Failed hopes Sir : Anthony Clare's review of Dixon's Psychology
of Military Incompetence fails to mention that failure is a characteristic of human behaviour when confronted with novel situations.
People design and build bridges which fall down, power stations which fail to work, chemical plants which blow up, concrete beams which disintegrate, cars and aeroplanes which fail to please, pipelines with grave defects, ships which meet disaster on their maiden voyages, dangerous level crossings. These all have one feature in common: some trivial oversight proves fatal to a novel project, which is itself pressing against the frontiers of existing knowledge.
But the General is invariably in such a position where some minor omission or ,miscarriage may bring disaster. More than most walks of life he faces novel and unforeseen situations, for which he has had 'little opportunity to prepare, and in which he encounters active opposition, in effect sabotage in industrial parlance. Long experience of colonial wars enabled the British Army to undertake major campaigns with smaller resources than any other great power would have employed. The history of the Crimea might well have been different had commanders with recent experience of active service in India been appointed.
W. C. R. Whalley 105 High Street, Hungerford, Berks
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