Conclusion to Part VI

Kolenda, Christopher D.

doi:10.5810/kentucky/9780813152769.003.0034

Chapter

Conclusion to Part VI

Get access

https://doi.org/10.5810/kentucky/9780813152769.003.0034

Pages

218–220

Published:

October 2021

Extract

Clausewitz argues that a balance of determination and ability to adapt to circumstances is essential to military genius.¹ Cognitive bias, entrapment by Iraqi leaders, and loss aversion reinforced the Bush administration’s obstinacy and impeded their ability to learn and adapt. Although the Bush administration had developed metrics to assess progress, the most virulent, strategically damaging problems were intangible or difficult to measure. These included factors such as the political scrimmage for power, predatory sectarianism, and growing corruption. These frequently occurred along the seams of bureaucratic silos, so they were never accurately measured or considered in assessments of strategic risk. The absence of such considerations may have played a role in the willingness of the Bush administration to discount violence levels as strategically irrelevant.

Bush made a bold decision for the surge, but American public support for the war had deteriorated substantially from 2003 to 2007. Seventy-two percent of Americans surveyed by Pew in March 2003 believed that going to war in Iraq was the right decision. Twenty-two percent were opposed. By February 2005, opinions for and against were tied at 47 percent. By February 2008, despite positive results from the surge, opposition to the war grew to 54 percent. Only 38 percent remained supportive. Even though perceptions of how well the war was going improved from March 2007 to February 2008, a higher percentage of Americans still wanted to bring troops home as soon as possible rather than keep them in Iraq.²

You do not currently have access to this chapter.

Sign in with email/username & password
Get email alerts
Save searches
Purchase content
Activate your purchase/trial code
Add your ORCID iD

Get help with access

Institutional access

Access to content on Oxford Academic is often provided through institutional subscriptions and purchases. If you are a member of an institution with an active account, you may be able to access content in one of the following ways:

IP based access

Typically, access is provided across an institutional network to a range of IP addresses. This authentication occurs automatically, and it is not possible to sign out of an IP authenticated account.

Sign in through your institution

Choose this option to get remote access when outside your institution. Shibboleth/Open Athens technology is used to provide single sign-on between your institutionâ€™s website and Oxford Academic.

Click Sign in through your institution.
Select your institution from the list provided, which will take you to your institution's website to sign in.
When on the institution site, please use the credentials provided by your institution. Do not use an Oxford Academic personal account.
Following successful sign in, you will be returned to Oxford Academic.

If your institution is not listed or you cannot sign in to your institutionâ€™s website, please contact your librarian or administrator.

Sign in with a library card

Enter your library card number to sign in. If you cannot sign in, please contact your librarian.

Society Members

Society member access to a journal is achieved in one of the following ways:

Sign in through society site

Many societies offer single sign-on between the society website and Oxford Academic. If you see â€˜Sign in through society siteâ€™ in the sign in pane within a journal:

Click Sign in through society site.
When on the society site, please use the credentials provided by that society. Do not use an Oxford Academic personal account.
Following successful sign in, you will be returned to Oxford Academic.

If you do not have a society account or have forgotten your username or password, please contact your society.

Sign in using a personal account

Some societies use Oxford Academic personal accounts to provide access to their members. See below.

Personal account

A personal account can be used to get email alerts, save searches, purchase content, and activate subscriptions.

Some societies use Oxford Academic personal accounts to provide access to their members.

Viewing your signed in accounts

Click the account icon in the top right to:

View your signed in personal account and access account management features.
View the institutional accounts that are providing access.

Signed in but can't access content

Oxford Academic is home to a wide variety of products. The institutional subscription may not cover the content that you are trying to access. If you believe you should have access to that content, please contact your librarian.

Institutional account management

For librarians and administrators, your personal account also provides access to institutional account management. Here you will find options to view and activate subscriptions, manage institutional settings and access options, access usage statistics, and more.

Metrics

Total Views 1

1 Pageviews

0 PDF Downloads

Since 8/1/2024

Month:	Total Views:
August 2024	1

Contents

Conclusion to Part VI

Extract

Email alerts

Contents

Conclusion to Part VI

Extract

Sign in

Personal account

Institutional access

Institutional account management

Get help with access

Institutional access

IP based access

Sign in through your institution

Sign in with a library card

Society Members

Sign in through society site

Sign in using a personal account

Personal account

Viewing your signed in accounts

Signed in but can't access content

Institutional account management

Purchase

Email alerts

This Feature Is Available To Subscribers Only