---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In truth, warfare has changed very little…"
description: "\"“In truth, warfare has changed very little since our great-great-grandfathers killed each other at places like Gettysburg, the Somme, Normandy, or Bagh..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/02a/marko-kloos-18789_truth_in-truth-warfare-has-changed-very-little_1383361.jpg"
---

#  In truth, warfare has changed very little since our…

![“In truth, warfare has changed very little since our great-great-grandfathers killed each other at places like Gettysburg, the Somme, Normandy, or Baghdad. It’s still mostly about scared men with rifles charging into places defended by other scared men with rifles. There’s” quote by Marko Kloos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/02a/marko-kloos-18789_truth_in-truth-warfare-has-changed-very-little_1383361.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/02a/marko-kloos-18789_truth_in-truth-warfare-has-changed-very-little_1383361.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/02a/marko-kloos-18789_truth_in-truth-warfare-has-changed-very-little_1383361.jpg)

> ““In truth, warfare has changed very little since our great-great-grandfathers killed each other at places like Gettysburg, the Somme, Normandy, or Baghdad. It’s still mostly about scared men with rifles charging into places defended by other scared men with rifles. There’s””

[Marko Kloos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marko-kloos/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

War’s core dynamics remain unchanged: scared soldiers on both sides confronting each other with guns, despite technological advances.

**In simple terms:** War is still about scared men with rifles.

Key Takeaway

Recognize the human cost of conflict.

Themes

war human nature history

Mood

somber critical

Type

philosophical historical

When to use this quote

- military training
- peace negotiations
- public policy
- historical analysis

Key Concepts

military strategy psychology of combat technological stagnation

Questions to Reflect On

- What drives soldiers to fight despite fear?
- Can technology ever change the nature of war?

A Different Perspective

Focusing only on fear may ignore strategic complexities.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Grandfathers Killed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grandfathers-killed-4799844/) [Like Gettysburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-gettysburg-2900709/) [Men Rifles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men-rifles-1597453/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) [Warfare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/warfare/) [Warfare Changed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/warfare-changed-1393198/)

## Related quotes

> [“Back in NCO school, I had to read a ton of papers by mostly clueless theoreticians, prattling on about the “changing nature of modern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marko-kloos/back-in-nco-school-i-had-to-read-a-ton-of-papers-by-mostly-clueless/)

[Marko Kloos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marko-kloos/)

> [“In July, 1950, one news commentator rather plaintively remarked that warfare had not changed so much, after all. For some reason, ground troops still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-r-fehrenbach-2/in-july-1950-one-news-commentator-rather-plaintively-remarked-that/)

[T.R. Fehrenbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-r-fehrenbach-2/)

> [The rifle itself has no moral stature, since it has no will of its own. Naturally, it may be used by evil men for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-cooper/the-rifle-itself-has-no-moral-stature-since-it-has-no-will-of-its-own/)

[Jeff Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-cooper/)

> [I was raised in Mississippi, in a family and a community that identified as black, and I have the stories and the experiences to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesmyn-ward/i-was-raised-in-mississippi-in-a-family-and-a-community-that/)

[Jesmyn Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesmyn-ward/)

> [“After my first coaching experience, the field looked more like Gettysburg than a normal defeat. But it wasn’t that bad, as only about half…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/after-my-first-coaching-experience-the-field-looked-more-like/)

[Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/)

> [Warfare has changed so dramatically.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-sestak/warfare-has-changed-so-dramatically/)

[Joe Sestak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-sestak/)

> [The sinister nature of the American soil is apparent in places like Gettysburg. Fertilize it with the blood of heros, and it brings forth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-baker/the-sinister-nature-of-the-american-soil-is-apparent-in-places-like/)

[Russell Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-baker/)

> [I remember working on movies like Gettysburg and feeling that Jeff Daniels was kind of a mentor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donal-logue/i-remember-working-on-movies-like-gettysburg-and-feeling-that-jeff/)

[Donal Logue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donal-logue/)

> [This is how McGregor is, waging mental warfare before the fights. There's no way that guy is going to get in my head.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chad-mendes/this-is-how-mcgregor-is-waging-mental-warfare-before-the-fights-there/)

[Chad Mendes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chad-mendes/)

> [The situation in the West Bank and Gaza involves a military occupation amid urban guerrilla warfare, analogous to the British security measures in Northern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-schwartz/the-situation-in-the-west-bank-and-gaza-involves-a-military/)

[Jack Schwartz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-schwartz/)

> [The life of a good man was a continual warfare with his passions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-richardson/the-life-of-a-good-man-was-a-continual-warfare-with-his-passions/)

[Samuel Richardson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-richardson/)

