Book Description
A sweeping and dramatic history of the last half century of conflict in the Middle East from an award-winning journalist who has covered the region for over thirty years, The Great War for Civilisation unflinchingly chronicles the tragedy of the region from the Algerian Civil War to the Iranian Revolution; from the American hostage crisis in Beirut to the Iran-Iraq War; from the 1991 Gulf War to the American invasion of Iraq in 2003. A book of searing drama as well as lucid, incisive analysis, The Great War for Civilisation is a work of major importance for today's world.
Customer Reviews:
Wonderful, honest and shocking.......2007-10-07
The book "The great war for civilisation", by Robert Fisk, is wonderful, mostly for its vivid and honest telling of the history the author has lived in thr last 40 years.
Even not having finished its reading (it's a 1,100 pages book!), I can see the author does not leaves "stone on stone" (translated from a Portuguese sentence). He show how ignorant people of developed countries can be (to make a monument in Vincennes, indiana, USA, to USS Vincennes, which blowed up a civil plane, killing 290 people, is terrible!), and how dishonest governments like Reagan's and Thatcher's were. Please, divulge this book!
A Great Book for Civilisation.......2007-10-06
It's hard to exaggerate when trying to accord sufficient praise for this great book. As a pure work of journalistic reportage it seems impossible to beat, let alone come near to its level of sincerity, humanity and scope. I don't know how Mr. Fisk was able to collate and make such sense of so much material, and survive the ordeal.
Whatever one's own proclivities may be in the world of politics and religion, I don't think anyone could quarrel with the author's many observations, which are so clearly animated by an overriding sense of outrage at the callous and sensless brutality which he has so often witnessed in person in the countries where he has been a reporter.
He tries his best to be impartial, and indeed it is virtually impossible to know where the truth lies in a world of spin and manipulation. However, he clearly shows a penchant for the Muslim argument in the Middle East, and certainly there must be a lot to be said in his favour, even if he is not always wholly convincing.
This, however, is but a quibble compared with the might and majesty of this splendid book, which I would recommend anyone who is in any way concerned with the Arab world to read, and learn from.
Detailed and well-written account.......2007-10-03
Fisk's narrative pulls no punches, and does a superb job of recounting events ranging from the Iran-Iraq War to the Armenian genocide the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan to the Palestinian Israeli conflict to the current War in Iraq -- as well as many other events relevant to the contemporary Middle East (and U.S. foreign policy in the region).
I found the account to be depressing at times, but for those who are looking for a thought-provoking, and engaging narrative this is a great place to start. No easy answers, and plenty of information to digest. The best kind of reading.
A Must Read.......2007-09-02
I read every word in this book. At first I was skeptical that it could all be true, but on completion I believe it is. I highly recommend this book to all.
It is an excellent way to learn just how big a mistake was made by the US and GB in trying to overthrow the goverment in Iraq and establish a puppet democracy.
grat book, must read if u wanna learn about the middle east.......2007-08-29
here is a writer who lived in the middle east, who walked the streets and breathed the air, who talked to all the big heads and saw all the battles...he is not your typical expert who appear on CNN/Fox News... he has in-depth knowledge, i wish alan dershowitz can learn from him
read this and pitty the nation
Book Description
The woman Psychology Today calls "the best-known life coach in America" shatters the myth that willpower is an effective weight-loss tool and introduces a revolutionary approach to lifetime leanness based on a series of "4-day wins" that work with any weight-loss program
Substitute a good habit for a bad one and stick to it for just 4 days, and it begins to feel normal. That’s the surprising discovery that holds the key to lifetime weight control, according to life coach and New York Times best-selling author Martha Beck. Not a conventional diet or exercise program, The Four-Day Win combines evolutionary logic, psychology, and neuroplasticity (the ability of the brain to restructure itself, which suggests ways to reshape our bodies) with strategies and success stories—plus large doses of humor and an insightful, straightforward approach to teach the principles required to reverse weight issues.
Drawn from hundreds of hours interviewing weight losers—in both her discussions with private clients and her groundbreaking consulting work for Jenny Craig—Dr. Beck reveals:
• why willpower-based dieting is doomed to fail
• how to step out of the conflict between the rule-making Commander (who bans all our favorite foods) and the rule-breaking Resistor (who gives in to cravings) and reach the Watcher, who is our happiest self
• what the latest research into the mind-body connection reveals about how our emotions affect our eating
Breaking down the weight-loss marathon into 4-day intervals, Dr. Beck provides effective strategies for changing the behaviors that make us fat. And if there is a relapse, readers take comfort in knowing they are just 4 days from turning it around.
Customer Reviews:
The Four Day Win.......2007-08-23
I purchased this book because of my enjoyment of the author's monthly articles in Oprah magazine. I am half-way through it, and am finding much good information. There is too much of the irreverant humor, though, bordering on slapstick. As I have no more than ten pounds to lose, this may not be what I need as I don't have a background of struggling with eating disorders or problems. I love Martha, but I cringe at the over-use of this type of humor to get the point across.
Good book, terrible editing.......2007-07-30
I really like this book's gentle approach and it coincides with things that I've noticed about myself in the past. For example, at times when I'm giving myself lots of options and not really worrying about my weight, I tend to stay the same or even lose weight. When I'm actively dieting, I have wider swings of either losing or gaining weight. Not to mention the fact that after 20 years of dieting more or less continuously, I am sixty pounds heavier than I was when I started. Common sense should tell me that what I've been doing is not working. I am excited to get started with this program. Unfortunately, while I was impressed by the substance of the book, the book was distracting in its poor editing -- words left in where a sentence was obviously re-written, double negatives, too much "humor" that is not particularly funny. Most egregiously, in Chapter 14, the book discusses "12 EASY beliefs" and the author repeatedly refers to them as the "dirty dozen" but the book lists only 7 of these "myths." Come on people!
Glad I did not listen to the negative reviews.......2007-07-24
So glad I did not listen to the negative reviews, although there are not many. This book address lots of things I never worked on before, with a unique way of doing so. Have not had it long so will have to wait and see about the weight loss. But I have every confidence that it will happen.
I already can feel the different attitude I am having.
Go for it!
The Four Day Win: End Your Diet War and Achieve Thinner Peace.......2007-07-19
We all know that in order to lose weight we have to eat less and move more. This seems like a simple and obvious concept, so why doesn't it work. Why is it that the harder you try to lose weight (eating less and less and exercising more and more) the more likely that you end up craving junk food, binging, and eventually giving up? The Four Day Win gives us the answer.
