Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Is there a difference between a military defeat and a politcal defeat in war?

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • #16
    What's a military victory?

    It's not inflicting more casualties on the enemy than vice-versa, even though some Americans seem to believe that.

    Comment


    • #17
      A military victory is achieved when the opposing forces are no longer in a position to fight. Either they surrender or run away. If they run away they may regroup to fight you again so you may have to earn another victory.

      Inflicting greater casulaties on your opponent is neither here nor there. The Germans killed far more Russians than the other way round but still lost.
      Space is big. You just won't believe how vastly, hugely, mind- bogglingly big it is. I mean, you may think it's a long way down the road to the chemist's, but that's just peanuts to space.
      Douglas Adams (Influential author)

      Comment


      • #18
        This part of your post cuts close to why I've been re-thinking the whole conecpt of 'victory' in war. What if we indentify the goal of the US leadership as securing Iraqs weapons of Mass destruction? In that case (since the WMD never existed) could we argue that the war was 'lost' before it even started and that military strength of both sides was totally irrelevant?


        With the Iraq war, there's the added difficulty that it's hard to determine what the goal was. Preventing Iraq from getting/using WMDs? Overthrowing Saddam? Getting control of the oilfields? Establishing a democratic Iraq?

        What's a military victory?

        It's not inflicting more casualties on the enemy than vice-versa, even though some Americans seem to believe that.


        Getting the opposing army in such a condition when they can no longer reasonably fight. If you destroy 90% of enemy armored forces and their entire air force, that's probably a military victory.
        Solver, WePlayCiv Co-Administrator
        Contact: solver-at-weplayciv-dot-com
        I can kill you whenever I please... but not today. - The Cigarette Smoking Man

        Comment


        • #19
          Originally posted by Kuciwalker
          Others could claim victory in the fact that there have been no follow-up attacks on US soil itself. The "fight-em THERE crowd. I don't know if that has been a military "victory" or a policing one or just the fact that an ongoing failure has yet to manifest itself.


          For some reason I find this part incredibly funny

          Why?? I have no idea how effective the anti-terrorist measures have been in reality. Do you?? One could assume that they have been very effective in preventing attacks on the US but for all I know there are a dozen major attacks that could happen tomorrow.

          Thats all I was referencing and I'm not sure what is so funny about that simple idea.
          You don't get to 300 losses without being a pretty exceptional goaltender.-- Ben Kenobi speaking of Roberto Luongo

          Comment


          • #20
            I know, I know. It's just the phrasing.

            Comment

            Working...
            X