> [Digital warfare, in the Clausewitz definition as 'the continuation of policy by other means,' reached Western public consciousness via my own country, Estonia, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toomas-hendrik-ilves/digital-warfare-in-the-clausewitz-definition-as-the-continuation-of/)

[Toomas Hendrik Ilves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toomas-hendrik-ilves/)

> [“Hockey is not for pussies. Technically, it’s defined as a sport. Words like play and game get thrown around liberally to shield its true…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-meader/hockey-is-not-for-pussies-technically-it-s-defined-as-a-sport-words/)

[Kate Meader](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-meader/)

> [That a modern battleship of 48,000 tons would have to defend itself against wood and fabric biplanes with its main armament was a salutary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-hough/that-a-modern-battleship-of-48-000-tons-would-have-to-defend-itself/)

[Richard Hough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-hough/)

> [I did not know that the planning for biological and chemical warfare was so widespread in England, and even in France before France fell.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholson-baker/i-did-not-know-that-the-planning-for-biological-and-chemical-warfare/)

[Nicholson Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholson-baker/)

## More by Marko Kloos

> [“I’m Briana Fallon. Do you have a conventional first name, too, or did your parents anticipate your future academic achievements when they picked your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marko-kloos/i-m-briana-fallon-do-you-have-a-conventional-first-name-too-or-did/)

[Marko Kloos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marko-kloos/)

> [“Keep in mind that without the law, we’re not a military, just an armed gang that dresses alike.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marko-kloos/keep-in-mind-that-without-the-law-we-re-not-a-military-just-an-armed/)

[Marko Kloos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marko-kloos/)

> [“Back in NCO school, I had to read a ton of papers by mostly clueless theoreticians, prattling on about the “changing nature of modern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marko-kloos/back-in-nco-school-i-had-to-read-a-ton-of-papers-by-mostly-clueless/)

[Marko Kloos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marko-kloos/)

> [“We are so incredibly skilled at adapting to even the most hostile of environments, and so often we use those skills to be more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marko-kloos/we-are-so-incredibly-skilled-at-adapting-to-even-the-most-hostile-of/)

[Marko Kloos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marko-kloos/)

> [“I no longer feel like a hood rat who has managed to sneak into a place where he doesn’t belong.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marko-kloos/i-no-longer-feel-like-a-hood-rat-who-has-managed-to-sneak-into-a/)

[Marko Kloos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marko-kloos/)

> [“There’s no perfect place, you know. You always end up trading one kind of shit for another.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marko-kloos/there-s-no-perfect-place-you-know-you-always-end-up-trading-one-kind/)

[Marko Kloos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marko-kloos/)

> [“Never waste an opportunity for taking a leak, grabbing chow, or taking a nap while in the military—you never know when you’ll get the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marko-kloos/never-waste-an-opportunity-for-taking-a-leak-grabbing-chow-or-taking/)

[Marko Kloos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marko-kloos/)

> [“And as an attack-bird jock, let me add just one more thing. If this is the day you get to claim that seat at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marko-kloos/and-as-an-attack-bird-jock-let-me-add-just-one-more-thing-if-this-is/)

[Marko Kloos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marko-kloos/)

> [“I don’t know what exactly it is about this moment that suddenly makes my heart hurt, and the pain I feel is far worse…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marko-kloos/i-don-t-know-what-exactly-it-is-about-this-moment-that-suddenly-makes/)

[Marko Kloos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marko-kloos/)

> [“The ribbons and badges on a Class A uniform are a soldier’s business card, and this major’s card says “pencil pusher.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marko-kloos/the-ribbons-and-badges-on-a-class-a-uniform-are-a-soldier-s-business/)

[Marko Kloos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marko-kloos/)

> [“We are not garrison troops. We are in the business of killing people and breaking their shit.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marko-kloos/we-are-not-garrison-troops-we-are-in-the-business-of-killing-people/)

[Marko Kloos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marko-kloos/)

> [“I don’t feel guilty for making it,” I reply. “But a lot of people died so I could make it back to Earth. Come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marko-kloos/i-don-t-feel-guilty-for-making-it-i-reply-but-a-lot-of-people-died-so/)

[Marko Kloos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marko-kloos/)

> [“Cream always rises to the top.” “Yeah, so do other things,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marko-kloos/cream-always-rises-to-the-top-yeah-so-do-other-things/)

[Marko Kloos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marko-kloos/)

> [“He’ll get his in the end,” she says. “One way or another. Karma is a metric bitch.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marko-kloos/he-ll-get-his-in-the-end-she-says-one-way-or-another-karma-is-a/)

[Marko Kloos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marko-kloos/)

> [“When I was young and impressionable, I thought of war as a sort of romantic crucible, a test of one’s manhood and mettle. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marko-kloos/when-i-was-young-and-impressionable-i-thought-of-war-as-a-sort-of/)

