The Fog of War Notes

Opening:
Any military commander who is honest with himselfadmits he has killed people
unnecessarily, but he hasnt destroyed nations
There will be no learning period with nuclear weapons, you make one mistake and you are going
to destroy nations.
At 85, I am at an age where I can look back and derive some conclusions about my actions.
o We then have a montage where we see that McNamara was logical, effective, practical,
etc.
o We then see a calendar which shows where we were looking at nuclear war
(1) Empathize with your enemy
USSR placed nuclear weapons in Cuba and targeted 90 million Americans (almost 1/3 of the
population of the US)
o The US mobilizes 180,000 troops, develops a strike plan
o Curtin Lamay was saying to destroy Cuba
Khrushchev needed US to create a scenario where he could save face and he would then defer
from war this is knowing and empathizing with our enemy
o Notice that empathy for McNamara meant getting inside his mind so that he would do
what the US wanted them to do
(2) Rationality will not save us
In the end for McNamara, it was luck that kept us out of nuclear war
People are fallible and we have nuclear weapons with this we will destroy nations
o We see how close the US was to destroying Cuba in 1992 when McNamara went to visit
Cuba; he found that there were nuclear warheads were in Cuba at the time
(3) There's something beyond one's self
McNamara takes his philosophy courses; has children; then the war starts (WWII)
There was a 20% abort rate; people were getting scared and Lamay said if anyone were to
abandon then they were court marshaled
Notice that in this section there is talk of sorting out cards to find out who was the best and
brightest
(4) Maximize efficiency
US had the B-29; setting up airfields in China which were worthless
Lamay focused on target destruction only; The US burns to death 100,000 Japanese in one day
Not more efficient in killing more, but more efficient in weakening the opponent
(5) Proportionality should be a guideline in war
How much is necessary to gain the objectives we want? What is ethical in these circumstances?
If we would have lost the war we would have been prosecuted as war criminals. What makes
it immoral if you lose and moral if you win?
(6) Get the data
Vietnam comes up and McNamara says we should view it in terms of the Cold War
Background: McNamara goes to Ford Company, becomes president and quits after 5 weeks
McNamara says we need to reduce troops in Vietnam; Kennedy killed; LBJ takes over
(7) Belief and seeing are often both wrong (1:05:00-)
North Vietnam attacks the Navy, US responds with the Tonkan Gulf resolution
US finds that they were not attacked; We see what we want to believe. Belief and seeing are
both often wrong.
This is not a military battle, it is a battle for the hearts and minds of those in South Vietnam.
(8) Be prepared to re-examine your reasoning
We see that the US and North Vietnamese think very differently
(9) In order to do good, you may have to engage in evil
Do we always need to engage in morality? What about in wartime?
At time we will have to engage in evil, but minimize it.
(10) Never say never
McNamara ends his secretary of defense position under LBJ
(11) You can't change human nature