Losing weight and being healthy isn't about willpower, starving ourselves to death, or exercising until we pass out. In fact, stubborn will-power is actually the problem. The key is listening to our needs and being kind to ourselves. Simplistically put, once we care to stop, listen, and understand our true needs, we soon realize that instead of dealing with our anxieties, our fears, and the things in our life that cause us stress, we tend to self medicate with food. It's seems so much easier to eat that chocolate cake than deal with that relationship issue or that job we hate. Then, we turn around and beat ourselves up because we weren't strong enough which makes us hate ourselves that much more causing us to binge. It's a horribly unloving cycle.
I'm eating less and I'm moving more but most of all I am paying more attention to my inner self these days. I'm constantly learning about myself while developing healthy self soothing and rat park strategies. I'm happier, healthier, and far more hopeful after having read this book. Four days really can change your life for the better.
Small Bites, Small Nibbles.......2007-07-18
Most of my adult life, I have been able to maintain, with relative ease, the same weight. Then, here comes midlife. And with it, a crisis or two. Factor in stress and a slowing metabolism, a more hurried pace, various anxieties, and the softness glued itself stubbornly to me and would not let go.
I can't say I have ever been among those who follow the latest diet trend. Pshaw. None of them have ever made sense to me. I got it: eat less, move more. Everything else is doomed to fail. I'd seen it enough among friends and colleagues: longterm, diets fail. To remain healthy lifelong requires a lifestyle, not one of suffering and deprivation, but one that can be maintained with ease and, yes, even pleasure. That's for me.
I picked up Martha Beck's book with great interest. I had recently read and enjoyed her book, "Finding Your Own North Star: Claiming the Life You Were Meant to Live." Now, here was a respected life coach and psychologist who debunks diets and disdains suffering as a way to lead to healthy living. She speaks of attaining "thinner peace." Diets, after all, are stressful, and the last thing we need in the typical American lifestyle is more stress. Indeed, recent studies have shown that the same amount of calories ingested by stressed animals and animals at peace turn into fat on, you guessed it, the stressed animals, while the calm ones remain at a healthy weight. Beck is onto something scientifically sound.
Another important item Beck has understood well is our short attention span. Four days. We can do just about anything for four days. If we approach any change in our accustomed routines, if we do it in small bites, small bites eventually accumulate into a big pie (so to speak). If we do not overwhelm ourselves with immense and heroic goals, we might just be able to conquer this gremlin.
Her approach is almost frustratingly gradual. But that is as it should be. Gradual changes can sneak up on us to become life-transforming. And any change begins in the mind, in the spirit, deep in the heart where all our anxieties breed.
Since I began reading Beck's book, I can honestly say without any deprivation (I still eat at restaurants with my friends, still munch out of the party snack bowl, still eat popcorn while watching a movie), I have been shucking off, gradually but permanently, the extra bit of softness midlife gifted me. I am also feeling a thinner peace. Being at peace, for me, may have been the most crucial factor in this, as I have come to believe that in the past years, I was carrying the "weight of my emotions."
Beck's book is effective and it's downright funny to read. With various thoughtful questionnaires, she prompts us to think about what brings us stress, what brings us peace, and how to work with that. She teaches how to quiet the voices in our head, how to identify emotional hunger versus physical hunger, how to feed both. Have a nibble of chocolate - and read. Four days at a time.
Book Description
The Algerian War lasted from 1954 to 1962. It brought down six French governments, led to the collapse of the Fourth Republic, returned de Gaulle to power, and came close to provoking a civil war on French soil. More than a million Muslim Algerians died in the conflict and as many European settlers were driven into exile. Above all, the war was marked by an unholy marriage of revolutionary terror and repressive torture.
Nearly a half century has passed since this savagely fought war ended in Algeria’s independence, and yet—as Alistair Horne argues in his new preface to his now-classic work of history—its repercussions continue to be felt not only in Algeria and France, but throughout the world. Indeed from today’s vantage point the Algerian War looks like a full-dress rehearsal for the sort of amorphous struggle that convulsed the Balkans in the 1990s and that now ravages the Middle East, from Beirut to Baghdad—struggles in which questions of religion, nationalism, imperialism, and terrorism take on a new and increasingly lethal intensity.
A Savage War of Peace is the definitive history of the Algerian War, a book that brings that terrible and complicated struggle to life with intelligence, assurance, and unflagging momentum. It is essential reading for our own violent times as well as a lasting monument to the historian’s art.
Customer Reviews:
Chilling Masterpiece.......2007-09-26
I selected this book wishing to know more about the French war in Algeria. Mr. Horne more than satisfied my curiousity. He provides an in-depth, virtually blow-by-blow account of the eight year conflict, pulling no PC punches, and taking great care to remain as impartial as possible. This is no easy feat, given the intensity of the situation. He is very careful to present this as not a typical colonial war as much as a battle between 2 diametrically opposed visions for Algeria. On one side were the Pieds Noirs, whose families had lived in Algeria for generations, understandably saw Algeria as their home, and wanted to preserve "Algerie Francaise." On the other hand, you have the FLN (not the spokesman for most Algerians), with its demands for Algerian independence, sans the Pieds Noirs. What made this conflict a battle between extremes was the FLN's reign of terror against relative moderates among the Algerians (many of whom had advocated finding a "middle ground" in the conflict). This has the effect of presenting the FLN as France's only "negotiating" partner within Algeria. Moreover, it pushed many of the Pieds Noirs to support such hard-line groups as the OAS. Essentially, the FLN set up the conflict to end in its favor, as the war nearly tore France apart on several occasions (and nearly claimed the life of Charles De Gaulle on an equal number of occasions). Mr. Horne captures this story very nicely, weaving back and forth between Algeria and France. He demonstrates beyond all reasonable doubt that the conflict had very high stakes for the French. Also, he describes how the outcome of the conflict proved to not be France's finest hour, to put it very charitably.
Read it before you start a Mid-East War.......2007-09-21
What every President should know before getting seriously involved anywhere in the Mid-East or Muslim world. It would seem that we are damned if we do, and equally damned if we don't. It's not so much the book's details (although the book is magnificently detailed), as it is the portrayal of the depth of hatreds and the commitment to violence as the sole means to the proponents ends.
Shines a light on insurgencies in the 20th century.......2007-08-19
Horne's classic book on Algeria is one of those rare works of history that breaks open the subject at hand to peer deep into the heart of an era. It details the entire Franco-Algerian war from its historical antecedents through the military and political struggles of the war itself and into the late 20th century, tracking the Algerian fight for independence and the wrestling of the French nation with redefinition after colonialism. The parallels to numerous other insurgencies in the 20th and early 21st centuries are obvious.
