Gaddis, John Lewis. Surprise, Security, and the American Experience. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2004. Gaddis, John Lewis. Surprise, Security, and the American Experience. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2004.
Szafranski, Air & Space Power Journal 18.4 (Winter 2004), finds this work to be "well written and thought provoking." The author's thesis is that U.S. national security policy is based on three approaches -- preemption, unilateralism, and hegemony -- which are all rooted in our history and persist today.
For Killebrew, Parameters, Winter 2004-05, the author "has produced a small and pristine essay on the American experience that will change the reader's view of American history, the current war in Iraq, and the outlook for the future.... Though not all will agree with Gaddis's ambivalent views on the United States' current course, the reader can't help but respect the historian's brilliant analysis of America's past and present security strategies, and his penetrating and honest perspective of current events."
van Tol, NWCR 58.4 (Autumn 2005), calls this work "a succinct and masterful statement of the central national security dilemma that presently faces us.... Gaddis argues that far from being a radical departure, the Bush administration's response to the [9/11] attacks represents considerable continuity with American historical tradition."
To Schecter, I&NS 20.4 (Dec. 2005), the author "does well on finding thematic precedents" in national security strategies of the past in an effort to illuminate the present." However, he "comes up short by failing to zero in on presidential deception and the misuse of intelligence."
Gaddis, John Lewis. Strategies of Containment: A Critical Appraisal of American National Security Policy during the Cold War. 2d rev. & expanded ed. New York: Oxford University Press, 2005.
Gerstein, Daniel M.
1. Securing America's Future: Naitonal Strategy in the Information Age. Westport, CT: Praeger, 2005.
Chapman, IJI&C 19.3 (Fall 2006), finds that the core argument here "is that the world is leaving the Industrial Age and entering the Information Age, which requires that nations ... change and adapt their military and foreign policies to the new era." The reviewer finds it difficult to comprehend "what kind of information will bring people together across the globe." Gerstein "places great stock in globalization to change the world..., but it's debateable whether globalization" is actually such a force.
2. Leading at the Speed of Light: New Strategies for U.S. Security in the Information Age. Washington, DC: Potomac, 2006.
Baltrusaitis, JFQ 48 (1st Quarter 2008), says that the author's "attempt to reformulate the U.S. approach to strategic leadership falls short of hitting the mark by attempting to accomplish too much with too little." Gerstein's change to the U.S. security apparatus is based on an assumption of systemic failure. Yet, he fails to "convince[] the reader that he has identified the endemic problem." In addition, he "offers no solution on how to restructure government for the information age other than ordering a congressional review for reorganization."
Hart, Gary. The Shield and the Cloak: The Security of the Commons. New York: Oxford University Press, 2006.
Lloyd, NWCR 59.4 (Autumn 2006), notes that the author includes economic, environmental, health, energy, and educational issues in the definition of security. Hart believes that the U.S. military shield must be comprised of three principles: flexibility, reform, and intelligence. He "recommends appreciation of fourth-generation warfare and establishment of a human intelligence corps within the CIA. He consolidates all special forces into a fifth service, and brings the National Guard home to reassume its traditional duties of guarding the homeland."
Korb, Lawrence J. A New National Security Strategy in an Age of Terrorists, Tyrants, and Weapons of Mass Destruction: Three Options Presented as Presidential Speeches. New York: Council on Foreign Relations, 2003.
Ross, NWCR 57.3/4 (Summer/Autumn 2004), finds this to be an "admirably concise and sharply focused volume.... Korb masterfully translates" three alternative national-security policies "into full-blown presidential addresses to Congress and the nation. He also systematically and evenhandedly assesses the strengths, weaknesses, and political impact of each."
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