Blog Twelve- LdT

The Fog of War is a documentary that focuses on The United States Secretary of Defense, Robert S. McNamara. McNamara was involved with many historical events in American history including World War II, running Ford Motor Company, the Cuban Missile Crisis, and the Vietnam War. Through the film, McNamara narrates the story of Vietnam, which can also pertain to common life. The eleven lessons that McNamara talks about are:

1.Empathize with your enemy
2.Rationality will not save us
3.There's something beyond one's self
4.Maximize efficiency
5.Proportionality should be a guideline in war
6. Get the data
7. Belief and seeing are both often wrong
8. Be prepared to reexamine your reasoning
9. In order to do good, you may have to engage in evil
10. Never say never
11. You can't change human nature

McNamara speaks with real honesty in the documentary. There is a clear shift in ideas after the fifth lesson. At first it seems as though it is only about war, however, after the fifth, the lessons turn into everyday life lessons. McNamara admits that he regrets the war, which seems like it is difficult to say because he was the Secretary of Defense and had so much knowledge of what was going on. McNamara really looks at what having power did to America, having been very involved with Ford Motor Company, and being the Secretary of Defense; he had a lot of practice with running big powers. He also knows that just because you are in power does not mean what you are saying is right. He admits in the film that those in power said things that may not have been right, but even they didn’t know what was happening.

McNamara offers his lessons that he learned as a sort of apology to what happened. He is not blaming himself obviously, but he does know that mistakes were made and many people died unreasonably.