Robert S. McNamara, now RIP

Robert Strange McNamara (yes, that really seems to be his middle name - evidently it was his mother's maiden name), the United States defense secretary who was a prime architect of the Vietnam War, died this morning in his Washington home. According to his wife, his health had been failing for some time, and he died in his sleep.

As defense secretary, McNamara served under Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson, from 1961-1968. In an effort to support anti-Communist forces in the region, McNamara encouraged the increase of American troops in Vietnam. Though he was originally optimistic about the United States' chances to win the war and did not object to it sometimes being referred to as McNamara's War (he had said, "I am pleased to be identified with it and do whatever I can to win"), in the years to come, he would be plagued by the moral consequences of the conflict. Despite throwing all the weapons, technology and troops at his disposal into Vietnam, he found his efforts thwarted. In his memoir, he later claimed that his conduct of the war was "wrong, terribly wrong."

In 1968, McNamara left office and became the head of the World Bank, where he remained for the next thirteen years. In his later years, he remained somewhat politically active, speaking out against George W. Bush's 2003 invasion of Iraq. Also in 2003, he participated in a documentary by Errol Morris, titled "The Fog of War: Eleven Lessons from the Life of Robert S. McNamara." The film won the Academy Award for a Documentary Feature.

President Johnson described McNamara as "a jackhammer. No human being can take what he takes. He drives too hard. He is too perfect."

He was 93 years old. May he now RIP.

See the NY Times article for more information.