type of threats, the United States and its allies must find a way to identify and deal with them.

In order for the United States of America and its allies to live a life free of terrorist threats, they need to counter violent extremism and terrorism with swift and deliberate prevention efforts world-wide.

Ever since the beginning of the terrorist attacks on American soil, the War on Terror has been involved in the lives of Americans and nations near us. The War on Terror’s background originated through conflicts between warring countries in the Middle East; U.S. involvement started when a terrorist guided plane crashed into the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001 in New York City. The attack was suspected to be the work of the middle-eastern terrorist group Al-Qaeda. The U.S. military, under the leadership of then commander-in-chief George W. Bush, declared a “War on Terror” on the terrorist group and the fighting began.