tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6659531460936902596.post6050671803230072997..comments2023-09-28T04:10:57.364-04:00Comments on Elected Swineherd: The Laws of War (Part the First)Elected Swineherdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17877175966852945625noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6659531460936902596.post-18231162561819164262008-02-05T10:55:00.000-05:002008-02-05T10:55:00.000-05:00Fine and well. More to come.Fine and well. More to come.Diodotushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12537000051304968795noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6659531460936902596.post-4960899379800429212008-02-05T07:24:00.000-05:002008-02-05T07:24:00.000-05:00My learned Diodotus... As to your terms, I am rath...My learned Diodotus... As to your terms, I am rather torn, like a criminal thrown to the lions, I'm afraid... <BR/><BR/>I can see you seek to deprive me the opportunity of proving neatly that under the current laws, aggression is never justifiable, and the aggressor is guilty of the highest war crime on the books, that of, at the risk of sounding redundant, aggression.<BR/><BR/>However, in the interest of shedding at least a little light on this dingy corner of human political affairs, I shall agree to table (not thoroughly renounce!) the discussion of jus ad bellum, though it very much amounts to putting the chariot before the warhorse.<BR/><BR/>However, I believe that we must discuss the application of these laws at each of the three levels of war; strategic, which policymakers dictate - operational, where Generals and Colonels devise plans to implement that strategy, and the tactical, where a soldier, sailor, Marine, or airman may be obliged to break the laws; such as <A HREF="http://www.globalsecurity.org/org/news/2003/030805-firebombs01.htm" REL="nofollow"> the use of firebombs on targets (ie, bridges) in a civilian area, as practiced by Marine pilots in the rather ludicrously-named "Operation Iraqi Freedom".</A><BR/><BR/>As for the care and feeding of young megalomaniacs, I recommend a regular diet of red meat, Homer, Nietzsche, and thrashings; as you can see by my example, it produces a most excellent result.<BR/><BR/>Warmest regards,<BR/>Cleitus the BlackCleitus the Blackhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08881172050606497640noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6659531460936902596.post-67999359026060408332008-02-05T00:02:00.000-05:002008-02-05T00:02:00.000-05:00Aha. A challenge.It's true the world could use a "...Aha. A challenge.<BR/><BR/>It's true the world could use a "laws of war for dummies" book. I have once or twice tried to put together a course on the Geneva Conventions and am always stuck grasping for reading materials that are not heavily legalistic. There are a few, however, to which I'll post links presently.<BR/><BR/>Anyway, you propose a very wide-ranging discussion. I suggest narrowing in considerably. <BR/><BR/>First, let's focus on the laws of war and skip "how it may be waged at the strategic, operaitonal and tactical levels" - or, at least discuss those aspects only in the context of the laws of war. <BR/><BR/>Second, I recommend we focus on the law of armed conflict (jus in bello) and skip or at least table discussions of the legality of conflicts themselves (jus ad bellum). The law is rather better developed in terms of what may be done once conflict commences than it is on when conflict is legitimate. (The definition of aggression in international law is so contested, for example, that the signatories to the Rome Statue for the International Criminal Court tabled the discussion entirely in favor of getting some consensus on the books about genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.)<BR/><BR/>If you accept these terms, I shall periodically post some clarifying thoughts on the matter as individual posts, and encourage you to do the same regularly, while commenting on the particulars of your posts using the comments function.<BR/><BR/>This will all be interspersed with my usual ramblings about current events and the care and feeding of young megalomaniacs, of course.<BR/><BR/>Cheerio,<BR/>DiodotusDiodotushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12537000051304968795noreply@blogger.com