The United States has issued formal Declarations of War eleven times and has followed each declaration with a victory.  Not a single Declaration of War has been issued in the past sixty years, yet the United States has pursued political objectives through military force almost continuously.  The correlation should be striking.  Declarations of War appear to be the proven method for reaching political objectives through military means.  When Congress has issued them, the United States has succeeded in war.  When Congress has not, the United States has reached inconclusive end states at best.  This track record alone suggests the United States should return to constitutionally mandated Declarations of War and points to why we should pursue military objectives under only such authority.

Insurgents, terrorists, and other fighters could not exist or function without enabling communities.  Here is where veritas about bello (truth about war) needs to modify the Just War stand-bys of jus in bello and jus ad bellum.  Whenever an organization, a movement, or a network willfully jeopardizes a community, the deaths of any true innocents belong on the heads of its members.  The United States needs to make this the third rail for states.  Washington needs to convey to populations abroad and to Americans here at home that it is not up to us to effect distinctions that our adversaries prevent us from being able to make.

Otherwise… it is hard to see our way out of our current bind in which communities, civilians, innocent, and innocent-seeming, sympathetic, empathetic, or just plain apathetic citizens offer adversaries the ultimate twenty-first-century cover.  Because we have permitted war to (d)evolve to the point of opponents situating themselves in the heart of densely populated neighborhoods in order to get us to inflict as many civilian casualties as possible to prevent us from even trying to root them out, opponents present us with a devil’s choice.  We play into their hands when we attack.  But we also play into their hands when we don’t attack and they remain free.  They win either way – but only because we have helped them attain an unassailable advantage.

Subheadings

Standing Declarations of Preemption

The Ugly Nature of Twenty-First-Century Warfare

Readjusting Just War Philosophy

Rethinking Non-Combatant Status

Deterrence