What is most tragic about Alistair Horne's tale from my perspective as a theologian, however, is the seeming inevitability of the whole Algerian tragedy. Though Horne highlights several points at which the confrontation might have taken a faster and more complete track toward reconciliation, it's difficult to see how the actors in the moment could have grasped these opportunities. The stage seems to have been set for years of violence sometime deep in the past, as pieds noirs became firmly Algerian and native Algerians became jaded at the empty rhetoric of their French occupiers. Plenty of blame can be spread around to perpetrators of horrible and inhuman acts during the seven and a half years of conflict, but it is difficult to see how any one actor or group could have decisively brought about a clearer peace.
The lessons of the Algerian conflict are ripe to be picked by anyone willing to study it. Many of Horne's insights about these types of confrontations carry over to the war in Iraq, civil war in numerous spots around the globe, and the struggle to combat terrorism around the world. Indeed, the book is being studied at the highest levels in Washington, according to news reports. One can only hope that the venerable chronicler of France's last years as a colonial power is being heeded.
Peering Into the Cesspit.......2007-08-10
One of the things that perplexed and, frankly, disgusted me, throughout this book was the posturing of many key figures on the French side about "honour" and "grandeur". In pursuit of their honour, many of these people behaved in the most disgraceful and dishonourable manner.
They preened themselves on their honour and spoke volubly about "restoring the glory of France", but when the going got difficult, they mostly resigned their positions or simply abandoned their responsibilities - often to return later to repeat the whole disreputable process - or intrigue among themselves.
Perhaps a psychologist could shed more light on this cesspit of misplaced values than an historian.
But what of the other side - the Algerian independence movement? The alphabet soup of factions (FLN, CRUA, MTLD, UDMA etc etc) was liberally peopled by thugs, assassins, torturers and thieves. They squabbled among themselves, intrigued for office, occasionally betrayed each other, and terrorised their own people - all in the cause of Algerian independence.
Even after independence, members of the ruling clique continued to wage war upon each other and upon the Algerian people. The struggle continues to this day.
Ordinary Algerians on both sides were the victims of the war - as is ever the case. At its end, within months, almost all the "pied noir" population had fled the country in one of the great mass migrations of the post war era. Muslims who had worked and fought for the French and who were unable (or chose not) to flee were mercilessly hunted down.
I finished the book with a sense of disgust, of having been soiled by the mostly contemptible people shaping events on both sides. When one peers into a cesspit of struggling fanatics, one inevitably gets splashed.
However, readers should not be deterred from reading this book. "A Savage War of Peace" deserves to be read. Its lessons are equally valid today in the Middle East and elsewhere.
The book gives an excellent account of the war from both French and Muslim sides, but while the latter was adequately covered in a factual sense, that side of the story was somewhat dry and impersonal.
To a large extent this simply reflects the availability of sources - and those willing to talk freely and honestly. The author claims to have been hampered by the "traditional secretiveness and suspicion of the Algerian Arabs" - especially when the possibility of assassination was ever present for those critical of the Algerian leadership.
Within these limitations, Horne gives an objective account of the 8-year war, during which up to 600,000 French military personnel were stationed in Algeria. As the struggle went on, both sides resorted increasingly to torture and terror to achieve their aims.
At one point military victory seemed in sight, although one must suspect that, had the French "won" in a military sense, the price would have been some sort of partition of Algeria into French and Muslim zones, and the permanent military suppression of the latter. Sound familiar?
Another conclusion one can draw from the book is that the relentless pursuit of an ideology rarely, if ever, results in a better life for ordinary people who are to be "improved". This was true for Communism and will probably be proven true eventually for the various forms of Islamic fundamentalism currently destroying lives in many parts of the world - and true also for ideologues on the other side who fight them in the name of freedom and democracy - and who are equally convinced of their righteousness.
Mirror For Our Times.......2007-08-09
Alistair Horne's seminal book on the Algerian War, A Savage War of Peace: Algeria 1954-1962, is a thorough look at a war that closely resembles the current conflict in Iraq. I read a couple of really interesting articles on this book earlier and felt compelled to read it. Terrorism, civil war, torture: these things also took place in Algeria and it would seem that there are some lessons to learned, but it seems they have not been heeded. It was a very long and complicated book, but not without its rewards. Apparently it has been read by Bush and several of his advisors. I think it would have been more meaningful to me if had a better grasp of the conflict and French history since 1945 in general, but that being said there was a lot of interesting information about this conflict. Terrorism, de Gaulle, France, and other conflicts like those in South Africa, Ireland, and Indo China. I think this paragraph sums up the situation pretty astutely:
One is left with the controversial role of de Gaulle, criticized both for going too slow and too fast. As far as the latter reproach goes, in the last stages of negotiations he suffered from the lesson not learned by Kissinger in Vietnam, or perhaps by Israel vis-à-vis the Arab world, or by the South Africans; namely, that peoples who have been waiting for their independence for a centenary, fighting for it for a generation, can afford to sit out a presidential term, or a year or two in the life of an old man in a hurry; that he who last s the longest wins; that sadly, with the impatience of democracies and their volatile voters committed to electoral contortions every five or four years, the extremists generally triumphs over the moderate. Just keep on being obdurate, don't leave deviate from maximum terms, was the lesson handed down by the F.L.N. (Front de Liberation Nationale) and remains as grimly valid today-Northern Ireland or the Middle East or southern Africa. One after another de Gaulle saw his principles for peace eroded in the face of the F.L.N.'s refusal to compromise. As his disillusion grew, so did his resolve to liquidate the war with all the speed. In his final haste injustices were perpetrated, such as the exclusion from the peace talks of any representative Algerian faction (e.g. the M.N.A.-Mouvement Nationaliste Algerienne)) other than the F.L.N. Yet de Gaulle did liquidate that savage war.
Book Description
National Bestseller
New York Times Editors’ Choice
Winner of the PEN Hessell Tiltman Prize
Winner of the Duff Cooper Prize
Silver Medalist for the Arthur Ross Book Award
of the Council on Foreign Relations
Finalist for the Robert F. Kennedy Book Award
For six months in 1919, after the end of “the war to end all wars,” the Big Three—President Woodrow Wilson, British prime minister David Lloyd George, and French premier Georges Clemenceau—met in Paris to shape a lasting peace. In this landmark work of narrative history, Margaret MacMillan gives a dramatic and intimate view of those fateful days, which saw new political entities—Iraq, Yugoslavia, and Palestine, among them—born out of the ruins of bankrupt empires, and the borders of the modern world redrawn.
