Has Technology Made Strategy Obsolete? Essay -- essays research papers

Has Technology Made scheme Obsolete? It has been said that, "improvements in applied science for waging struggle have do dodging increasingly irrelevant." This is not the case strategy is actually fit more important with the exploitation of more sophisticated military machine technology. first it must be glide byly defined how strategy and technology appertain to each other. There have been many distinct views on what, in effect, constitutes strategy. If one were to compare Sun Tzus concepts of strategy and compare them to that of Clausewitz, it would be clear that the two defined strategy much differently. Sun Tzu viewed strategy as a much larger issue than did the Clausewitz. He believed that an overall strategy that utilized political alliances, misinformation, intelligence and strategic planning was the key to what he believed the pinnacle of military victory was to win the war without ever having to fight. Clausewitz had a much narrower view of strategy, on e that would more correctly be rigid as tactics. Clausewitz believed in the supremacy of direct military conflict as the sole arena for states to resolve their differences and satisfy their ambitions. He chargeed then, on the best way to win the war, believing that war was inevitable. It is clear then, that devilment both men wrote on the subject of war, their focus was on different levels of state of war, Sun Tzus focus was on strategy, or grand strategy, while Clausewitzs focus was on the tactical level, or operational strategy. Technology is of a different ilk altogether than the closely related topics of tactics and strategy. Technology is the tools with which the war is waged. It rear end consist of not only mechanical instruments, but of nuclear, chemical substance and biological tools as well. Technology is an ever changing, constantly improving, element of warfare that has throughout history continually improved the efficiency with which mankind can kill one and other. Technology Strategy Tactics The key to brain the issue is to understand how the three elements, technology, tactics and strategy are connected to each other and more specifically, how convinces in one area of pull up stakes drive changes in the other. Technology is the core to the whole process. A want is identified and a weapon, or weapons system is created in order to subscribe to that requirement. Once this has been done, the military leader... ...s Strategic Defence Initiative (SDI) or " tether Wars" plan that finally broke the economically weaker USSR. Currently, the US Armys is driving toward the development of a Strategic Anti-missile System resent successful tests of this new technology raise the specter of a return to the winnable war scenario. These new technologies has, as all technology is, been developed to finally and directly eliminate the nemesis generated by initial development of the nuclear strike capability. The question that direct begs to be as ked is weather this technology will once again change the strategic focus away from the economic arena and back to the military one? Technology has not rendered strategy obsolete. Certain military technological advances, which are continually reshaping the tactical realm, have managed, by the shear order of their impact, reached beyond that area to change the Grande Strategy by which nations plan their success. As we see, strategy changed in order to counter the threat posed until a counter technology was developed. The interplay of tactics, technology and strategy is cyclical and symbiotic in nature with each element being driven by changes in the other.