My first reaction to the news that the US, along with the UK and France, had attacked Syrian chemical weapons facilities following the chemical attack the Syrian government apparently carried out against its own civilians was: I’m glad I’m not an expert in the law of war. If I were, I probably would be in the position of having to say that the attack broke the law, basically because it could not be seen as an exercise of the right of self-defense. If that is so, it seems to me there is something broken about the law of war that explains why even many people who know what they’re talking about (not to mention many US and allied public officials) find themselves arguing that…