J.R. Part I.

This is coolbert:

The URL below is for an excellent web site. I highly recommend it. Web site owner is J.R. Mooneyham, a man of protean talents and intellect.

http://www.jmooneyham.com/ixmag.html

Specifically, within J.R.'s web site, is a section dedicated to warfare. Below is the URL for that web page. I recommend it too.

http://www.jmooneyham.com/bmil.html#section80

I have extracted pertinent comments of J.R. from the section on warfare and juxtaposed where suitable with my own blog comments on the same topic. My blog comments and further appreciations in bold.

As to who this J.R. Mooneyham is, and why his comments should be perused closely, consider his background:

"Who is J.R. Mooneyham?

"He is a researcher and futurist, author"

"He is a science fiction writer, author"

He is a web philanthropist, investing considerable time towards helping everyone he can to:

Mooneyham has provided technical consultation and administration for business involved in prototyping work for DARPA (a US military research and development institution), as well as performed in various competitive intelligence roles for certain US companies/executives, in industries including the automotive and computer fields. During late 2001 and early 2002 Mooneyham served as an informal consultant to certain US military planning operations. Mooneyham also has associates/contacts who have provided technical services to US military and intelligence agencies (including the CIA).

* "prototyping work for DARPA (a US military research and development institution)"

* "competitive intelligence roles for certain US companies/executives"

* "an informal consultant to certain US military planning operations."

* "also has associates/contacts who have provided technical services to US military and intelligence agencies (including the CIA)."

J.R. Mooneyham IS a man that has the credentials to talk with authority about military matters!!

In the subsequent series, J.R. speaks about the cons [negatives] of war.

Regarding the ever escalating casualties of modern warfare:

"Terrorism is at least somewhat preferable to war
Given a choice of experiencing war or terrorism, and being informed of all the real costs and risks involved for everyone of both, it's likely the vast majority of people would choose to experience random bouts of terrorism rather than war."

The type of terrorism as practiced by today's terrorist has it's genesis in the Czarist bomb throwers of the 1880's. Persons dedicated to the overthrow of the despotic regime of the Russian Czar. These persons [Czarist bomb throwers] made a career of attacking with bombs the Czar, his close family and relatives, and other high level functionaries of the Russian government. They were unsuccessful for the most part, but not for want of trying. Operated in a manner similar to the terrorist of today. BUT!! Did not practice the indiscriminate and wholesale slaughter associated with the current day terrorist. Czarist bomb throwers took a lot of precautions NOT to kill or injure innocents. The current villains on the contrary take a malicious, almost childlike delight in causing the mayhem they cause. The more innocents killed and wounded the better!! Callous, wanton, and total disregard for human life, displaying a depraved mentality in doing so!! This is why they are so much more despised.

The current wave of terrorist now desires and wants in the worst way possible weapons of mass destruction. Given their penchant for mass killing already, it is not hard to see why the general populace is much more fearful of terrorists than they have been in the past. Weapons of mass destruction in the hands of terrorists would have dire consequences. It IS HARD to see the terrorists, possessing such weapons, NOT USING them!!

"I use the "modern" qualification because the further back into antiquity you go, the easier it'll be to find wars which had relatively few casualties, simply because the human population was much smaller then, the armies far fewer in number of soldiers, the weapons were often less lethal, etc., etc."

Wars of antiquity tended in many cases to be less lethal as they were more ritualistic in nature. Done for reasons we might consider "quaint" today. Such as blood feuds, wife stealing, point-of-honor [punador in Spanish], cattle rustling, etc. That sort of thing. The type of warfare the "mudmen" of Papua New Guinea participate in to this day. And participation in war was restricted in many cases to those persons equipped and trained in warcraft, i.e., the kshatriya warriors of India or the warriors as mentioned in the epic poem, "The Great Cattle Raid of Cooley". To those folks being hacked up by a sword, a mattock or being shot with an arrow, war was NOT any less lethal than today. It had the same effect. You died!! What J.R. is talking about is the length of the war, the reasons why war is fought, the numbers involved, the destructiveness of the weaponry. With regard to the latter, it has only since around the time of the American Civil War that lethality began to increase at an exponential level. And has been increasing even more exponentially ever since.

"the total death toll for World Wars I and II combined, including combatants from all sides, and civilians, and deaths caused directly and indirectly by the conflicts, estimated to be around 36 million."

I have much elevated figures for the death toll from WW II alone. Upwards of fifty [50] million!! Of that figure, a very substantial amount [20 million to 30 million] can be attributed to deaths of citizens of the Soviet Union alone!! And, it should be noted that a large portion of THOSE Soviet deaths can be blamed on the actions and orders of Stalin. Stalin's scorched-earth policy in particular doomed millions of Soviet citizens living in German occupied territory to a slow death by starvation, exposure, etc. No food or shelter, medical care, etc. Soviet military losses in WW2 were also catastrophic. Around 8 million Soviet troops are believed to have been killed in the war. Again, this reflects mostly the meat-grinder aspects of Soviet military tactics and the cold, callous, and sometimes just plain obscene approach to war as ordered by Stalin. Soviet general officers were poorly thought of by their Allied counterparts as their plans were always subject to approval and modification by a man who was NOT a military man!!

"It has been only in the 20th century that mankind, with technological advancement, has had the ability to kill on such a prolific and stupendous level."

Prior to the 20th century, the largest killer of mankind was NOT war, but rather was DISEASE. Disease of all sorts killed mankind in just numbers with magnitudes just way beyond the numbers of humans killed at war. The Black Death of the 13th and 14th century is estimated to have killed around 100 million people just in Europe alone!! War time slaughter of the human species in wartime during this same period was trifling in comparison.

[There is only one exception to the above. The predacious wars of the Mongols in the 1200's created the greatest slaughter of humans prior to the World Wars of the 20th century. It is estimated that in China alone, 30 million humans were massacred by the Mongols merely to clear the land for the grazing of sheep!!!!].

coolbert.