Military Review English Edition March-April 2014 | Page 92

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powerful, corrupt actors have an under-appreciated
stake in prolonging wars and victimizing civilian
populations. He suggests “war systems,” which
include aid agencies and the U.S. military, are
designed to enhance the power of these military
leaders and not necessarily to achieve decisive
victory. Supporting counterinsurgencies in weak
states does not make the Western world safer. Our
support of counterinsurgencies increases civilian
dislocations while decreasing their military’s need
for compromise with “terrorists” and other intractable enemies.
Early chapters focus on the economic aspects
of military conflict. Diamonds and other valuable
resources are the targets of greedy warlords. Warlords also take advantage of the conflicts to move
people away from their homes to new locations,
using security concerns to their advantage. The
military-dominated governments delay any peace
process that may endanger their control of this
process. Keen equates Afghanistan with Vietnam
as the U.S. was drawn into extended wars where
“winning” was not a high priority for the local
government.
Some of his most thought-provoking points are
made when Keen discusses the political factors
involved in the creation of “permanent emergencies.” He charges key U.S. allies, such as Egypt
and Israel, with using military justifications to
subvert normal democratic processes and profit
from emergencies. Russia and Yugoslavia are
mentioned as states where the leadership created a
sense of siege to manipulate their people. In a post9/11 analysis, Keen argues the United States is too
quick to declare wars it cannot easily end. He writes
that U.S. politicians “have actively encouraged the
militarization of the economy” and become reliant
on its technology. Finally, when he extends his
analysis to shame and the psychology of violence
in the United St ]\