In 2011, the Pentagon released its first formal cyber strategy, which called computer hacking from other nations an "act of war," according to the Wall Street Journal. In late June of this year, WSJ reported that Edward Snowden, the NSA whistleblower, released information alleging the U.S. government was hacking Chinese targets "that include the nation's mobile-phone companies and one of the country's most prestigious universities." Now that EU offices have been hacked by the U.S. government as well, one must wonder if that was an "act of war" on the part of the United States. So my question is, how many nations is the US at war with? From quotes made by US government itself and the revelations made by Snowden, it is clear we are at war with EU and China at the very least. No wait. I must rephrase my question. IS there any nation on Earth with which the US is not at war with?
Zero It takes an act of Congress to declare war and we haven't declared war on anybody since WWII. We have been involved in quite a few military engagements though.
Correct, the last act of war formally declared by the U.S. Congress was in 1942, declaring war against Rumania. The President, acting as Commander-in-Chief, has the power to deploy troops without a declaration of war...as is evidenced by many conflicts post-1942. For those who think the Founding Fathers would not approve, remember that President's Thomas Jefferson and John Adams both used military force in situations where no formal declaration of war was established by Congress.
According to the Pentagon, computer hacking from other nations is an "act of war," which the US is urrently doing to even its closest allies. Please read the OP.
You are getting terminology confused. Kind of like the "War on Terror". There is no war because Congress never actually declared war on anybody. Its more of an extened military conflict against "terrorism". A lot of people throw the term war around all the time, even Congress, but unless they officially declare war or another nation officially declares war on the US then we aren't at war. Trust me, if the US declared war on somebody or somebody declared war on the US then you would know. Look through history, think about all of the military engagements we have had over the past few decades (OEF, OIF, Desert Storm, Vietnam, etc) then think of the last time we officially declared war (WWII). One of those was HUGE compared to the others...
Try to understand the difference between an act of war and a formal declaration of war... You asked in your OP, how many nations is the U.S. at war with? Technically...Zero would be the correct answer.... An act of war is codified in U.S. law. Title 18 › Part I › Chapter 113B › § 2331 I'll cite it for you... As you can see, an act of war against the United States can occur outside of a formal declaration of war, In the instance of your OP, hacking into a DoD computer system is being defined as an "act of war" by China. It doesn't necessarily mean the U.S. is then officially declaring war against China, but it is defining actions by China as acts of war. In other words, the U.S. is taking these actions very seriously. Your question has been asked and answered. Q. How many nations is the US at war with? A. Formally at war, the answer is Zero. Clear?
