The Fog of War

Watch the movie: The Fog of War: Eleven Lessons from the Life of Robert S. McNamara. 2003. Dir. Errol Morris. Color. 95 min. Availability: You can get the DVD from Netflix, or rent the movie at Amazon ($3.99), or perhaps find it elsewhere on the internet. Write a 750-word report on empathy in war addressing the following items: 1. In the movie, McNamara said that empathy was present in the Cuban missile crisis but absent in Vietnam. What examples of empathy, or lack of empathy, does McNamara mention for each case? What does McNamara believe the consequences are in each case? 2. McNamara does not discuss empathy in terms of the Second World War. Why do you think this is so? Discuss in one or two paragraphs. 3. Choose a current conflict in which the U.S. is involved—directly or indirectly. Examples might include the civil war in Syria, Israel and the Palestinians, the War in Afghanistan, or the threat of nuclear war on the Korean peninsula. What would empathy look like in this situation? What would the situation look like without the benefit of empathy? Write a short empathic view of one or more of the other parties involved. Does an empathic viewpoint lead to certain policy recommendations?