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On (the Law of) War: What Clausewitz Meant to Say
Beginning of article
CARL VON CLAUSEWITZ'S theories on military strategy and war have become so ingrained in American military thought that almost every US engagement fought or planned today relies heavily on his concepts. Unfortunately, his most polished writing -the only part of his manuscript he considered ready for publication prior to his untimely death-contains only one specific reference to the law of war: "War is . . . an act of force to compel an enemy to do our will. . . . Attached to force are certain self-imposed, imperceptible limitations hardly worth mentioning, known as international law and custom, but they scarcely weaken it. Force-that is, physical force, for moral force has no existence …
