Customer Reviews

The Principles of War for the Information Age

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A point for point deconstruction:

This work focuses in analyzing "the nine principles of war" written by British General J.F.C Fuller in the original 1922 operations manual. Each of Fuller's Nine Principles are considered, and then contrasted to historical examples where the principle fails. It would have been nice to see Fuller's historical examples used, and if a rebuttal was necessary then to give one, but typically the other does not cite to Fuller in a case per case basis.

Considering the age of J.F.C. Fuller's Nine Principles and perhaps due to this book's impassioned attack against them, they have been "retired" to the status of an appendix in the Marines current operations manual.

This book will grow on you, it is good after several readings, but requires several readings to get its full meaning. I enjoy it now, but I hated it when I first bought it.

"The Principles of War For the Information Age" is an ambitious book seeking to not only redefine but replace the traditional MOOSEMUSS (maneuver, objective, offensive, surprise, economy of force, mass, unity of command, simplicity, and security) principles of war. The book consists mainly of the author's thoughts with only a few weak historical examples given as evidence. The book does not provide a compelling case for change, but serves well as a thought-provoking essay. One finds enough material to keep the readers' interest to complete the book with an occasional nugget of gold. One has to admire the author's courage in writing the book as an active duty officer. The Army should assign the author to a prestigious military research center or college.

LTC Leonhard is a brilliant tactician who examines the past, the present and the future simultaneously--a coup d-oeil---creating an understanding of everything far better than cowardly copying the Germans or someone else. He takes what he knows to be true as a current U.S. Army battlefield Commander and applies this experience to fresh thinking far better than any arm-chair wannabe who praises another service that has not done its homework and thought very deep about the issues, but is deep in platitudes. The 9 Principles of war (MOOSE MUSS) as we remember them are actually derived from Clausewitz if another reviewer had his wits about him. They are a guide to thinking no more divinely inspired as the writings of Big Al or the wannabe tacticians of America's sea-based posturers.

LTC Leonhard is one of America's and the Army's best and brightest thinker-warriors who refuses to succomb to the platitudes of the past or the present Germanophiles, who omit in their discussions that maneuverism died in the fortress cities of Tobruk, Stalingrad, Bastogne when it met the defense-in-depth fueled by a nation at total war. We need new thinking not new wine in old wine bottles!

Good work, Sir!

There are some tidbits of wisdom in the soup offered up by Leonhard. Following his excellent The Art of Maneuver, and Fighting by Minutes, Principles begins as a much needed critique of the classical principles of war. He shows with great gusto that many are mutually contradicting, like mass, security, and maneuver. You can't hide a large force, or make it move very quickly. Nor can you hide a moving force.

I suppose Leonhard hoped that his new principles of war would take off, and generate whole new doctrines and policy for the "information age." His Three Laws of War are an excellent step forward in anthropology and psychology, but whether they will be much use on the battlefield or policy centers is unclear.

Rather than scrap aging principles for a new way of thinking, as I had hoped, Leonhard appends several new "principles" to his three laws. Having read his other books with much enjoyment, I was shocked to see him actually state that the quintissential fog of war would be lifted in the information age, especially after the derision he heaped on just that idea in The Art of Maneuver.

Frankly, I would recommend this book to anyone who blindly subscribes to the touted "Principles of War," if only to see more innovative thinking. The latter part of the book, on the "new" principles of war remain to be demonstrated in reality.

This book is one of the best strategy books I've read lately. His ideas are really thought provoking. The only negative thing I have to say about this is that in one or two chapters he tends to talk about weapon systems or military ideas that really only make sense to a american general.
But overall it is a masterpiece.

I wish that his Fighting by minutes will be released again for a better price. And I wish that he writes a new book soon.

What are the new ethical and military principles for fighting a war using today's modern machinery and equipment? Principles of War for the Information Age provides a thought-provoking discussion of modern warfare and the new principles of such battle, discussing implications of precision warfare, objectives in war, and civilian and military concerns alike.

Building on his first two works, Leonhard proposes a new, systematic means of understanding conflict. It is Military in nature, but the framkework has widespread application. Conflict is conflict -- be it on the battlefield or in the marketplace. This is not a blood-and-guts story; rather it is a framework for developing and evaluating strategies in their most fundamental forms. He blends his own combat experience with a comprehensive understanding of history. He dares the reader to be so progressive. Leonhard's style is forward, bold, and entertaining. Enjoy.

What is the key to future victory in war? How should the United States wage war in the 21st Century? The publication of this book couldn't have been better timed. Leonhard's excellent investigation of the Principles of War offers a valuable resource for any professional involved in a serious study of the defense of the Nation. Leonhard challenges the conventional military wisdom of the day and provides an alternative argument that is right on target. Leonhard argues convincingly that the old rules of war are outdated and must be replaced. He explains a theory of war that makes sense for today and tomorrow. If you care about the course of military affairs in the 21st Century, if you are looking for answers to today's military and foreign policy issues, then you must read this book.

Colonel Leonhard's The Principles of War for the Information Age is a very good addition to growing body of work concerning the intellectual underpinnings of our army. (The author confesses that he has written primarily about ground warfare---which should not surprise since he's an infantry officer.) Other reviewers have criticized Leonhard's lack of depth/explanation of then existing "principles" used by the US Army to train/instruct leaders, and this criticism has some merit, but I side with the reviewer's who observe that the author is putting down markers; starting the dialogue, as it were. Part 3 The Laws of War (Humanity, Economy, & Duality) is well-thought-out and explained. Leonhard promises the reader to see the "light" on reading the chapter on "duality"---and while I did not see the light, I must confess his explanation was compelling. Leonhard highlights the dichotomy between "knowledge" and "ignorance" and the importance "knowing" what we know to maximize our efforts, to increase our effectiveness/efficiency. His encouragement to synthesize the extremes of "knowledge"/"ignorance to find effective solutions has application beyond the martial arts.

"Principles" was written in 98, so much of Leonhard's talk on the power of information was prescient; information is power. I don't believe we have yet to realize the true power of information, for many still place too much emphasis on technology. Jim Storr's The Human Face of War takes this tack---emphasizing the human in the loop. This is not to suggest Leonhard ignores the soldier---he does not, but these authors viewed warfare from two different perspectives, and on my reading are complementary in many respects.

Leonhard concludes with an instructive paragraph:
"With a prudent respect for the past, we must be intellectually ready to question every assumption and assertion, because people will die and societies will suffer violence and destruction at the hands of these principles. To the degree that we can scrutinize the wisdom of the past, we may ordain a better future."

"Principles" advances the dialogue and our body of knowledge is better as a result of Leonhard's insightful and "illuminating" efforts. This book is highly recommended.

What really impresed me about this book was Leonhard's application of physics terms to modern warfare. Using quantities like "velocity", "momentum" and "mass", he distills modern warfare to its most basic components, and by so doing, offers the foundation for the proper application of maneuver doctrine in 21st century arms.

While perhaps not as engaging as "The Art of Maneuver", "The Principles of War for the Information Age" is another significant contribution to military theory by an outstanding author.