Customer Reviews:
Paris 1919.......2007-08-23
Margaret Macmillan's Paris 1919 is a masterful work that shows the complexity of the negotiations after World War One and just how enormous the task at hand truly was. There is no blame for what happened, or what didn't happen. She does not blame the future on this treaty. her approach is fresh and inspiring. Her writing style is fast-paced yet she clearly understands her subject.
For many it is easy to follow earlier accounts and say that World War Two had its origin in Paris in 1919. Contemporaries of Wilson, Clemanceau, and Lloyd George used such predictions to drive home their point. When the Second World War erupted, many looked to these critics of Versailles and agreed. For some, these critics appear as prophets.
Not so, says Macmillan. It is an easy cop out to avoid responsibility to place blame, throw up one's hands and say there is nothing they can do, then brood. True, if the Council of Four (Three) had had a better grasp of their world they might not have made the decisions they did, but one cannot blame the past for the future. There were plenty of stubborn decisions at Paris, but the participants had their own hands tied by earlier secret deals and the like. None in Paris blamed the past that led to those secret deals for the quandry they found themselves in, so why should future generations blame the Paris negotiators?
This treaty is so vast, and so complex, it is a wonder Macmillan was able to cover it in just under 500 pages of text. She is a first rate author and a first rate scholar. It will take quite a feat to write a better account of the Versailles Treaty.
A Good Example of How Good Intentions Can Go Wrong.......2007-08-13
This book gives an excellant example of what can happen when people try to make a better world and let too much of the old world invade and frustrate what you are trying accomplish. It shows how when the Allies sat down after the Armistace was signed to create a peace that would last, too many of the promises and treaties signed during the war came back to haunt those same nations that had made them.
The format is interesting in each chapter zeroes in on a specific area of the conference. It is helpful in that all the informaton for say Poland is in one area, but kind of makes you lose the chronological flow of the conference where so many of these things were happening at the same time. It makes for a good reference in that you can look up a certain topic without having to skim through the whole chronological timeline to find it. A chronological scheme of events would have been even harder to accomplish since several topics were handled on the same day at the conference and the reader would have been lost in all the detail.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in WW1 and how the Treaty of Versailles was drawn up. It shows how all of the participants were human with flaws and strengths. It also shows how different nations can view the same idea differently and how you can end up with less than you hoped for when all is said and done.
A tour de force in historical narrative.......2007-07-03
1919 masses a vast amount of information about the critical period of the negotiations of the Treaty of Versailles and tangential treaties that ended the Great War. At its best, 1919 ties it all together to draw relevance to today's world.
Macmillan charges through a dense web of diplomatic doings but livens the mix with vivid personalities and dramatic conversations. TE Lawrence, Kemal Ataturk, Bratianu of Romania, D'Annunzio of Italy. Macmillan strikes a neutral view overall, but one detects a sense of favor to Lloyd George, her great-grandfather. She teases him about his sense of geography, but generally he seems to rise above Wilson and Clemenceau in the telling. Woodrow Wilson is depicted as a sad and frustrated old man.
Each nation altered by the peacemakers is treated in turn. Ironically, Germany gets the least depth of treatment. Macmillan seems to say "you know the rest of that story" but still connects the dots to the next conflict. More focus is on the less told stories of how Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman empires were carved up and new nations formed.
A tour de force in historical narrative. Fascinating.
History woven with personalities and culture.......2007-06-04
What an incredibly powerful point in history. The ending of an era of dynasties lasting centuries and monarchy for several countries along with the evolution of communism. The personalities of the leaders and how they related in the process is fascinating. The process of breaking up the Austrian-Hungary empire as well as the Ottoman empire and the ramifications resulting are worth the read.
I enjoyed the cultural differences outlined between the French, English, American and Italian as well, not to mention the German, Japanese, Chinese, Greek and others. The evolution of America and the American position on foreign affairs is also worthy of note.
There is much complex material and much history of the areas in question but I recommend this book highly.
Paris 1919.......2007-05-30
Gave me good insite into history & politics of the times. Well ritten
Book Description
General Smedley Butler's frank book shows how American war efforts were animated by big-business interests. This extraordinary argument against war by an unexpected proponent is relevant now more than ever.
Customer Reviews:
A truth bullet right in the forehead.......2007-09-03
The word "classic", like other words in the abused English language, is regularly misused. It is not misused in describing this book. And at the pittance required to buy this edition, it can also be described as the biggest bargain you will encounter all year. To call the book an "anti-war" classic is not as accurate as it might be, however, because Gen. Butler envisions the need for a standing army and navy to defend the nation. He is merely horrified at these forces being sent to fight other people's wars. Especially at the cost of all wars.
Gen. Butler writes between the two World Wars. Having earned an estimable reputation among the troops he led, he proceeded not to desert them after the war was over. He sided with the bonus marchers who built "Hooverville", and then he finished some thoughts he had been having about the role of the United States Marine Corps in a number of lesser American military adventures. He then wrote this pamphlet to explain why the country needed to rid itself of the conmen who keep taking it to foreign wars.
The work is divided into five sections:
1. War Is A Racket!
2. Who Makes the Profits?
3. Who Pays the Bills?
4. How to Smash This Racket!
5. To Hell with War!
As another reviewer has noted, Gen. Butler rendered even greater service to his country after leaving the Marines than while serving actively. In prose that is utterly direct and unadorned, he outlines the nature of war, the identities and profit margins of the criminals, the role of the propagandizing press, and the victims of the fiscal enterprise of war. He then suggests a practical method for removing the profit from the business of war: simply conscript every owner, manager and employee of the war-making industries into the war effort, 30 days before the troops are called up, at the same pay rate as the enlisted man. During WWI, that was $30.00 per month. It is an idea so simple and brilliant that it will never be tried, unless, of course, the entire population suddenly has the wool pulled from its eyes, and passes the requisite law. As a test of industrial patriotism, this idea has no peers.
(My idea for educating the masses would be to make every thirteen-year-old boy and girl read this book, pass an exam on it, and then administer the book and the exam to their parents. This would be an annual event, and a general election would be held as soon as the parents had passed their exams.)
It is depressing to read this book in 2007, note that it was written in 1935, and reflect that nothing has changed. It is also heartening to realize that the solution to the problem of war is to convey the meaning of one four-word sentence to the masses. That sentence is the title of this book. Even in a time of sinking literacy levels and short attention spans, I can imagine no more worthy project for our country.
