The Focus Of War Has Changed Over The Centuries
November 17, 2024โข700 words
"War does not determine who is right - only who is left." ~ Bertrand Russell
"So long as there are men, there will be wars." ~ Albert Einstein
"I know not with what weapons World War III will be fought, but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones." ~ Albert Einstein
"They wrote in the old days that it is sweet and fitting to die for one's country. But in modern war, there is nothing sweet nor fitting in your dying. You will die like a dog for no good reason." ~ Ernest Hemingway
When we think about war today, we might wonder if it is really happening less often or if it just seems that way.
War has changed over time.
During the Medieval Period, wars were fought mostly between kingdoms, empires, and tribes. Armies were small, fought with swords, shields, and arrows, and sieges were common. Religion, territory, and power were major reasons for conflict.
The Renaissance wars featured the rise of gunpowder, firearms, and cannons, making warfare more destructive. European nations began to form large standing armies. Wars were often fought for economic reasons, such as colonial expansion, wealth, and power.
The Napoleonic Wars marked the beginning of large citizen conscription armies with modern military tactics and fast-moving organized troops using horses, large cannons, and gunfire. Wars were fought for national ideologyโnationalism, economic reasons, politics, colonial expansion, and power.
During the Industrial Age, new weapons such as Gatling guns, machine guns, railroads for transport, and the massive scale of ocean shipbuilding all made wars deadlier and faster. Industrial empires fought over colonies, leading to global conflicts on every continent.
The concept of Total War came about during the two World Wars. These wars were fought with advanced weapons (tanks, aircraft, submarines, chemical weapons, deadly multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS), land-to-land and air-to-land missiles, and bombs, including nuclear bombs) and involved millions of soldiers and civilians. Total War affected all parts of society, and both wars ended with massive destruction and loss of life in many societies.
The Cold War Era saw no direct large-scale wars between superpowers. Such wars were avoided due to the possibility of mutual destruction within hours; both the USA and the USSR were armed with thousands of intercontinental ballistic missiles, each carrying multiple nuclear warheads and aimed at each other. Conflicts shifted to smaller, proxy wars, supported by these two superpowers.
In the present, modern militaries rely heavily on computer technology. Computers, humans, and artificial intelligence control weapons such as drones, killer robots, cyber warfare tools, and precision-guided missiles. Artificial intelligence in F-35s and B-2 bombers has made these planes so dangerous that it is almost impossible for human pilots to shoot them down, as AI assists pilots in executing complex maneuvers and achieving successful kill shots.
Wars today are more often fought against terrorist groups, which can result in the destruction of the entire society or nation that accommodates such organizations. The primary mode of destruction involves artificial intelligence-guided drones, planes, and precision-guided missiles from land and air, aided by spy satellites for pinpoint accuracy.
Countries that house and support terrorist groups tend to be targets of collective punishment (massive killing of civilians and identified terrorists by highly modernized, technologically advanced militaries). Using artificial intelligence, killer drones, and satellite-guided missiles, these societies' infrastructure, including electrical and water facilities, become open targets for destruction. However, such actions are considered illegal internationally by the International Court of Justice. Currently, there is no consequence for these militarily advanced societies that commit illegal acts against humanity.
Large-scale wars are rare, and total wars among wealthy nations are non-existent. However, there is a rise in cyber-attacks, economic warfare, and small, unconventional proxy wars.
The worst-case scenario would involve a miscalculation by artificial intelligence or a political leader of a nuclear-armed country approving a multiple nuclear weapon attack, which would likely lead to NATO countries and Russia and its allies launching their ready-to-fire nuclear missiles, resulting in a mutually assured destruction scenario.