What were the main lessons from the Falklands for joint capability, Essay

What were the main lessons from the Falklands for joint capability, and were they successfully incorporated into defence policy during the 1980s - Essay Example Specifically, the superpowers – the Soviet Union and the United States – displayed keen interest and the war and subsequently used the lessons from this experience in order to realign their own military strategy, doctrine, logistics and weapons system. The Falkland War had, in the days after its end, would be fundamental in the reform of the whole spectrum of conventional war during the modern times. There are several schools that posit the importance of the conflict. For military reformers, the Falkland underscored the need for inexpensive and even less expensive ships. On the other hand, the traditionalists argue in favor of an increase funding for more supercarriers – high-technology ships that would strengthen the capability command and control. Out of all the differences in this debate, however, there lies the fact that discourse is already focused on the value of amphibious war capability to gain advantage in armed conflict. Alexander and Bartlett observed: Indeed, the Falklands War seemed to revalidate all components of naval warfare. Even before the Royal Marines stormed ashore near San Carlos, thoughtful observers had begun to reappraise the utility of naval armed suasion.2 This reference to contemporary analysis can be read from the newspaper column of George Will in the Washington Post in April 25, 1982. He expressed the following statement in regard to the then on-going war further south: This is the moment to explode the belief that the use of naval forces for political objectives – gunboat diplomacy is the preferred epithet – is an anachronism. And it is time for renewed appreciation of the role of naval forces in the US – Soviet balance.3 To further illustrate the British victory during the Falkland War, the British military situation prior to the conflict would be outlined. Then, a brief account of the conflict would be provided. After this, an investigation on the impact of the

Culture, Modernity and media Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Culture, Modernity and media - Essay Example This is because the idea of a nation state or the concept the every human belongs to one or more nations has been very influential in the course of human history. A nationalistic ideology forms the basis of creation for a nation state which determines its friendly or even hostile relationships with other nations of the world. Being a part of nations entails to some extent a positive belief in the ideology of the nation and upholding certain customs which are part of the national culture (Miztal, 2003). Strangely enough, there sometimes appears to be no basis of creating a nation since in historical terms nations were formed simply because a group had a different accent from another, while at the same time, people from across races, religions, cultural and backgrounds as well as those who speak different languages can call themselves part of one nation (Giddens, 1994). This is particularly the case with western democracies like America or Britain, where the diversity of the nation is celebrated as much as the union (Bhaba, 1989). In fact, celebrations are significant in helping to create a national identity and infusing a sense of belonging to a nation without internal discrimination. The celebratory role of a particular incident in history is often connected with war and struggle. Incidentally, the celebration seldom looks at the atrocities committed by the nations involved in the war but rather at the positive, heroic, self sacrificing and noble acts which ‘deserve’ to be commemorated. For instance, the American celebration of Veteran’s Day is a celebration of all the war heroes who fought for America in the many wars the nation has conducted over its comparatively short history (Gillis, 1994). Of course there is little mention of America being the only nation in the world to have ever used a nuclear attack on another nation. The atrocities which were committed by American soldiers in Vietnam and the crimes of war they