tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7378807093271153119.post1955954903516537348..comments2023-06-20T02:25:36.578-07:00Comments on The Scholar's Stage: ISIS, the Mongols, and "The Return of Ancient Challenges"T. Greerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04621529800248145193noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7378807093271153119.post-63576626031427804092015-01-16T13:20:56.447-08:002015-01-16T13:20:56.447-08:00well done. very interesting. plus, fyi, fwiw, th...well done. very interesting. plus, fyi, fwiw, there’s an analysis that treats the mongol fighters as ancient precursors of the rise of a new mode of information-age conflict, in our monograph on “swarming and the future of conflict” (rand, 2000, download free). in particular, <br /><br />“While the Mongols failed in their invasion of Japan, they were nevertheless the absolute masters of David Ronfeldthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06488855410947866567noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7378807093271153119.post-85043503000909414822015-01-01T14:30:06.597-08:002015-01-01T14:30:06.597-08:00@Anon-
Often, but not always. I've mentioned ...@Anon-<br /><br />Often, but not always. I've mentioned the Khwarezm case here; the Jin and Song armies were just as large. The Mongols often reduced this advantage by splitting up their forces as well. (And for what it is worth, the Koreans, who held longer against sustained Mongol attack than almost anyone else, were vastly outnumbered).T. Greerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04621529800248145193noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7378807093271153119.post-10822405673263137882014-12-30T17:55:33.150-08:002014-12-30T17:55:33.150-08:00Those enormous armies of Genghis were often far la...Those enormous armies of Genghis were often far larger than his adversaries. He had discipline but also mass. Was on the offensive and able to concentrate his forces to enhance the level of mass he already possessed. <br /><br />Genghis and his subordinates too were illiterates or functional illiterates and what does that say about the most senior military commanders in the historical context.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7378807093271153119.post-73639882822723949502014-12-19T19:19:45.454-08:002014-12-19T19:19:45.454-08:00Excellent good sense throughout this article. The ...Excellent good sense throughout this article. The quote you launch from strikes me as quite daft (of course it's Muhammad + Genghis + Lenin + Hitler, who else?). I very much like "historical metaphors... of this sort make communication easier and critical thought more difficult." <br /><br />Thanks for 'Ancient Challenges' which I'm off to tackle next. Keep blogging on Bryn Hammondhttp://amgalant.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7378807093271153119.post-50034055895892036692014-12-19T02:48:43.424-08:002014-12-19T02:48:43.424-08:00@Paul--
In my mind Chinggis Khan was one of the ...@Paul--<br /><br /> In my mind Chinggis Khan was one of the greatest social engineers in world history. Sadly, very few people <i>quite</i> think about this process like I do. Send me an e-mail and I can send you an essay I written describing what happened at length (but have not published here).<br /><br /> But there are a few books/essays that get close. A few that were particularly inspiring T. Greerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04621529800248145193noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7378807093271153119.post-91902241645317621722014-12-19T00:08:27.121-08:002014-12-19T00:08:27.121-08:00"The story of how Chinggis Khan created an em...<i>"The story of how Chinggis Khan created an empire whose many branches were unified in effort and whose many subjects were absolutely loyal to him is one of the most fascinating in world history."</i><br /><br />Any good books you can recommend on this topic?Paulhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12140498912080884384noreply@blogger.com