#ken rutherford

[drsonnet]

Sarajevo Airport, August 8, 1997 - Princess Diana, The Princess of Wales, arrived in Bosnia and Hercegovina as the guest of Ken Rutherford of the Landmines Survivors Network and Norwegian People’s Aid. The Princess visited Tuzla to meet victims of landmines on a tour that served to remind the world of the continuing danger of land mines in BiH and elsewhere. Photo: POA (Phot) Phil Ball, CPIC, Sarajevo.

[cisrjmu]

[ Issue 24.2 ] By Ken Rutherford, Ph.D.

Landmine exploding among Union troops at Yorktown, VA. Sketch courtesy of A.R. Waud, Harper’s Weekly, May 24, 1862. ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

Few realize the world’s first widespread deployment of landmines took place during the American Civil War (1860–1865). At the start of the Civil War, the disparity in military manpower, materiel, and weaponry between the North and South was significant. The gap widened in the Union’s favor as the war progressed, forcing the Confederate war industry to innovate and improvise. That was especially true with landmines. As the conflict progressed, landmine warfare advanced commensurately, and both tactics and technology evolved to include innovative types of design and deployment. During the war’s later years, Confederate soldiers used both command-detonated and victim-activated landmines more frequently to defend and to protect static positions, including cities.1

At the outset of the Civil War in April 1861, the United States war strategy emphasized the occupation of key Southern harbors, the conquest of the Mississippi River to divide the enemy, and the establishment of a naval blockade around the Confederacy. Within a few years, the Union had established a fairly tight blockade along the coast, and it was no longer possible for the Confederacy to export cotton in large quantities. The South’s “white gold” failed to produce the income needed to help prevent the depreciation of its currency and fund the war effort.

The South’s economy was based on agriculture, and there were few industries capable of producing the war materials the Confederate government needed to fight the war ahead; thus, it had no choice but to seek more creative ways to fight, including leveraging low-cost weapons with minimal material input. One of the solutions to holding key pieces of Southern territory was the development of landmines from a variety of artillery shells, with increased technological ingenuity adapted to local circumstances. Confederate soldiers eventually configured spur-of-the-moment landmines in a relatively ad-hoc manner. Details were rarely written down, and most of what was recorded was destroyed near the end of the war to avoid the possibility of some leading advocates being charged as war criminals. The simplicity and cost-effectiveness of landmines made their continued use attractive. Today we call these buried or hidden artillery rounds improvised explosive devices or IEDs.2

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[cisrjmu]

"America's Buried History," by Dr. Ken Rutherford, is a fascinating account of the history of landmines right here in America.

The book is available on Amazon in hardcover and Kindle: http://amzn.to/2xM1t8f.

[cisrjmu]

Landmines and the civil war, a precursor to modern weapons of destruction

In his newest book, "America's Buried History: Landmines in the Civil War," Kenneth R. Rutherford unearths the history of landmines.

According to some estimates, by the early 1990s landmines were responsible for more than 26,000 deaths each year worldwide. As this number continues to rise, Kenneth R. Rutherford, professor of political science at James Madison University, is unearthing the history of the weapon.

Despite all the research that has been published on the American Civil War, one aspect that has never received due attention is the widespread use of landmines. In his newest book, “America’s Buried History: Landmines in the Civil War,” Rutherford relies on a host of primary and secondary research to demonstrate how and why the mines were built, where they were deployed, the effects of their use, and the impacts on those who suffered from their deadly blasts.  

“After the Civil War, landmines became a major component of land warfare by most major militaries and the weapon’s use has resulted in hundreds of thousands of casualties,” says Rutherford.

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[cisrjmu]

Calls for Papers: Victim Assistance and Disability Rights Integration in HMA, Legal Frameworks, and Capacity Building

We ask our Journal contributors to think about victim assistance issues that need to be addressed within the current context of HMA. How can victim assistance be integrated into broader disability and development frameworks? Building on the foundation from the Maputo Action Plan, what challenges, opportunities and expectations does the Oslo Action Plan set forth? Consider submitting for our Spring 2020 issue.

[cisrjmu]

Losing his legs to a landmine changed professor's life

After sharing Nobel Prize, Ken Rutherford wrote a history of Civil War explosive devices

When the landmine exploded under his Toyota Landcruiser, Ken Rutherford was temporarily blinded. Then he glanced on the floor of the vehicle and saw a dangling foot. It was his. Blood was everywhere. The date was December 16, 1993. The place: war-torn Somalia, where he was on a humanitarian mission on a brutally hot morning. Engaged to be married, Rutherford had no idea if he would live. He was 31 years old.

In shock, Rutherford somehow radioed for help. The pain was searing, unimaginable. The taste of his own blood was sickening. As he lay on the ground, he stared at a deep-blue sky. He wondered if it would be his last view on Earth.

Rutherford’s mind raced. He thought of Kim, his fiancée. Would he ever see her again? Airlifted to a hospital, he nearly bled to death. The former University of Colorado football player paid an awful price: His legs were amputated—the lower right leg in Kenya that day, the lower left in the United States in 1997.

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[cisrjmu]

Thank you again for the magical evening, Marshall Legacy Institute!

It was an honor to speak at the 22nd Anniversary Clearing the Path Gala last week. MLI’s cause to eliminate the scourge of landmines from the earth continues to inspire.

[cisrjmu]

At a concentration as high as any other country since World War II, landmines in Yemen will pose a threat to Yemenis for decades to come if we fail to take action.

Yesterday, CISR and partners brought attention to the ongoing humanitarian landmine crisis. A plea to the international community turned into a powerful day on Capitol Hill.