A must read for American Citizens.......2007-07-25
While I don't agree with all of Butler's recommendations (among which is, never fight a war), many of his recommendations are great. His documentation of the Facist plot he exposed is very important. (BTW: Prescott Bush was a co-conspirator in these coup-plans, as documented by the BBC.)
Facism was a threat then, and given the growing corporatism in the USA, a threat now.
People never learn........2007-07-23
This small book is timeless in its message. Written before WW2, it applies to much of what has happened since. As Butler wrote, " Why don't those damned oil companies fly their own flags on their personal property - maybe a flag with a gas pump on it." Two Iraq wars prove Butler's prescience.
Read this now.......2007-05-14
One of the most important books ever written by an American military figure, General Butler explains why war is a crime fought for the financial gain of a tiny class of society. This is extremely relevant for all Americans trying struggling to end wars of conquest and profit.
What Seems Is Not Reality - Read This Pamphlet.......2007-04-24
I am torn in giving this small collection a rating. In terms of importance, I would give this booklet five stars. In terms of writing style, it would earn one star. Nevertheless, this is the kind of book you must read, for it will shatter your illusions, should you have them, about the nature of American military might. These words, from pen of the most decorated American general, Brigadier General Smedley Butler, form a well supported middle finger in the face of American hegemony and neo-colonialism.
From a literary standpoint, this is not a book. It is a collection of short essays, written as you would expect a brash general to write. "War is a Racket" is but one of a several essays in this short book. In addition to its namesake, the booklet also contains an arguments against American intervention in World War II, and a photo essay of the horrors of war.
I would recommend this booklet to anyone going off to fight yet another war based on lies and secretly intended for the profit of the ruling class. Parents, read this before considering allowing your child to join forces of evil.
Book Description
Widely considered the greatest novel ever written in any language, War and Peace has as its backdrop Napoleon's invasion of Russia and at its heart three of the most memorable characters in literature: Pierre Bezukhov, a quixotic young man in search of spiritual joy; Prince Andrey Bolkonsky, a cynical intellectual transformed by the suffering of war; and the bewitching and impulsive Natasha Rostov, daughter of a count. As they seek fulfillment, fall in love, make mistakes, and become scarred by battle in different ways, these characters and their stories interweave with those of a huge cast, from aristocrats to peasants, from soldiers to Napoleon himself.
In this first English translation in more than forty years, Anthony Briggs faithfully reveals Tolstoy's art in stirring prose, clearing up ambiguities that have plagued many modern translations. This volume also includes an afterword by eminent historian Orlando Figes, a list of characters, descriptions of the three main battles, chapter summaries, and notes. Both epic and intimate, a compassionate portrait of humanity and an engrossing read, this is the War and Peace of choice for a whole new generation.
Customer Reviews:
Did you know that Tolstoy is funny?.......2007-08-29
The extended scenes in Russian society are scathingly funny about the aristocracy and the military leaders. I don't remember that coming across in previous translations.
This is an extremely readable translation that does justice to some of the most vividly realized and moving characters in all literature. It really is a page-turner.
The only serious misstep is the crude "working-class" dialog attributed to the common soldiers, which is as inept as the dated attempts at characterization of the lower classes in authors such as Agatha Christie. I haven't read the original Russian, but Tolstoy was too fine a writer to make this kind of mistake.
Just starting.......2007-08-20
I'm a new reader to War and Peace and when I went to the bookstore to buy it I read several different translations. I found this one to be easy to understand and very readable. I recommend this translation to a newbie like myself.
Missing the Flavor.......2007-07-05
Although a new translation, Briggs has used British English and has Russian Soldiers using words like "mate" and "bloke." Almost as bad as Constance Garrett having Russians say "bloody this" and "bloody that" and "By Jove!" in some of her translations. Maybe the best in English so far, however, unfortunately; the soldiers and characters speak like Brits and not like Russians--a major flaw in my opinion. Misses the flavor of 19th Century Russia. If possible I would recommend waiting for the Pevear and Volokhonsky translation...(hopefully they make one)
History is bunk (told over the course of 1,358 pages).......2007-07-01
I can't decide if I read "War and Peace" because, by many accounts, it's "perhaps the greatest novel ever written" or because I wanted to brag to people that I actually finished reading the darn thing. Let's face it: "Anna Karenina" is now part of Oprah's Book Club. I can't go there, folks. I just can't.
"War and Peace" is a most confounding "novel." Of course, its author famously denied it was a novel in the first place. First of all, it doesn't need to be this long. Trust me, I finished Proust -- I also have no life -- and I didn't feel nearly as burdened with "À la Recherche du Temps Perdu" ("In Search of Lost Time") as I did with "War and Peace."
For those seeking a plot summary, there really is no plot to speak of -- which I don't have a problem with, actually. It's a snapshot of Russian aristocratic life during and after the Napoleonic Wars, climaxing with the 1812 French invasion of Russia, the destruction of Moscow and the disastrous retreat of Napoléon's Grande Armée.
Tolstoy's thoughts on history are interesting (and probably correct), although I'd cut out the excruciating second part of the epilogue. Fans of Napoléon will be disappointed, as Tolstoy is a rabid Russian nationalist and never misses an opportunity to heap scorn on Le Empereur.
This translation is not bad, actually. Granted, I haven't read any others -- and probably never will. The prose here is crystal clear and I didn't have a problem with the Russian names -- perhaps, once again, because I read Proust with all his myriad French characters. It should be noted that Anthony Briggs often portrays Russian serfs as speaking with cockney English accents. A bit odd.
An excellent translation of a modern classic!.......2007-05-27
I had always heard about War and Peace and its immensity, but never had a chance, or perhaps I was a bit intimidated to read it, but when my father gave me the Anthony Briggs translation, I started to read it and I could not stop! I have read many novels translated into English, so I am very wary of awkward translations or arcane language. You will find none of that there. Briggs does a masterful job of lending a contemporary feel to Tolstoy's classic without overdoing it. He remains faithful to the original novel and I simply cannot think of any need to read any other version of War and Peace.
From the moment that Tolstoy introduces the reader to Pierre Bezhukov, Andrey Bolkonsky and Natasha Rostov, it is impossible not to be enthralled by these characters and their travails, joy and experience with life set at the time that Napoleon began his march toward Moscow. Briggs's descriptions of each character will make the reader feel like they know them personally and will share their joys with them and commiserate with them during their low points.
