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The Utility of Force
Appeared: 04/04/2008
The Utility of Force: The Art of War in the Modern World. General Rupert Smith. Alfred A. Knopf.
This may seem to be an unusual book to review in a column appearing in a Bahá'í publication. After all, Bahá'ís are supposed to be interested in peace. But it is clear from current world events that armed chaos is not going to stop overnight, and the problems to which force is nowadays applied are vastly more complex than in previous ages. When, for instance, the armed forces of one country (ideally designed to protect that nation) are drawn into action in order to prevent genocide in another country halfway around the globe, how might they logically proceed? General Sir Rupert Smith, drawing upon forty years' experience in the British Army, in theaters as widely separated as the Persian Gulf and Kosovo, has spent much time pondering these and other questions, and his book is an insightful exploration of the limits and obligations of modern armies.
The Bahá'í emphasis on peace implies a resolute pacifism. However, in a letter written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi, the Guardian stated:
With reference to the absolute pacifists, or conscientious objectors to war; their attitude, judged from the Bahá'í standpoint is quite anti-social and due to its exaltation of the individual conscience leads inevitably to disorder and chaos in society. Extreme pacifists are thus very close to the anarchists, in the sense that both of these groups lay an undue emphasis on the rights and merits of the individual. The Bahá'í conception of social life is essentially based on the subordination of the individual will to that of society. It neither suppresses the individual nor does it exalt him to the point of making him an anti-social creature, a menace to society. As in everything, it follows the 'golden mean'. The only way that society can function is for the minority to follow the will of the majority. 1
In the same context, Bahá'u'lláh wrote:
The Great Being, wishing to reveal the prerequisites of the peace and tranquillity of the world and the advancement of its peoples, hath written: The time must come when the imperative necessity for the holding of a vast, an all-embracing assemblage of men will be universally realized. The rulers and kings of the earth must needs attend it, and, participating in its deliberations, must consider such ways and means as will lay the foundations of the world's Great Peace amongst men. Such a peace demandeth that the Great Powers should resolve, for the sake of the tranquillity of the peoples of the earth, to be fully reconciled among themselves. Should any king take up arms against another, all should unitedly arise and prevent him. If this be done, the nations of the world will no longer require any armaments, except for the purpose of preserving the security of their realms and of maintaining internal order within their territories. This will ensure the peace and composure of every people, government and nation. We fain would hope that the kings and rulers of the earth, the mirrors of the gracious and almighty name of God, may attain unto this station, and shield mankind from the onslaught of tyranny. 2
I was once in a Sunday school group when one of the Bahá'ís present innocently wondered aloud what we could spend the defense budget on when we no longer had an army! Although Bahá'u'lláh directs us to work for peace, He also warns us that we must be prepared to defend that peace. How could the kings of the earth, lacking arms, defend their people against an aggressor in their midst? But how might the armed forces function within a peaceful world? General Smith gives us an idea of how future armies might look, and operate, in a more integrated world.
The Utility of Force is divided into three broad sections. The first, "Interstate Industrial War", leads the reader from the Napoleonic Wars through World War II, delineating the motives for war and the exponential growth of armies and armaments during that period. The second, "The Cold War Confrontation", explores the metamorphosis of war during the latter half of the twentieth century, as new ideologies came into play, there was a resurgence of guerrilla warfare and paramilitary groups, and the doctrine of international intervention arose. The third section, "War Amongst the People", discusses the current state of affairs and ponders directions that the military might take in coming years.
