Combatant

of aggressors were disposed to respond. My regular taxi driver, Ibrahim, for instance, told me of his participation in the conflict and the roadblocks he and his fellow soldiers established with the entrails of slain victims (occasionally enemy combatants, often hapless civilians). Upon earning his trust, he openly began confessing everything his past held. Ibrahim’s was a war of scarcity; petrified of not having enough, he complied with every order given to him by Taylor’s men, eventually being…

Before Columbus embarked on his trip to sail across the Atlantic Ocean, a Norse seaman, Leif Eriksson had the first glimpse of what life could be for Europeans that crossed the ocean and reached the New World. History has told us that European’s in the Middle Ages, weren’t necessarily known for being great adventurers. But as time went on, European’s had the greatest adventure of all; coming to the New World. As changes started to occur in Europe, incentives to leave their country for new…

Introduction Over many years, there has been argument over the duty a physician has in the war. Overall a physician or any health care professional has a duty to their patients and this must be the same in noncombatants and in war. The struggle can be hard when decisions can be influenced by combat, however health care professionals are advised to honor their ethical duties. In the following, I will talk about the summary of the different views on this subject, how the ethical principles fit…

Tacitus is a Roman historian who has written several, important historical documents. Included with the plethora of historical documents he has written is Germania. Tacitus lived from 56 CE to 120 CE, and he completed Germania ¬around the year 98 CE. Germania serves as a study to the lives of the Germanic Tribes that had lived outside the rule of the Romans during the time. However, it can also serve another purpose. The introductory paragraph of this text described Tacitus’s distaste of the…

Difficult to answer. Conventional wisdom says no with the sweeping rise of ISIS, proliferation in lone wolf attacks, as well as, various disparate attacks systematically taking place all over Europe and in the United States. It seems that the strategy of terrorist groups and individuals waging a war of Jihad against soft targets are not complying with the current administration 's strategy of leading from behind. Other than the political talking heads who have made the case that ISIS is in…

On December 7, 1941 Japan began a chain reaction that would eventually lead to the bombing of two Japanese cities and the murder of thousands. The plan of the atomic bomb actually began, though, as an attack on Nazi Germany. Albert Einstein alerted the American government that the Germans were developing atomic weapons and soon the Manhattan Project began. Robert Oppenheimer was in charge of the project to build an atomic bomb to counter Germany. Enrico Fermi designed the first successful…

Non-lethal weapons, unlike lethal weapons, are not used to fatally injure people. They are primarily used to enforce law and order, in cities, neighborhoods, and even during war. Stephen Coleman’s TED Talk, Non-Lethal Weapons, A Moral Hazard?, outlines both the positive and negative outcomes from non-lethal weapons. Although some may argue that non-lethal weapons are immoral and shouldn’t be used, non-lethal weapons are morally correct because they ensure the safety of civilians, are not used to…

Carl von Clausewitz and Sun Tzu, unlike Antoine-Henri Jomini, thought of military leaders as artists, not scientists. The battlefield was always evolving and the enemy does not always react the same way. A good military leader must have the ability to react to the enemy. Clausewitz wrote: Today, there is a common saying that the no battle plan survives contact with the enemy, which is consistent with Clausewitz’ and Sun Tzu’s theory. The most effective military leaders are ones with…

There is a strong Judeo-Christian principle of ‘love your enemy’. Not sure why God wanted to teach “His people” to do such a thing, but that question is redundant to the faithful. He is God and I am not. American values have often imitated the Judeo-Christian heritage that formed most, the majority, of the founding fathers and mother’s beliefs in the 18th century. As the civilization worked through this process it had to sometimes kill the enemy before they could historically love them…

something like that) This counterclaim is rebuffed in many ways, one of which is shown in “Armed and Underage” by Jeffrey Gettlemen where it states,”Human-rights experts estimate that more than 200,000 children worldwide are still being used as combatants, usually against their will. And it isn't just boys: Girls are often pressed into duty as cooks or messengers. Many are subjected to sexual abuse, including rape.” This rebuffs the counterclaim by showing how children are being forced against…