A fetish is an object invested with powers or significance beyond its actual properties. In its original anthropological sense, the term describes an object believed to possess supernatural powers. More generally, fetishism occurs when the value attributed to an object becomes detached from its utility. The object acquires a significance independent of what it actually accomplishes.

Military institutions are particularly susceptible to this distortion. Weapons are developed to serve operational and strategic objectives, but successful weapons acquire reputations that transcend their practical effectiveness. The battleship became a symbol of naval supremacy, the tank an embodiment of battlefield dominance, and the fighter aircraft an expression of technological superiority and martial prowess. Their prestige becomes embedded in military traditions, professional identities, and national culture.

Enduring icons of U.S.…