In case you missed it America's war for the Greater Middle East
Andrew Bacevich's fierce and fearless critique of US
the military strategy.
By Marwan Bisharaby - 4 Aug 2016
America's War for the Greater
Middle East is a remarkable book. Andrew J Bacevich, a
military historian and an American patriot who served in
the United States military, and who lost his son in the
Iraq war, is a no-nonsense no-warmonger.
Sober and comprehensive,
Bacevich's balance sheet of US wars in the Muslim world
is a testimony to Washington's military failures in the
Greater Middle East.
Throughout the book he employs an
analytical razor to dissect the doctrines and dogmas
behind direct US military intervention in the Middle
East, which he dates back not to Franklin Roosevelt or
Dwight Eisenhower, but rather to Jimmy Carter.
The Carter doctrine can be
summarised by the following declaration: "Any
attempt by any outside force to gain control of the
Persian Gulf region will be regarded as an assault on
the vital interests of the United States of America, and
such an assault will be repelled by any means necessary,
including military force."
Andrew cuts Carter some
slack, but shows how his doctrine paved the way for
future interventions. He scrutinises each and every one
of the dozen US military campaigns in the Greater Middle
East and Muslim world, but connects them all into one
strategic mindset spanning over four decades.
And then critiques the rationale
behind the use of force since 1980 through a
dispassionate evaluation of US military strategies from
the first to the fourth Gulf wars and from Bosnia to
Afghanistan through Lebanon, Syria, Somalia, Lebanon,
and Yemen and others.
Delusional leadership,
oblivious public
For Bacevich, US wars in the
Middle East are driven not only by oil and the military
industrial complex. He sees a collective illusion or
naivete leading to more of the same blunders and
mistakes.
And he shows how despite the
proven failures, US leaders and strategists have
continued to use the same Washington playbook.
Are You Tired Of
The Lies And
Non-Stop Propaganda?
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