|
War Is a Government Program
By Sheldon Richman
05/31/07 "fff"
-- - - June 1 is the 227th anniversary of the birth of Carl
von Clausewitz, the influential Prussian military theorist and
historian. Clausewitz is best known for writing in his book, On
War, “War is not merely a political act, but also a real
political instrument, a continuation of political commerce, a
carrying out of the same by other means.”
These words come to mind whenever I hear conservative
enthusiasts for the Iraq occupation complain about political
interference with military operations. They don’t understand the
most basic fact of war: it is a government program. So why
aren’t people who claim to be suspicious of other government
programs suspicious of war? I can see only two reasons, neither
of them flattering: power lust or nationalistic zeal.
Many of us grow up believing that government reflects the will
of the people. But skeptics know better. Government has assumed
more and more control over private life not because the people
demanded it, but because power-seekers and privilege-seekers
sought outlets for their ambitions. They then propagandized the
public until a sufficient number of people came to believe
government control was good for them. (“Public” education has
been remarkably effective in this regard.)
The story is similar with war. Politicians start wars for
political reasons. They may seek to control resources or a
foreign population. Or they may want to secure existing
interests that could be at risk without war. The military is a
means to political ends.
War always has a domestic side. Ruling classes hold power so
that they may live off the toil of the domestic population. And
because the ruled far outnumber the rulers, ideology and
propaganda are necessary to maintain the allegiance of the
subject population. War is useful in keeping the population in a
state of fear and therefore trustful of their rulers. H.L.
Mencken said it well: “The whole aim of practical politics is to
keep the populace alarmed (and hence clamorous to be led to
safety) by menacing it with an endless series of hobgoblins, all
of them imaginary.”
War is more dangerous than other government programs and not
just for of the obvious reason — mass murder. Foreign affairs
and war planning seem to justify secrecy, shutting the
supposedly sovereign people out of the government’s scheming.
Politicians would have a hard time justifying secrecy in
domestic affairs. But it is routine in war-related matters. So
much for government’s adventures mirroring the people’s wishes.
Most unappreciated of all is that war is the midwife of
intrusive bureaucracy. James Madison understood this. “Of all
the enemies of true liberty, war is, perhaps, the most to be
dreaded, because it comprises and develops the germ of every
other. War is the parent of armies; from these proceed debts and
taxes; and armies, and debts, and taxes are the known
instruments for bringing the many under the domination of the
few.... No nation can preserve its freedom in the midst of
continual warfare.”
On their own, people do not go to war, and without compulsion
they would never pay for it — they have better things to do with
their money. Herman Goering, Hitler’s second in command,
understood this: “Of course the people don’t want war.... But
after all, it’s the leaders of the country who determine the
policy, and it’s always a simple matter to drag the people
along, whether it’s a democracy or a fascist dictatorship or a
Parliament or a Communist dictatorship.”
Mencken knew this too: “Wars are seldom caused by spontaneous
hatreds between people, for peoples in general are too ignorant
of one another to have grievances and too indifferent to what
goes on beyond their borders to plan conquests. They must be
urged to the slaughter by politicians who know how to alarm
them.”
War is politics. And that’s no compliment.
Sheldon Richman is senior
fellow at The Future of Freedom Foundation, author of
Tethered Citizens: Time to Repeal the Welfare State, and
editor of
The Freeman magazine. Visit his blog
“Free Association” at
www.sheldonrichman.com. Send him
email.
Click on
"comments" below to read or post
comments
|
|
Send Page To a Friend
In accordance
with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material
is distributed without profit to those who have
expressed a prior interest in receiving the
included information for research and educational
purposes. Information Clearing House has no
affiliation whatsoever with the originator of
this article nor is Information ClearingHouse
endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
|
Comment Guidelines
Be succinct, constructive and relevant to the story. We encourage engaging, diverse and meaningful commentary. Do not include personal information such as names, addresses, phone numbers and emails. Comments falling outside our guidelines – those including personal attacks and profanity – are not permitted.
See our complete Comment Policy and use this link to notify us if you have concerns about a comment. We’ll promptly review and remove any inappropriate postings.