The Long War

A New History of U.S. National Security Policy Since World War II

Andrew J. Bacevich, Andrew Bacevich

• Publisher: Columbia University Press
• Year: 2007
• eBook ISBN: 9780231505864
• Topic: History
• Subtopic: Military & Maritime History
• Index: History

Essays by a diverse and distinguished group of historians, political scientists, and sociologists examine the alarms, emergencies, controversies, and confusions that have characterized America's Cold War, the post-Cold War interval of the 1990s, and today's "Global War on Terror." This "Long War" has left its imprint on virtually every aspect of American life; by considering it as a whole, The Long War is the first volume to take a truly comprehensive look at America's response to the national-security crisis touched off by the events of World War II.

Contributors consider topics ranging from grand strategy and strategic bombing to ideology and economics and assess the changing American way of war and Hollywood's surprisingly consistent depiction of Americans at war. They evaluate the evolution of the national-security apparatus and the role of dissenters who viewed the myriad activities of that apparatus with dismay. They take a fresh look at the Long War's civic implications and its impact on civil-military relations.

More than a military history, The Long War examines the ideas, policies, and institutions that have developed since the United States claimed the role of global superpower. This protracted crisis has become a seemingly permanent, if not defining aspect of contemporary American life. In breaking down the old and artificial boundaries that have traditionally divided the postwar period into neat historical units, this volume provides a better understanding of the evolution of the United States and U.S. policy since World War II and offers a fresh perspective on our current national security predicament.

Table of contents

• Cover 
• Half title
• Title
• Copyright
• Contents 
• Introduction
• 1. Liberation or Dominance? The Ideology of U.S. National Security Policy
• 2. Variations on the American Way of War
• 3. The Politics of Conventional Warfare in an Unconventional Age
• 4. Shield and Sword: U.S. Strategic Forces and Doctrine since 1945
• 5. Elusive Bargain: The Pattern of U.S. Civil-Military Relations since World War II
• 6. The Evolution of the National Security State: Ubiquitous and Endless
• 7. Intelligence for Empire
• 8. The Military-Industrial: Complex Lobby and Trope
• 9. Paying for Global Power: Assessing the Costs and Benefits of Postwar U.S. Military Spending
• 10. The Changing Moral Contract for Military Service
• 11. American Insecurity: Dissent from the “Long War”
• 12. The “Good” War: National Security and American Culture
• List of Contributors
• Index