Articles by: Bradley Peniston

Rules of engagement are only a small part of battlefield discipline

In January, during the final court-martial arising from the 2005 killings of 24 Iraqi civilians in Haditha, a Los Angeles Times …

Students of military affairs have for centuries pondered whether there exist universal principles of war, or whether the uniqueness of each conflict renders such lists irrelevant. Clausewitz, who early in his career …

Light attack planes can reduce the heavy toll of supplying fuel for fighter jets

he Air Force has been continuously at war for more than 20 years. From the opening minutes of …

As budgets shrink, let’s rethink how we organize, train and equip the Army

In 1950, there were 563,000 soldiers on active duty in the U.S. Army — yet, as General of the …

‘Understanding’ must take its rightful place atop the pantheon

Reflecting revered assumptions and long-standing paradigms, The Principles of War are a list of tenets enshrined since 1949 in the Army’s Field Manual …

Europe’s biggest military deficit is a lack of citizen-soldiers

Like the active components of many European militaries, the size and capabilities of reserve forces have plummeted in the past two decades. Many …

How to inject the enemy’s view into the planning process

The past decade has seen the concept of the red team gain acceptance as a commander’s tool to anticipate actions by nonblue …

How military leaders have let us down

By Daniel L. Davis

I spent last year in Afghanistan, visiting and talking with U.S. troops and their Afghan partners. My duties with the Army’s …

Why our countermeasures fail to keep up with the growing threat

Will the weapon of choice of today’s insurgents also be the weapon of tomorrow? That is the question posed by new …

Why Congress, DoD and industry must share plans openly

“You should be giving us a single, coordinated input.” The senior staffer on the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee showed his frustration …