The Dogs of War

In trying to figure out what needs to be done to achieve victory in Iraq and Afganistan, I am often struck by the the fact that U.S. since WWII has fought limited wars. And since WWII, we have not decisively won a conflict. We have either settled for the status quo (Korea), lost (Vietnam), pulled out (Desert Storm), or are involved in an persistent insurgency (Operation Enduring/Iraqi Freedom).

Since WWII, we have only fought militarily in the nation or state at which we are a war with, but we have not battled adjacent nations or states which are supporting our enemy.

In Korea, even though the Chinese were supplying the North Koreans, and later entered the war themselves, we still did not engage China directly outside of Korea. Similarly, in Vietnam, we did not engage China and North Vietnam until Nixon bombed them to the negotiating table. Unfortunately, as the Vietnese came to the negotiating table, Nixon stopped the bombing. In Desert Storm, having almost completely destroyed the enemy, we left. Currently, in Iraq, even though we have definitive evidence of Iranian and Syrian involvement, we likewise are not engaging these nations militarily. A similar situation exists in Pakistan tribal regions.

In all these wars, we engaged the nation-states supporting our enemies with only three of the four instruments of national power (diplomatic, economic, and information), but have failed to back up these instruments of power with military action.

It struck me this morning as I was feeding my small dogs some canned dogfood, that these nation-state actors are much like my dogs, the battlefield is my kitchen, the surrounding countries are the rest of the house.

To keep the battlefield as non-violent as possible when they eat, I separate the bowls in the kitchen to prevent fighting as one dog finishes, but wants more.

After they are done eating, I wipe their faces with a damp cloth to ensure they do not spread remnents of food around my home. Since my kitchen has three escape routes, I typically open the refrigerator door to prevent one escape route and mass along the other two routes.

When they are done eating, they have to come past me to get a face washing. As I focus on one dog, another often attempts to escape through the other unblocked route. I must flex my position and seal this route and wash another face.

Sometimes, a dog will attempt to close the refrigerator door to escape the face washing while I am engaged with another and I must maneuver again to prevent escape.

This routine is repeated daily. Even though I have successfully executed the daily face washing for several months, the three dogs still test my resolve daily.

In much the same way, the US needs to deal with Iran, Syria, and the tribal areas of Pakistan as much as possible. Only so much can be done with diplomacy, information, and economic sanctions. Military action may very well provide the extra incentive to prevent these nation-states from interfering in Iraq.

The vast deserts or mountains between these countries also serve to assist in their separation much like separating the dog bowls in the kitchen keep down fighting. While not foolproof, the physical separation allows me to maneuver to prevent escalation.

Talking to the dogs and telling them to stay after eating never seems to result in face washings. I have to intervene with force occasionally to get them to comply.

The dogs test this arrangement daily as do Iran, Syria, the Pakistani tribal areas, and their supported agents. On days that one of the dogs gets free and scampers under a bed to prevent a face washing, I notice that I have to be extra vigilent with this dog the next day. So too should we be extra vigilent with Iraqi and Afghanistani neighbors.

We need to apply all the instruments of national power, most notably military strikes against Iran and Syria to keep them from interfering with Iraq and similar action in the tribal areas of Pakistan. Many folks I talk with warn me that this will swell international pride in these countries and cause more harm than good.

Just like in the kitchen where I establish a mobile defense to keep peace in the kitchen during feedings, I know this defense will fail if I also don't find the dogs that escape to surrounding rooms under beds and execute offensive face washings.

I cannot help that these countries and their actors will act in much the same was as my dogs. They will daily test my resolve. They typically do not confront me directly, but attempt to escape and evade the fash washing. If I do not show resolve, they become embolded. As they become emboldened, they get more and more out of line and occassionally have to be smacked.

This is the dogs of war.