There is so much that I like about this classic that it is hard not to go off and write in different directions. To people who are considering reading this book, I have this piece of advice: concentrate on Pierre (one of my favorite characters in all of literature--up there with Don Quixote), Natasha and Bolkonsky. Essentially, War and Peace revolves around them although Tolstoy deftly introduces many different characters. Despite the many different characters, Tolstoy returns to each of these three people at different stages of their lives and if you have been following closely, you can see how they have change. It really is easy to root for Pierre, but to know why; you will have to read for yourself?
At various points in the book, Tolstoy philosophizes on war, history, free will, the law of necessity and consciousness. At times, this did get heavy, but if you are patient, you will see what Tolstoy is trying to say.
War and Peace is not a book that you can begin to read and abandon for several weeks or more. It is very much like climbing a mountain--it requires effort, patience and dedication, but the reward is worth it. This is not a book you read at the beach or at the swimming pool, where there are too many distractions. Tolstoy will engage you in a sort of conversation as you read this book. The best way to appreciate what he is saying is to read this book, alone and in a quiet area.
Most reviewers will summarize the book that they read, but I will only say to potential readers of this classic that this is a book worth reading. Many of Tolstoy's criticisms of war are applicable today and I enjoyed his criticism of the Russian elite adopting French aristocratic lifestyles.
But if you are going to read this book, enjoy it at a leisurely pace, in a quiet room--for there is simply no other way to really read this classic.
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- Award-Winner, Mind-Altering Information, Useful, Scholarly
- Why don't you own this book?!!
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Faith-Based Diplomacy: Trumping Realpolitik
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Religion, The Missing Dimension of Statecraft
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The Ambivalence of the Sacred: Religion, Violence, and Reconciliation (Carnegie Commission on Preventing Deadly Conflict)
ASIN: 0195160894 |
Book Description
For most of the twentieth century, the most critical concerns of national security have been balance of power politics and the global arms race. The attacks of September 11, 2001 and the motives behind them, however, demand a radical break with this tradition. If the United States is to prevail in its long-term contest with extremist Islam, it will need to re-examine old assumptions, expand the scope of its thinking to include religion and other "irrational" factors, and be willing to depart from past practice. A purely military response in reaction to such attacks will simply not suffice. What will be required is a long-term strategy of cultural engagement, backed by a deeper understanding of how others view the world and what is important to them. In non-Western cultures, religion is a primary motivation for political actions. Historically dismissed by Western policymakers as a divisive influence, religion in fact has significant potential for overcoming the obstacles that lead to paralysis and stalemate. The incorporation of religion as part of the solution to such problems is as simple as it is profound. It is long overdue. This book looks at five intractable conflicts and explores the possibility of drawing on religion as a force for peace. It builds upon the insights of Religion, the Missing Dimension of Statecraft (OUP,1994)--which examined the role that religious or spiritual factors can play in preventing or resolving conflict--while achieving social change based on justice and reconciliation. The world-class authors writing in this volume suggest how the peacemaking tenets of five major world religions can be strategically applied in ongoing conflicts in which those religions are involved. Finally, the commonalities and differences between these religions are examined with an eye toward further applications in peacemaking and conflict resolution.
Customer Reviews:
Award-Winner, Mind-Altering Information, Useful, Scholarly.......2004-04-30
Let's start with the award. I was so impressed with this book that it received one of the ten Golden Candle Awards for most constructive and innovative work in the Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) field. It represents the second book in a body of work that may eventually be worthy of a Nobel Peace Prize. The citation reads:
To Dr. Douglas M. Johnston, president and founder of the International Center for Religion and Diplomacy, for his path-finding efforts with regard to Preventive Diplomacy as well as Religion and Conflict Resolution. Among his many works, two stand out for defining a critical missing element in modern diplomacy: Religion, the Missing Dimension of Statecraft (Oxford University Press, 1994), and Faith-based Diplomacy: Trumping Realpolitik (Oxford University Press, 2003). He has restored the proper meaning of faith qua earnestness instead of faith qua zealotry, and this is a contribution of great importance.
With a foreword by no less than The Honorable Lee H. Hamilton, today a leader of the 9-11 Commission, the book drives a stake in the heart of secular "objective" negotiation and focuses on how faith (not zealotry, but earnest faith) can alter the spiral of violence in such places as Sudan, Kashmir, and the Middle East.
The editor and contributing author has assembled a multi-national and multi-religion cast of experts whose work in the aggregate completely supports the premise of the book: that the 21st Century will be about religion instead of ideology, and that what hopes we might have for reconciling "irreconcilable differences" lie in the balanced integration of religious dialog and conflict prevention, rather than in pre-emptive military action and unilateralist bullying.
I found two core concepts especially relevant to national security: the first is that we need an Office of Religious and Cultural Intelligence within the Central Intelligence Agency, and we need, as the authors suggest, to put religious attaches into every Embassy. The second, and this is a truly core concept, is "The price of freedom is cultural engagement--taking the time to learn how others view the world, to understand what is important to them, and to determine what can realistically be done to help them realize their legitimate aspirations."
This is a brilliant, scholarly, practical, world-changing book. It joins Max Manwaring's various books, but especially "The Search for Security," Joe Nye's earlier books on understanding the world and engaging the world with soft power, and George Soros as well as the several other books on my standard national security reading list. The conclusion of the book lists a number of means by which religion can impact on diplomacy and state-craft, and I for one have become a believer--this book completely altered my perspective on the role of religion as a peacemaker of substance and day-to-day practicality.
Why don't you own this book?!!.......2003-03-12
Faith-based Diplomacy, Trumping Realpolitik offers a fresh perspective on how to deal with religious militancy. It goes beyond traditional notions of power politics to get at the heart and soul of how to deal with religious terrorism, thus superseding in effectiveness Washington-centric notions of guns and missiles. The creativity of the authors offers much grist for policymakers to "think outside the box" of how traditional power politics are conducted and offers new insights into the process of conflict transformation. A very interesting, insightful, and helpful book for the politician, religious leader and educated layperson.
Book Description
When Zlata's Diary was first published at the height of the Bosnian conflict, it became an international bestseller and was compared to The Diary of Anne Frank, both for the freshness of its voice and the grimness of the world it describes. It begins as the day-today record of the life of a typical eleven-year-old girl, preoccupied by piano lessons and birthday parties. But as war engulfs Sarajevo, Zlata Filipovi´c becomes a witness to food shortages and the deaths of friends and learns to wait out bombardments in a neighbor's cellar. Yet throughout she remains courageous and observant. The result is a book that has the power to move and instruct readers a world away.
