The Remnants of War
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
"War... is merely an idea, an institution, like dueling or slavery, that has been grafted onto human existence. It is not a trick of fate, a thunderbolt from hell, a natural calamity, or a desperate plot contrivance dreamed up by some sadistic puppeteer on high. And it seems to me that the institution is in pronounced decline, abandoned as attitudes toward it have changed, roughly following the pattern by which the ancient and formidable institution of slavery became discredited and then mostly obsolete."—from the Introduction
War is one of the great themes of human history and now, John Mueller believes, it is clearly declining. Developed nations have generally abandoned it as a way for conducting their relations with other countries, and most current warfare (though not all) is opportunistic predation waged by packs—often remarkably small ones—of criminals and bullies. Thus, argues Mueller, war has been substantially reduced to its remnants—or dregs—and thugs are the residual combatants.
Mueller is sensitive to the policy implications of this view. When developed states commit disciplined troops to peacekeeping, the result is usually a rapid cessation of murderous disorder. The Remnants of War thus reinvigorates our sense of the moral responsibility bound up in peacekeeping. In Mueller's view, capable domestic policing and military forces can also be effective in reestablishing civic order, and the building of competent governments is key to eliminating most of what remains of warfare.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Since around 1700, humanity has increasingly opposed violence of all kinds, Ohio State policy analyst Mueller argues. For him, war is an idea, like dueling or slavery, that over time became embedded in human behavior, and whose appeal and legitimacy are now in profound decline. Better quality of life, the expansion of democracy, the development of international norms and institutions, and increasingly destructive war-making technologies are major factors. Yet if war is declining, warfare persists in the form of domestic conflicts that Mueller regards as a consequence of inadequate governments. Mueller's solution proposes to improve states' policing efficiency and effectiveness, making them better able to deal with what he calls"residual warfare" within their borders. The argument depends heavily on Mueller's thesis that the various forms of conflict prominent after the Cold War--terrorism, ethnic conflicts,"criminal war" like that still racking the former Yugoslavia--are not wars but policing problems, requiring a constabulary approach. Mueller's case is essentially semantic, based on a limited definition of war as highly organized conflict between highly developed societies; many of the conflicts he describes as"thuggish remnants" feature sophisticated weapons and make comprehensive use of modern electronics. And what happens if the newly effective states he postulates subsequently turn their attention outward? Mueller's case finally depends more on inference than evidence.
