The second fog of war

Denis Stairs has written an article about what he calls "the second fog of war":

This first fog of war -- the battlefield fog -- is these days accompanied, however, by a second. It is manifested in the uncertainty, ignorance and ‘ambiguity’ – in short, the “fog” -- that envelops those who make up the political community at home. Whether they be citizen-onlookers, interest group activists, mass media pundits, disputing politicians, or policy-makers saddled with both the power and the obligation to decide, their civic duty (and in some cases their professional responsibility) is to understand as best they can what their armed forces are up to, and how well they are doing.

But what if the task is impossible? What if this second “fog of war” is so thick with mist that the duty cannot be fulfilled, or the responsibility reliably performed?

For those of us interested in how this conflict is being digested on the political home front in Canada, this is a fascinating piece.