Customer Reviews:
Great Book .......2007-05-25
Sheesh...this is the product of a child, not the work of a Pulitzer prize winning journalist. It is an excellent diary, an excellent primary source and an excellent text for a better understanding of the Yugoslav wars. Yes...it does only tell one point of view - hers - it is her diary! Some readers are offended because of the comparison to Anne Frank; a comparison that Filipovic and others make in the book. The comparison is totally fair. Both are intelligent children caught up in situations they have no control over during wars of ethnic cleansing and extermination. It is a testament to Zlata that she can make the connection to Anne Frank...obviously the rest of the world couldn't. They (We) abandoned the Jews sixty years ago and abandoned hundreds of thousands of Croats/Bosniaks/Serbs to genocide forty years later. Zlata remembered Anne Frank's words...the world didn't.
Good read.......2007-05-07
I remember reading this book as a child and picked it up again as an adult. It was a quick read, but really showed how a child deals with war. It made me think of how children in Iraq are feeling right now. Very interesting.
It's a diary, not a book........2007-05-04
To the reader who wrote comment "we all had our delusional moments when we were teenagers"...you should be ashamed of yourself. This "delusional moment" was war and struggle for survival in besieged city of Sarajevo.
Why don't you try and write a book, and/or diary, sitting in a basement without food, water and electricity for four years. All that while granates and bombs are raining on your city. In the meantime, one by one, all of your neighbors and friends are gone six feet under...
How about that for delusional moment...
Zlata's Diary.......2007-04-20
Zlata's Diary is about a young girl's diary named Mimi during the war in her town of Sarajeavo. She writes of the hardships of being a war child. She tells of the changes of her world during the war such as her parents may have grown older one year but looked ten years older. She is constantly hearing of people being shot and wounded. And how might I know this? She was asked if she had a diary. And guess what she did and it was sent to be published. I think this book was over all pretty well written. I would recomend this book to you if you liked the book The Diary Of Anne Frank. So to find out what happens pick up Zlata's Diary.
-Christine Lanier
Zlata's Review.......2007-04-18
Taylor (Lanier Middle School)
Zlata's Dairy is the real life issue of how an eleven year old girl struggles to stay alive during a civil war in Sarajevo, (1991-93) but more importantly trying to cope with the pain friends and family leaving to escape the war. During the whole process she decides to keep a diary which then later becomes published in the years 1992 and 1993.
This book tells a story of family, friendship, and most of all courage. Though a war might be going on, Zlata Filipovic still manages to go to school. Zlata lives in an average sized apartment with her mother and father.
The life lesson in this book is that no matter how hard things get you will always have your family there with you. And that thing's in life will get though, but eventually they will get better. Also never dwell on the bad things, but the good.
I personally do not like this book. The fact that this is a diary is one of the reasons I don't like this book, it skips around and does not tell you everything that happens.It also repeats everything, so all you are reading is what you read before.I would recamend this book to all, even though I did not like it, does'n mean you don't.
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Wages of War, 1816-1965
Joel David Singer , and
Melvin Small
Manufacturer: John Wiley & Sons Inc
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ASIN: 0471793000 |
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On War is the most significant attempt in Western history to understand war, both in its internal dynamics and as an instrument of policy. Since the work's first appearance in 1832, it has been read throughout the world, and has stimulated generations of soldiers, statesmen, and intellectuals.
Download Description
Two motives lead men to War: instinctive hostility and hostile intention. In our definition of War, we have chosen as its characteristic the latter of these elements, because it is the most general. It is impossible to conceive the passion of hatred of the wildest description, bordering on mere instinct, without combining with it the idea of a hostile intention. On the other hand, hostile intentions may often exist without being accompanied by any, or at all events by any extreme, hostility of feeling. Amongst savages views emanating from the feelings, amongst civilised nations those emanating from the understanding, have the predominance; but this difference arises from attendant circumstances, existing institutions, &c., and, therefore, is not to be found necessarily in all cases, although it prevails in the majority. In short, even the most civilised nations may burn with passionate hatred of each other. Please Note: This book is easy to read in true text, not scanned images that can sometimes be difficult to decipher. The Microsoft eBook has a contents page linked to the chapter headings for easy navigation. The Adobe eBook has bookmarks at chapter headings and is printable up to two full copies per year. Both versions are text searchable.
Customer Reviews:
The Rapoport introduction ruined it for me.......2007-02-23
There is a reason that this is a classic. If I'm a teacher at a war college like
West Point , I can assign chapters
and test the students on the understanding of the material.
It is more in the western form of learning than Sun Tzu's classic.
Where does it fail?
Even at this time the "staff" type running of war
that defeated Napoleon was being used by joint European powers.
The running of a war has come to be viewed as like that of an effective business.
You even need a legal staff to deal with civilian complaints.
The modern mathematical approaches of games theory ( Rapoport ) for tactics and
systems theory ( Asimov ) for long range strategy are what spoil this book for me.
War as an object of nationalistic policy has been destroyed by science in our time.
The terrorists have tried to breath new life into the ancient war of faith
by killing their own people at a greater rate than they do the enemy.
Logistically that approach is destined to failure:
you just run out of soldiers fool enough to die for their god.
Carl von Clausewitz was sold on "genius" as the answer to war problems.
I think accounting ability may be as important.
An unwieldy translation.......2006-11-20
In a nutshell: Don't waste your money on this version.
The original version of this translation dates to just after the turn of the century, but the introduction and further editing by Anatol Rapaport (a biologist and a musician, not a political scientist or historian), make this a clumsy read at best and downright misleading at worst.
Rapaport, for being an editor of Clausewitz, was not a believer in the trinitarian system (primordial violence, non-rational actions, and rationality)- probably not a good choice for a work which owes as much as it does to the first and second Trinities (army, people, and government).
If this is the only one you can get, then live with it. The first chance you get, get the much clearer, much more straightforward Paret/Howard translation, which is the one that's actually taught at most service schools as well as in universities in their courses that use it.
A few translation suggestions.......2006-09-27
A few years ago, I translated the crucial first chapter of On War's first book from German into Portuguese. The results were then discussed vis-à-vis the Paret/Howard English version in our post-graduate program. Back then, I wrote a few additional comments in English about nuances of the Paret/Howard text [otherwise, very good], which - so I believed - seemed to dilute the depth of Clausewitz' exposition at key spots. These brief comments follow below, as I still believe they can be of some interest, particularly to those who meditate the relation between war and politics, and as they touch the very heart of Clausewitz unsurpassed insight into the nature of bellic conflict.
