When the battle was joined on September 10, Perry's fleet was greatly superior in short-range firepower but only slightly superior at long range; a light wind prevented him from closing in quickly on the six British warships commanded by R.H. Barclay.
America's war there has brought new refinements, undreamed of even a year ago, in the art of delivering deadly firepower at long range with devastating accuracy.
It is indisputable that the Palestinian Authority had sought to acquire new weaponry from Iran, from C-4 explosives to Katyusha rockets, found aboard the freighter, the Karine A. These would have increased the firepower, lethality and range of terrorist attacks.
Under the leadership of Donald Rumsfeld, who resigned in November, the Pentagon had embraced a narrow "shock-and-awe" approach to war-fighting, emphasizing technology, long-range firepower, and spectacular displays of force.
At the half, the Nets held a precarious 57-49 lead -- precarious particularly because of the long-range firepower of Pierce and Antoine Walker, who earlier this season had found themselves 17 points down in the last period to the Nets and drilled one 3-pointer after another to win.
And most important, it would have packed an explosive amount of long-range firepower, being able to launch some 500 cruise missiles.
Thanks to superior short-range firepower, the Japanese fleet came off better, sinking or severely damaging eight ships and receiving serious damage to only four.
The jingoistic industrialized states were able to step up their long-range firepower and support large battalions, leading to the trench warfare of World War I, a war of attrition in Europe that was disastrous for all the combatants.
It became clear to the United States just how brutal trench warfare was, and how great the need was for a large amount of close-range firepower while fighting in a trench, after they had observed the war for the first three years.
Catapults are an ancient technology, developed from the crossbow for increased range and firepower.
