Future War: Non-Lethal Weapons in Twenty-First-Century Warfare

Rating:
Summary: Excellent
Review: As US/Allied forces this very day are engaging in military operations against Iraq, the emphasis is not only on victory but on the minimization of casualties, both military and civilian. This book discusses several approaches to the latter, via the use of "non-lethal" weapons, and some of these may in fact be employed in Operation Iraq Freedom. The discussion is fascinating, and one can only hope that future technological developments will make war less probable because of the ideas expoused by the author. In the foreword to the book, the author lets Tom Clancy remind the reader of the unique American viewpoint on warfare. Americans, because of the nature of the government in which they have chosen to create and participate, have always been reluctant to go to war. Every soldier is precious, indeed, human life is precious, and is not to be taken lightly. It is therefore not a surprise that precision-guided and non-lethal weapons have and are undergoing intense development in the last two decades in the United States. Hopefully this attitude will continue in this, the best of all centuries. The author seems confident that it will, and indeed we are fortunate to have individuals in the U.S. military who have his attitude and share his philosophy.

Some of the more interesting technological developments in non-lethal weaponry discussed in the book include: 1. Electromagnetic weapons: man-portable laser weapons, blinding weapons, isotropic radiator weapons, pulse weapons, stun guns. 2. Chemical non-lethal weapons: antimateriel chemical agents, superacids, pheromones. 3. Acoustic weapons, such as pulsed periodic stimulus, which causes perceptual disorientation in the individual.

Rating:
Summary: Great Book, a must for education
Review: John Alexander's book is written with concise, clear descriptions of future weapons. These include laser/taser. Chemical systems, computer viruses, non-lethal electromagnetic pulse-power weapons and others. Each citizen reader will find this book informational and vital reading. It helps an individual understand weapons that may be used in the 21st Century.

This reader finds the "issues section" pertaining to future wars especially informative. In the "Strategic Implications" section, a subsection entitled education is of particular note. In this section three national security issues are identified as arising from a substandard education system. One is the limited pool of young men and women from which to recruit as weapons systems are getting more sophisticated to operate. The second education factor of strategic importance is the education of the civilian population. Many citizens are not sufficiently educated to understand the current issues of national security as they are becoming more complex. The third education factor is in weapons development as many of these systems need brainpower to help design or improve them. This reader agrees with the author. The author is giving education a roadmap on areas the future citizen needs in their portfolio of education.

This review is to encourage teachers in classrooms teaching citizenship to add this book to their reading list. For responsible citizens this book is a must read.

Dr. B. Feist-Fite, Educator

Rating:
Summary: Comprehensive, Authoritative, Engaging
Review: John Alexander's FUTURE WAR gives us a definitive look at emerging non-lethal weapons technology. Colonel Alexander draws on his years of experience in law enforcement and as a Special Forces soldier as well as his work in weapons development at Los Alamos National Laboratory. He gives us more than fascinating descriptions of exotic gadgetry and its applications. He explains how a convergence of political and technological factors gave rise to new threats and how non-lethal weapons can counter these threats while reducing loss of human life (and minimizing adverse political and public relations consequences). He tells us about the origins, evolution, and capabilities of these weapons and how they can be used singly and in combination to thwart bad guys, rescue victims, and send loud, unambiguous messages to decidedly unfriendly governments.

Colonel Alexander's descriptions of actual and hypothetical applications are relevant and engaging: stopping a saboteur from poisoning millions of Americans, rescuing students held hostage by gunmen in a suburb of Denver, destroying the infrastructure of an unfriendly Central European government, and toppling troublesome dictators. Indeed, because they are so compelling, one wonders if these "hypothetical" scenarios are entirely fictional. There's plenty of material for nail-biters: home made bombs and land mines, grisly tortures and massacres; chemicals of incredible lethality; warheads delivering unstoppable combinations of deadly diseases to sleeping cities.

Alexander is no Pollyanna. He views non-lethal weapons as supplements to, rather than replacements for, our conventional arsenal. He does not pretend that non-lethal weapons never cause fatalities, but he does convince us that these are minimal, compared to those caused by conventional weapons. Alexander recognizes that some of these weapons are expensive and many will remain outside of the reach of the average police department, and he cautions that without considerable training these weapons will not be deployed properly. Furthermore, he acknowledges that as presently enacted, some of our laws and treaties may make it difficult to deploy certain non-lethal weapons. He gives us a particularly penetrating analysis of how some of these weapons run afoul of public opinion. (The same person who doesn't mind pounding the enemy to smithereens with artillery may be reluctant to accidentally blind an enemy soldier with a laser.)

This book is strongly endorsed by many prominent, high-ranking military officers. No doubt, some of their favor was shaped in part by Colonel Alexander's reputation as a professional solider and his hard work in behalf of national defense. But these endorsements also reflect the fact that Alexander has done a great job of presenting a very controversial multi-faceted topic. He treats non-lethal weapons as SYSTEMS that are dependent upon international politics, law, public opinion, and strategic and tactical considerations as well as "gee whiz" technology. Alexander tells a very difficult and important story about science and people, and we should rejoice that this story is available to the general public.

Rating:
Summary: The emerging planetary conflicts and the non-lethal response
Review: One of my first introductions to John Alexander was running across his name on the World Wide Web, and he was depicted as a rather sinister, if not evil figure - because he was involved in developing non-lethal weapons....

I didn't get it.

Yes, in an ideal world we would need no weapons of any sort, but meanwhile, back in our less-than-perfect reality, the idea of weapons that temporarily incapacitated someone, even if they had a small chance of permanently injuring or killing them, compared to a bullet, which had a very large chance of permanently injuring or killing them, seemed like practical and humanitarian progress to me.

Future War is a detailed and sophisticated treatment of the vital subject of non-lethal (or at least usually non-lethal) weapons and the need we will increasingly have for them in our imperfect world that makes me wish there were more "sinister" people like Alexander around! This is not a simplistic, good guys versus bad guys book, but it does give us the information we and our leaders must have to deal with the future.

Rating:
Summary: A Good Primer on Non-lethals
Review: This book has a pretty good introduction to the growing science and technology of non-lethal weapons. It should serve you well if you're looking for something to get you started on building your knowledge of this field. However, you will be disappointed if you are looking for in-depth details on specific systems and technology (these are in most cases still probably classified in any case). The book is still definitely worth reading, though.

Rating:
Summary: The one with the best weapon WINS!!!
Review: This is an excellent book covering all the weapons that are available to fight an enemy,now and in the near future.Of course,as the title suggests, it leans on non-lethal weapons.This is not a book of Si-Fi stuff because we have already seen the use of many of the weapons described,although many have been used in various degrees,locations and purposes.As the author shows,there are many forms of weapons that do not involve a projectile or explosives but nonetheless have huge impact in warfare.Elimination of supplies,exploitation of media,disruption of communications,just to name a few.Non-lethal weapons have the greatest effect when the enemy has little or no knowledge of the other sides capability or use involved.Breaking of the German and Japanese codes was an excellent example of this 50 years ago.There has never been any magic bullet nor any new weapon that lasted too long before the other side found a counter weapon;so the way to maintain superiority lies in the ability to keep ahead.The reason America has managed to keep ahead in this is the extremely high value it places on the safety and security of every one of its citizens.Above all else this is the number one responsibility of the government.
This book shows not only the types of weapons that are available but also the thought process that goes into deciding which best solves the threat involved.Reading this book will convince you why any nation which truly values it freedoms must spend the resources to maintain superiority in all forms of weapons. Being second best is not an option.