The first sentence is the Paret/Howard quotation; the second is the original German; and the third is how I would suggest it in English.
Title 26
* All Wars Can Be Considered Acts of Policy
** Sie koennen alle als politische Handlungen betrachtet werden
*** They [the wars of the previous paragraph] can all be approached as political actions.
§ 2
* If the state is thought of as a person, and policy as the product of its brain, then among the contingencies for which the state must be prepared is a war in which every element calls for policy to be eclipsed by violence. Only if politics is regarded not as resulting from a just appreciation of affairs, but - as it conventionally is - as cautious, devious, even dishonest, shying away from force, could the second type of war appear to be more `political' than the first.
** denn betrachtet man die Politik wie die Intelligenz des personifizierten Staates, so muss unter allen Konstellationen, die ihr Kalkuel aufzufassen hat, doch auch diejenige begriffen sein koennen, wo die Natur aller Verhaeltnisse einen Krieg der ersten Art bedingt. Nur insofern man unter Politik nicht eine allgemeine Einsicht, sondern der `konventionellen' Begriff einer der Gewalt abgewendeten, behutsamen, verschlagenen, auch unredlichen Klugheit versteht, koennte die letzte Art des Krieges ihr mehr angehoeren als die erstere.
*** for if one approaches politics as the intelligence of the personified state, so it ought to be possible, among all constellations that its [the personified state's] calculus must consider, to understand those [constellations] in which the nature of all relationships also determines a war of the first kind. Only if one understands politics in the conventional [depreciative italics] view - as a violence-averse, cautious, devious, and even dishonest cunning - and not as a generic discernment; only then could the last kind of war belong more to politics than the first.
§ 3
*First, therefore, it is clear that war should never be thought of as something autonomous but always as an instrument of policy; otherwise the entire history of war would contradict us. Only this approach will enable us to penetrate the problem intelligently.
** Wir sehen erstens: dass wir uns den Krieg unter allen Umstaende als kein selbstaendiges Ding, sondern als ein politisches Instrument zu denken haben; und nur mit dieser Vorstellungsart ist es moeglich, nicht mit den saemtlichen Kriegsgeschichte in Widerspruch zu geraten. Sie allein schliesst das grosse Buch zu verstaendiger Einsicht auf.
*** First, therefore, we see that we ought always to think of war as a political instrument, and by no means as an autonomous thing. And only with this kind of conception we will not contradict the entire history of war. It [this kind of conception] alone [my italics] opens the great book of proper understanding.
101 § 1
* ... a paradoxical trinity...
** ... eine wunderliche Dreifaltigkeit...
*** ... an amazing trinity...
§2
* The first of these three aspects mainly concerns the people; the second the commander and his army; the third the government.
** Die erste dieser drei Seiten ist mehr dem Volke, die zweite mehr dem Feldherrn und seinem Heer, die dritte mehr der Regierung zugewendet.
*** The first of these three dimensions is directed more to the people; the second, more to the commander and his army; the third, more to the government.
§3
* These three tendencies are like three different codes of law, deep-rooted in their subject and yet variable in their relationship to one another.
** Diese drei Tendenzen, die als ebenso viele verschiedene Gesetzgebungen erscheinen, sind tief in der Natur des Gegenstandes gegruendet und zugleich von veraendlicher Groesse.
*** These three tendencies, which appear just like many different codes of law, have their foundation laid deep in the nature of the object and, at the same time, may acquire variable magnitudes.
My final suggestion is that the name of Clausewitz' book in English should be "Of War", instead of "On War". This is not only a picky nuance: there is a wide and deep gulf between "Of" (`Von', `De') and "On" (`Über', `Super'), a gulf which has been overlooked even by the best philosophers - but not by Clausewitz in his title. Everyday language makes us used to mistakes such as "speak on something", "reflect on something", and truly, these things do not happen. We speak something, meditate/mediate a thought. Clausewitz speaks of war, and certainly not ON war; Jomini speaks on war: he is actually sitting ontop of it, and, really, knows too little to speak OF it.
Would-Be-Commanders Should Buy Other Books.......2006-09-18
If you are going into politics this book is for you. It is very abstract and rambles on for thousands of words in order to get to a single point.
If you are like me I read it, hoping to find great ideas about strategy, and how to best understand ways for armies to maneuver and defeat an enemy. Clauswitz, however, really did not fulfill my needs.
After reading other books titled "The Art of War" there are two that are better than Clauswitz, regarding operational strategy. Baron Antoine Henri de Jomini's "The Art of War," and Sun Tzu's "The Art of War." These go straight to the point. Jomini's was written in the same era of Clauswitz. Like Clauswitz it discusses the principles and lessons of the wars of Frederick the Great and Napoleon. Unlike Clauswitz, Jomini discusses how commanders can best use specific strategies in battles, like flank attacks, the oblique order, convex order, etc.--Fun Stuff!
Sun Tzu's "The Art of War" is like reading Psalms (only with military themes)--it is most concise; with fewer words each passage inspires one's mind with creativity in understanding important principles of strategy (there was not much space anyway on bamboo for ancient Chinese philosophers to write long treatises, like that of Clauswitz!)
Much of the philosophies of Clauswitz are viable, but there is a foolish one that I must give criticism to. It is well known in military studies that the generals of World War I studied this book extensively. In "On War," Chapter XI, the author states, "Let us not hear of Generals who conquer without bloodshed. If a bloody slaughter is a horrible sight, then it is a ground for paying more respect for war...." World War I commanders must have really taken this to heart, because the Western Front must have been the most wasteful and unproductive meat grinder in the history of warfare. For example, Falkenhayn wanted to bleed the French white in the Battle of Verdun. He got his wish--a total of a million people died. What positive result did it get anyone? NOTHING! (I guess you can say there WAS more respect for the horrors of war, but what good did that do for millions of families which lost loved ones!) This Clauswitzian theme for bloodshed proved moot when in World War II armies followed a different theme: fight with as little casualties as possible.
Its the ECONOMICS, stupid !!.......2006-09-09
-Everyone expressing a erudite opinion about Clausewitz or "ON WAR" has completely missed the point here.
-The question is NOT whether Clausewitz or "On War" is an essential read for everyone interested in military hsitory or military affairs. THAT is a moot piont to the Nth Degree.
-The REAL question IS - WHY would you pay $595.oo for a book that has the same identical information as another book for $30.oo ?!?!?!?
-That is the ONLY question regarding THIS particular version of "ON WAR".
-Its the ECONOMICS, stupid !!
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