Science, Strategy and War The Strategic Theory of ... - Boekje Pienter

“Destruction and Creation”, by Yours Truly (selection from an unpublished essay)According to Gödel’s Incompleteness Theorems, Heisenberg’s Uncertainty Principle, andthe Second Law of Thermodynamics one cannot determine the character or nature of asystem within itself. Moreover, attempts to do so lead to confusion and disorder 51 .“A Model of Soviet Mentality”, by Dmitry Mikheyev (selection from a speech)“Interaction between the individual and his environment starts with his perception ofhimself as a separate entity and the environment as everything outside of self. He learns hisphysical limits and desires, and how to fulfill them through interaction with the physical andsocial environment. …I maintain that the way the individual perceives the environment iscrucial for his orientation and interaction with it.”“Man’s orientation will involve perceptions of self as both a physical and a psychologicalentity, as well as an understanding of the environment and of the possibilities for achievinghis goals (Fromm, 1947). Society, meanwhile, has goals of its own - preservation of itsphysical integrity and spiritual identity. Pursuing these goals involves mobilizing andorganizing its inner resources and interaction with the outside environment of other societiesand nations. …An individual becomes a member of the society when he learns to act withinits limits in a way that is beneficial to it” 52 .Nearing the end of the sequence of illustrations, Boyd concludes with some short quotes.From Sun Tzu he borrows the famous lines ‘know your enemy and know yourself; in onehundred battles you will never be in peril’ as well as the one which forms the heart of theindirect approach: ‘seize that which your adversary holds dear or values most highly; then hewill conform to your desires’. Jomini’s oft criticized emphasis on geographical dispositionand logistics is brought along to support the importance of interactions: ‘the great art, then,of properly directing lines of operations, is so to establish them in reference to the bases andto the marches of the army as to seize the communications of the enemy without imperilingone’s own, and is the most important and most difficult problem in strategy’. Finally, Boydrepeats his definition of leadership as yet another element in which interaction is key: ‘the artof inspiring people to cooperate and enthusiastically take action toward the achievement ofuncommon goals’ 53 .Condensation to Essential ElementsFor Boyd there is a clear and united message in all of these illustrations, illustrations whichmoreover span also both previous presentations as well as the essay. Boyd captures theessential elements of the illustrations as follows 54 :CompressionPhysical as well as electrical and chemical connections in the brain are shaped byinteracting with the environment. Point: without these interactions we do not have themental wherewithal to deal or cope with that environment.Gödel’s Incompleteness Theorems, Heisenberg’s Uncertainty Principle, and the SecondLaw of Thermodynamics, all taken together, show that we cannot determine the51 Ibid, p.23.52 Ibid, p.24.53 Ibid, p.25.54 Ibid, p.28.250