ABSTRACT
The Bush doctrine requires a high degree of circumspection and a cold blooded ability to weight the costs and benefits of actions objectively. The US experience during the post-Cold War era begs a deeper question. The Gulf War of 1991 was a priceless opportunity squandered. The world was largely behind the international coalition and what sympathy there was for Saddam Hussein was effectively muted by the horrific environmental and economic crime he committed in torching Kuwait's oil fields. Overreliance on technology Americans were dazzled by the performance of their airpower in the 1991 war and again in Kosovo in 1999. Smart bombs and Precision Guided Munitions (PGM) became all the rage. Throughout the 1990s there were all sorts of articles in American military publications about the Revolution in Military Affairs and Information Age Warfare and just-in-time logistics. India had a nuclear weapon the Pakistanis were developing a nuclear weapon, it was really that simple.
