The New Rules of War

Victory in the Age of Durable Disorder

By: Sean McFate

Narrated by: Joe Knezevich

"Stunning. Sean McFate is a new Sun Tzu." (Admiral James Stavridis (retired), former Supreme Allied Commander at NATO)

An Economist Book of the Year 2019

An urgent, fascinating exploration of warfare - past, present and future - and what we must do if we want to win today from an 82nd Airborne veteran, former private military contractor, and professor of war studies at the National Defense University.

War is timeless. Some things change - weapons, tactics, technology, leadership, objectives - but our desire to go into battle does not. We are living in the age of Durable Disorder - a period of unrest created by numerous factors: China’s rise, Russia’s resurgence, America’s retreat, global terrorism, international criminal empires, climate change, dwindling natural resources, and bloody civil wars. Sean McFate has been on the front lines of deep state conflicts and has studied and taught the history and practice of war. He’s seen firsthand the horrors of battle and understands the depth and complexity of the current global military situation.

This devastating turmoil has given rise to difficult questions. What is the future of war? How can we survive? If Americans are drawn into major armed conflict, can we win? McFate calls upon the legends of military study Carl von Clausewitz, Sun Tzu, and others, as well as his own experience, and carefully constructs the new rules for the future of military engagement, the ways we can fight and win in an age of entropy: one where corporations, mercenaries, and rogue states have more power and ‘nation states’ have less. With examples from the Roman conquest, World War II, Vietnam, Afghanistan, and others, he tackles the differences between conventional and future war, the danger in believing that technology will save us, the genuine leverage of psychological and ‘shadow’ warfare, and much more. McFate’s new rules distill the essence of war today, describing what it is in the real world, not what we believe or wish it to be.

Some of these principles are ancient, others are new, but all will permanently shape war now and in the future. By following them he argues, we can prevail. But if we do not, terrorists, rogue states, and others who do not fight conventionally will succeed - and rule the world.

©2019 Sean McFate (P)2019 HarperCollins Publishers

A bit delusional and brainwashed but great book

He provides great information but sometimes he only provides one side of the story. Great book overall.

A must read!

An interesting and important take on modern warfare. Information war, mercenaries, and the Strategic Arts are the paths to continued American primacy as outlined by the author.

I Loved This

Reminiscent of Robert Greene books on strategy and warfare with contemporary and nuanced examples today. Almost a prediction of the future. I will be listening again.

great book, great reader, poor sound editor.

The book itself is great. The reader does a fine job reading it. Whoever edited this thing cuts the first half to full second off of every audio clip and pieced it together. It wouldn't be so bad if hundreds of audio clips didn't make up each chapter. It is annoying trying to guess the first word all of the time and takes away from the enjoyment of the book. Please fix this.

Sage

Mr McFate reminds us there isn't much new under the sun, especially when it comes to warfare. In this controversial book, the importance of juggernaut, modern institutions are questioned and a new theory of future conflict is introduced that sounds oddly similar to those of yesteryear. Just summed up in ten tidy rules. No matter your stance, ultimately the author paints a picture of what COULD be the future of warfare and forces the reader to consider his validity and question modern paradigms. Thought will be achieved.

Relevant/ Researched/ Verifiable Points

If the reader can get past the author's ego, there are some very salient points in this book. Highlights:

1. Western powers look at War as binary: either we are at war or we aren't.
2. With that binary outlook, western powers adhere to the Laws of War (large, defined force-on-force, defined endstate).
3. Other countries are running circles around the US, using non-conventional forces and methods to get to their own undeclared end states.
4. Best example: Russia, with its annexation of Crimea and continuing (denied) battle for Ukraine.

Conclusion: No bad guy wants to go toe-to-toe in all-out War with the US, so they find ways around our policies, doctrines, and weapons systems. YES, Sean McFate has some very good points here.

Great read for understanding strategies

Loved it. Provides an alternative view to strategy that defies the "norm" thought process. The book provides great insight into the mentality modern war is stuck in.

Perspective

Great perspective. This book stirs up everything we think we know. A counterpoint to conventional theory.

Good insights, somewhat annoying narrator

Good book to shake things up and think differently about conflict today. I consider myself a practitioner of Irregular Warfare (hybrid, asymmetric, whatever you’d like to call it), but even I was surprised by some of his concepts. Some of his concepts can at times seem to contradict each other or be a little extreme but like in most things take a little bit of each. His points are valid but some are going to be more valid than others (some might be the 85% solution, while others a 65% solution, but each should be considered). My main issue is with the narrator. He sounds like he’s trying too hard to sound cool and the story can sound like the author is trying to wow you with cool things he seen or done. I believe this is mostly to due with the narrator.

Well written and well thought out

I'm a military analyst and rarely impressed by military commentary. This was a refreshing change to the normal hyperbole I sift through everyday at work. Great analysis, true to power, and operationally relevant. The end is a bit meandering but I'll let it slide.