Paper BombsIt is usual in modern warfare for aggressors to
drop leaflets warning civilian and soldier alike
to capitulate before the onset of massive
destruction. At the beginning of the Gulf War,
the Coalition Central Command in Qatar
reported that it had saturated battle zones with
literally millions of missives exhorting hostile
troops to surrender at once. In the face of an
overwhelming Air Force raining death from the
sky, one might assume that a word from the wise
would be sufficient. But these are not merely
invitations to a survival party. Leaflets are the
ordinance of psychological warfare, the purpose
of which is to instill paralytic fear that will
severely reduce an enemy’s fighting capabilities.
Paper bombs are not as intelligent as
smart bombs, nor as cagey as more sophisticated
propaganda, but they are powerful in subtle
ways. Leafleting is the art of artlessness,
designed to convey a straightforward message without artifice or conceit—
and the message contains two viable options: live or die. However, in
addition to cautionary leaflets that offer the enemy safe haven from
inescapable carnage, there is a genre of missive designed simply and
specifically to undermine a battle-weary soldier’s morale.
This variety is especially virulent when aimed at exhausted
troops who, caught in quagmires during prolonged engagements, are more
susceptible to doubt, despair, and free thought. Given the indescribable
anxiety of battlefield encounters, after the initial adrenalin rush wears off,
even the toughest veteran can be psychologically vulnerable, so the United
States Army (and doubtless military forces everywhere) has long conducted
training programs that teach soldiers to fight the crippling effects of
emotional assault.
During the Cold War, when U.S. troops were always on the
ready but experienced little direct combat, the Defense Department’s
Psychological Warfare Division produced simulated enemy leaflets that
were routinely dropped during maneuvers in an effort to show troops what
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