Artless War: Ancient Text
Our Warmongering president is again on the offensive. This time his battle is at home where public opinion, ever the fickle beast, is turning away from a protracted struggle in Iraq. Few people see any sign of gain after three years of combat. Fewer yet see any sign of an end.
Washington Post outlines his – for lack of a better word – strategy:
After previewing the upcoming speech in his radio address today, the president is scheduled to make remarks on the war at George Washington University on Monday. The appearance, which will be followed weekly by as many as four other speeches, marks the start of the White House’s latest effort to convince skeptical Americans that it has a coherent plan for victory as the war nears its third anniversary later this month.
The president hopes to give “better depth, understanding and context for how the strategy in Iraq is unfolding,” a senior White House official said of the planned speeches. Vice President Cheney, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and other Cabinet members will be making speeches on Iraq in advance of the anniversary of the U.S. invasion.
The three big hitters in our administration are going out to proselytize the people, shoring up the levees of blind patriotism in the face of malcontent. Perhaps that’s a poor metaphor to use…
If our leaders had taken into consideration an old text military leaders the world over refer to as the definitive treatise on warfare, we might not be in such a terrible position: Sun Tsu’s The Art of War.
If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat.
[…]
What the ancients called a clever fighter is one who not only wins, but excels in winning with ease. Hence his victories bring him neither reputation for wisdom nor credit for courage. He wins his battles by making no mistakes. Making no mistakes is what establishes the certainty of victory, for it means conquering an enemy that is already defeated.
Hence the skillful fighter puts himself into a position which makes defeat impossible, and does not miss the moment for defeating the enemy. Thus it is that in war the victorious strategist only seeks battle after the victory has been won, whereas he who is destined to defeat first fights and afterwards looks for victory.
What more can be said?