Wars Then & Now

Wars are much different today than they were in years past, but much remains the same. On Monday, 8 December 1941, the cows got milked, the eggs got collected, steel was milled, and cars rolled off the assembly lines. The ships still smoked in Pearl Harbor, and the dead and missing were being counted, but the US economy and population, still heavily agricultural, did not stop. The enemy had crippled one of America's fleets, but did little else. In contrast, on Wednesday, 12 September 2001, the financial engine of the modern US economy was shuttered as the rescue crews picked vainly through the debris of the collapsed World Trade Center. The modern economy depends on near instant transfer of financial and equity instruments, and the ease of personal travel. The transfers and travel rely simply on trust, that planes fly on time and safely, that financial centers are secure places to work, that rules and contracts will be enforced, that transactions will take place from anywhere on the globe, that brokers and analysts will be at their desks covering all markets in any time zone, 24/7. The enemy in this new era turned the instruments of modern travel - the ease of access to airports and airplanes - into deadly effective weapons against the primary instruments of the financial and stock markets - human capital, the sense of safety, and trust. The enemy did not merely topple a couple of buildings or shut down a city, but shut down the American airline industry, the primary stock market of the world, and many of America's most prominent banks for several days. Unlike Pearl Harbor, the direct effects of 9-11 were not local, but nationwide in scope. Wars: Then & Now looks at this and offers insightful commentary on how things have changed in the waging of America's wars... and in some cases... how they have remained the same. It's a must read for anyone that wants to get a better understanding of the American (political, media and public) psyche during and after our various conflicts through the years. About the Author: Rick Waddell is a businessman currently living in Florida. A native of Arkansas, he graduated from West Point in 1982, and holds advanced degrees from Oxford, Webster, and Columbia. He continues to serve in the U.S. Army Reserve and has deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan on seven separate occasions.