be faced. What, for instance, are the real functions of war in modern societies,
beyond the ostensible ones of defending and advancing the "national interests"
of nations? In the absence of war, what other institutions exist or might be
devised to fulfill these functions? Granting that a "peaceful" settlement of
disputes is within the range of current international relationships, is the
abolition of war, in the broad sense, really possible? If so, is it necessarily
desirable, in terms of social stability? If not, what can be done to improve the
operation of our social system in respect to its war-readiness?
The word peace, as we have used it in the following pages, describes a
permanent, or quasi-permanent, condition entirely free from the national
exercise, or contemplation, of any form of the organized social violence, or
threat of violence, generally known as war. It implies total and general
disarmament. It is not used to describe the more familiar condition of "cold
war," "armed peace," or other mere respite, long or short, from armed conflict.
Nor is it used simply as a synonym for the political settlement of international
differences. The magnitude of modern means of mass destruction and the speed
of modern communications require the unqualified working definition given
above; only a generation ago such an absolute description would have seemed
utopian rather than pragmatic. Today, any modification of this definition would
render it almost worthless for our purpose. By the same standard, we have used
the work war to apply interchangeably to conventional ("hot") war, to the
general condition of war preparation or war readiness, and to the general "war
system." The sense intended is made clear in context.
The first section of our Report deals with its scope and with the assumptions on
which our study was based. The second considers the effects of disarmament on
the economy, the subject of most peace research to date. The third takes up so-
called "disarmament scenarios" which have been proposed. The fourth, fifth,
and sixth examine the nonmilitary functions of war and the problems they raise
for a viable transition to peace; here will be found some indications of the true
dimensions of the problem, not previously coordinated in any other study. In the
seventh section we summarize our findings, and in the eight we set forth our
recommendations for what we believe to be a practical and necessary course of
action.
beyond the ostensible ones of defending and advancing the "national interests"
of nations? In the absence of war, what other institutions exist or might be
devised to fulfill these functions? Granting that a "peaceful" settlement of
disputes is within the range of current international relationships, is the
abolition of war, in the broad sense, really possible? If so, is it necessarily
desirable, in terms of social stability? If not, what can be done to improve the
operation of our social system in respect to its war-readiness?
The word peace, as we have used it in the following pages, describes a
permanent, or quasi-permanent, condition entirely free from the national
exercise, or contemplation, of any form of the organized social violence, or
threat of violence, generally known as war. It implies total and general
disarmament. It is not used to describe the more familiar condition of "cold
war," "armed peace," or other mere respite, long or short, from armed conflict.
Nor is it used simply as a synonym for the political settlement of international
differences. The magnitude of modern means of mass destruction and the speed
of modern communications require the unqualified working definition given
above; only a generation ago such an absolute description would have seemed
utopian rather than pragmatic. Today, any modification of this definition would
render it almost worthless for our purpose. By the same standard, we have used
the work war to apply interchangeably to conventional ("hot") war, to the
general condition of war preparation or war readiness, and to the general "war
system." The sense intended is made clear in context.
The first section of our Report deals with its scope and with the assumptions on
which our study was based. The second considers the effects of disarmament on
the economy, the subject of most peace research to date. The third takes up so-
called "disarmament scenarios" which have been proposed. The fourth, fifth,
and sixth examine the nonmilitary functions of war and the problems they raise
for a viable transition to peace; here will be found some indications of the true
dimensions of the problem, not previously coordinated in any other study. In the
seventh section we summarize our findings, and in the eight we set forth our
recommendations for what we believe to be a practical and necessary course of
action.
