The U.S. rushing to push troops into the eastern beaches of Taiwan while the PLA invades from the west feels very “BEF in 1914.” No question about the quality of the troops. There just weren’t enough.
I appreciate the detail and cohesion of this argument. I'm not really in a position to judge the truth of it, but as someone who has read military history for 35 years, I can say it has the ring of truth to it. It is carefully constructed and makes no wild claims. Worth reading, for sure.
Read the article below and had the term American Bushido rattling in my head the entire time. It's interesting how these "warfighters" have an unspoken desire to avoid a big boy war and engineer a social justification to seek out weaker (in their mind an easy fight as they don't understand their prowess comes from one of the largest institutions on earth) non strategic enemies.
I find the argument below also interesting cause it feels like it's saying the quiet part loud for what Blackwater and other PMCs want to be. These groups more or less falling flat as any political vanguard and operating more akin to a proxy force still reliant on state capacity
Actually the problem of "war as politics" is that neither the politicians or the military likes it. Politicians usually avoid the responsibility that comes with command and obsessing over defense policy is usually not their thing. Professional military also detests this as this will inevitably violate the fire wall that is "separation of military from politics".
The worst school is the Lind-Crevald cabal that truly seeks everything as part of a total, absolute war between "west" and "east", the kind of total neo-militarism is not for anyone with the slightest human decency.
This all rings true. And with that, did I just hear the Doomsday Clock tick another minute or two closer to midnight? Seems to me that with these assorted vulnerabilities and no quick fix for them there is a greater likelihood of a resort to first-use, no?
This excellent analysis gives the lie to the macho posturing of Hegseth and cronies. Only time and a big war will tell if the USA can stand tight and together. With its current MAGA leadership I'm not convinced they are the equal of the People's Republic and its armed forces.
To your point on mass production and mobilization of industrial resources, I found this a very interesting exposition on US ship building in WWII. The US wasn’t the most efficient or the lowest cost ship builder, but they were an overwhelming producer.
The U.S. rushing to push troops into the eastern beaches of Taiwan while the PLA invades from the west feels very “BEF in 1914.” No question about the quality of the troops. There just weren’t enough.
Be there the firstest with the mostest.
I appreciate the detail and cohesion of this argument. I'm not really in a position to judge the truth of it, but as someone who has read military history for 35 years, I can say it has the ring of truth to it. It is carefully constructed and makes no wild claims. Worth reading, for sure.
Read the article below and had the term American Bushido rattling in my head the entire time. It's interesting how these "warfighters" have an unspoken desire to avoid a big boy war and engineer a social justification to seek out weaker (in their mind an easy fight as they don't understand their prowess comes from one of the largest institutions on earth) non strategic enemies.
I find the argument below also interesting cause it feels like it's saying the quiet part loud for what Blackwater and other PMCs want to be. These groups more or less falling flat as any political vanguard and operating more akin to a proxy force still reliant on state capacity
https://mushkelji.substack.com/p/men-like-me-are-coming
Actually the problem of "war as politics" is that neither the politicians or the military likes it. Politicians usually avoid the responsibility that comes with command and obsessing over defense policy is usually not their thing. Professional military also detests this as this will inevitably violate the fire wall that is "separation of military from politics".
The worst school is the Lind-Crevald cabal that truly seeks everything as part of a total, absolute war between "west" and "east", the kind of total neo-militarism is not for anyone with the slightest human decency.
Let's see. Hmnn firepower and attrition versus seals. Drones, missiles, and arty seem like they are decimating the 'warrior' units of both sides.
This all rings true. And with that, did I just hear the Doomsday Clock tick another minute or two closer to midnight? Seems to me that with these assorted vulnerabilities and no quick fix for them there is a greater likelihood of a resort to first-use, no?
This excellent analysis gives the lie to the macho posturing of Hegseth and cronies. Only time and a big war will tell if the USA can stand tight and together. With its current MAGA leadership I'm not convinced they are the equal of the People's Republic and its armed forces.
To your point on mass production and mobilization of industrial resources, I found this a very interesting exposition on US ship building in WWII. The US wasn’t the most efficient or the lowest cost ship builder, but they were an overwhelming producer.
https://open.substack.com/pub/constructionphysics/p/how-the-us-built-5000-ships-in-wwii?r=3a73h&utm_medium=ios