[Marko Kloos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marko-kloos/)

[Explore all 34 Marko Kloos quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marko-kloos/)

## More Truth quotes

> [The truth seems to be that propaganda on its own cannot force its way into unwilling minds; neither can it inculcate something wholly new;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/the-truth-seems-to-be-that-propaganda-on-its-own-cannot-force-its-way/)

[Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/)

> [High school sucked. It was a universal truth, and whoever said these were supposed to be the best years of your life was probably…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kami-garcia/high-school-sucked-it-was-a-universal-truth-and-whoever-said-these/)

[Kami Garcia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kami-garcia/)

> [“Narrative cannot sustain formlessness any more than light can sustain darkness - it is the antithesis of formlessness, and so it can never truly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-krauss/narrative-cannot-sustain-formlessness-any-more-than-light-can-sustain/)

[Nicole Krauss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-krauss/)

> [“The truth is heavier than a sword.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naiyem-chowdhury-rony/the-truth-is-heavier-than-a-sword/)

[Naiyem Chowdhury Rony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naiyem-chowdhury-rony/)

> [Before Noah, men having only water to drink, could not find the truth. Accordingly...they became abominably wicked, and they were justly exterminated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/before-noah-men-having-only-water-to-drink-could-not-find-the-truth/)

[Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/)

> [I could program a 'fabulous, I love it' kind of hit season right now. I'm more interested in breaking boundaries, telling a story, defying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-c-wolfe/i-could-program-a-fabulous-i-love-it-kind-of-hit-season-right-now-i-m/)

[George C. Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-c-wolfe/)

> [How could anybody confuse truth with beauty, I thought as I looked at him. Truth came with sunken eyes, bony or scarred, decayed. Its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-fitch/how-could-anybody-confuse-truth-with-beauty-i-thought-as-i-looked-at/)

[Janet Fitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-fitch/)

> [The truth is, of course, that the curtness of the Ten Commandments is an evidence, not of the gloom and narrowness of a religion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-truth-is-of-course-that-the-curtness-of-the-ten-commandments-is/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I just speak the truth. I keep it real.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marlon-vera/i-just-speak-the-truth-i-keep-it-real/)

[Marlon Vera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marlon-vera/)

> [I always believed that photography was subjective, interpretive and certainly did not represent the truth, but I did think that its status as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-ritchin/i-always-believed-that-photography-was-subjective-interpretive-and/)

[Fred Ritchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-ritchin/)

> [The history of mankind interests us only as it exhibits a steady gain of truth and right, in the incessant conflict which it records…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-history-of-mankind-interests-us-only-as-it-exhibits-a-steady-gain/)

[Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/)

> [The greatest act of courage is to be and to ownall of who you are—without apology, without excuses, without masks to cover the truth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debbie-ford/the-greatest-act-of-courage-is-to-be-and-to-ownall-of-who-you-are/)

[Debbie Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debbie-ford/)

> [There's no authoritarian structure at Reed College, but the education is conservative. So what you have is a lot of students who are very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/there-s-no-authoritarian-structure-at-reed-college-but-the-education/)

[Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/)

> [“The Devil can cite Scripture for his purpose, Sergeant,’ Anthony Payne replied. ‘That is from The Merchant of Venice, but it holds great truth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-arnold/the-devil-can-cite-scripture-for-his-purpose-sergeant-anthony-payne/)

[Michael Arnold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-arnold/)

> [Logic is essentially a tool for getting at truth; it is the tool, for without it no reasoning is possible in any field of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-oderberg/logic-is-essentially-a-tool-for-getting-at-truth-it-is-the-tool-for/)

[David Oderberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-oderberg/)

[Browse all 45,081 Truth quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“In truth, warfare has changed very little since our great-great-grandfathers killed each other at places like Gettysburg, the Somme, Normandy, or Baghdad. It’s still mostly about scared men with rifles charging into places defended by other scared men with rifles. There’s”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Marko Kloos"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marko-kloos/in-truth-warfare-has-changed-very-little-since-our-great-great/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Truth"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marko-kloos/in-truth-warfare-has-changed-very-little-since-our-great-great/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/02a/marko-kloos-18789_truth_in-truth-warfare-has-changed-very-little_1383361.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/02a/marko-kloos-18789_truth_in-truth-warfare-has-changed-very-little_1383361.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/02a/marko-kloos-18789_truth_in-truth-warfare-has-changed-very-little_1383361.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“In truth, warfare has changed very little since our great-great-grandfathers killed each other at places…” — Marko Kloos",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Marko Kloos",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marko-kloos/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“In truth, warfare has changed very...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marko-kloos/in-truth-warfare-has-changed-very-little-since-our-great-great/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marko-kloos/in-truth-warfare-has-changed-very-little-since-our-great-great/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
