Poison Gas: The Myths Versus Reality (Contributions in Military Studies)

The threat of poison gas, and other related biological warfare agents, holds our society hostage to the possible actions of terrorist groups or rogue states. This study hopes to convince policymakers and the general public that the bad reputation that surrounds the use of gas is largely the result of propaganda, misinformation, and oft-repeated half-truths. With proper precautions and discipline, neither the military nor society need fear gas as a weapon of mass destruction, wielded by dictators and cowards who utilize the loopholes in international agreements and flaunt world opinion. While not advocating the use of toxic gas in warfare, the author argues that education and common sense are the most effective tools to combat the gases that remain in arsenals around the world. After a discussion of the earliest uses of gas and other similar tactics in warfare, this book explains how our image of gas has been shaped by early pronouncements that branded it a treacherous and barbarous weapon. The fear of retribution, as well as political motivations, prevented the use of gas warfare in the Second World War, but its use resurfaced in later decades both in warfare and in combatting internal strife. The author details various types of gas and discusses the most effective measures to counter each one. He also chronicles the long history of attempts to outlaw gas, why these attempts have failed, and why such efforts are not likely to succeed in the future. Preface......Page 10 Introduction......Page 16 1. What Is Gas?......Page 24 2. A Brief History of Gas Warfare......Page 30 3. Military Gases, Past and Present......Page 38 4. The Legality of Gas Warfare......Page 44 5. Is Gas Really Inhumane?......Page 54 6. Why Wasn’t Gas Used in World War II?......Page 66 7. Uses of Gas in War Since 1945......Page 78 8. Advantages and Disadvantages of Gas in War......Page 86 9. Protection Against Gas......Page 96 10. Events Since U.S. Ratification in 1975......Page 106 11. The Chemical Weapons Convention......Page 118 12. Biological and Bacteriological Warfare......Page 128 13. Common Sense About Gas......Page 134 14. Epilogue......Page 138 A. The Geneva Protocol of 1925......Page 142 B. The CNN–Time Fantasy—Operation TAILWIND: An Analysis......Page 146 C. The Gases......Page 154 D. Preamble to the Chemical Weapons Convention......Page 164 E. What Is Being Done?......Page 168 Bibliographical Essay......Page 172 Index......Page 176 This work is designed to educate the public and policy makers about the reality of gas warfare, a weapons system whose legacy has been distorted by propaganda, misinformation and repeated half truths for generations. Annotation An attempt to educate the public and policymakers about the reality of gas warfare, a weapons system whose legacy has been distorted by propaganda, misinformation, and repeated half-truths for generations