General Smith argues that industrial war is to all intents and purposes finished. In its place a new form of warfare has arisen. He identifies a number of trends in modern conflicts:
- The ends for which we fight are changing from the hard objectives that decide a political outcome to those of establishing conditions in which the outcome may be decided
- We fight amongst the people, not on the battlefield
- Our conflicts tend to be timeless, even unending
- We fight so as to preserve the force rather than risking all to gain the objective
- On each occasion new uses are found for old weapons and organizations which are the product of industrial war
- The sides are mostly non-state, comprising some form of multi-national grouping against some non-state party or parties 3
Armies equipped to fight industrial-type wars find it difficult to cope with newer-generation conflicts, lacking flexibility and the ability to downscale. General Smith uses Bosnia as his prime example of a modern conflict in which the effectiveness of the armed forces attempting to intervene (a UN coalition) was hampered by inability to respond to this paradigm shift, and points out that the genocidal madness that swept Rwanda in 1994 could have been quickly halted by a swift, firm international intervention. He takes care to affirm that military forces must act within the rule of law and be answerable to institutions such as the International Criminal Court. Indeed, he foresees further development of such military law. Likewise, he understands that the role of the military is becoming increasingly international, and envisions cooperation among the world's armies to ensure the security of all. General Smith writes:
In writing these words I do not suggest that armed force cannot be used, and used effectively, to achieve a political purpose. One has only to see how effective a few men armed with simple weapons can be, and how hard it is to defeat them and prevent them from advancing their political agenda by force of arms, to realize this. Force does have utility—for all purposes: in defence, in maintaining the security of the state and its people, and in keeping the peace on an international basis. By this I mean putting teeth into our international efforts that range from keeping the peace to peace enforcement to defence.
...[T]he general purpose of all interventions is clear: we seek to establish in the minds of the people and their leaders that the ever-present option of conflict is not the preferable course of action when in confrontation over some matter or other. This applies as much to the state possessing nuclear weapons or seeking to obtain them, rogue or otherwise, as it does to the terrorist or the machete-wielding rebel; each is posing an armed threat to the people to establish a condition in which to achieve its political goal. To do this, military force is a valid option, a lever of intervention and influence, as much as economic, political and diplomatic levers, but to be effective it must be applied as part of a greater scheme focusing all measures on the one goal. 4
It's not difficult to follow General Smith's discussion (indeed, I would recommend just the first section to anyone wishing to read a simple military history of the past couple of centuries), and the reader can probably come up with some of his or her own examples to supplement the General's. I do wish General Smith might have made the final chapter, in which he discusses the future of the armed forces, a bit longer. Bahá'ís reading this book might be pleasantly surprised at how "Bahá'í" the General's thoughts often are. Those conditioned to think of the military as a collection of mindless, brutal baby-killers will have their eyes opened. General Smith tells of an anxious moment during the Bosnian war:
...[I]n early 1999, we awaited the decision as to whether or not NATO was to bomb Serbia and the Serbian forces in order to coerce Milosevic into withdrawing his forces from Kosovo, a province of Serbia, where they were oppressing the Kosovars. This was to be done without the licence of a UN Security Council resolution, and I was in some doubt as to the legitimacy of our intended actions—and whether I, the deputy NATO commander (DSACEUR), should be taking any part in the operation. I reflected deeply on the matter and finally decided that it was legitimate simply on the moral grounds that if I, a strong, fit man, was walking down a road and saw and heard in a house evidence that a violent crime was in process it would be my duty to break in and stop it, using sufficient force to do so. 5
Readers will note that General Smith's chain of reasoning follows 'Abdu'l-Bahá's:
But if a person wishes to assault Siyyid Manshadi, certainly I will prevent him. Although for the malefactor noninterference is apparently a kindness, it would be an oppression to Manshadi. If at this moment a wild Arab were to enter this place with a drawn sword, wishing to assault, wound and kill you, most assuredly I would prevent him. If I abandoned you to the Arab, that would not be justice but injustice. 6
In the past, the coming of war was announced by the arrival of armies; today it arrives anonymously, in a backpack full of plastic explosive. While the days of huge armies clashing on vast fields may be gone forever, one need only glance at the headlines to know that there is no shortage of people willing to murder and maim for their cause. As long as this is so, there will still be a need for strength, and the courage to use it wisely.
1. Shoghi Effendi, Directives from the Guardian, p. 53
2. Bahá'u'lláh, "Lawh-i-Maqsúd" ["Tablet of Maqsúd"], Tablets of Bahá'u'lláh, p. 165, emphasis added
3. Smith, The Utility of Force, p. 271
4. Smith, p. 409
5. Smith, p. 390
6. 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, p. 270
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