Wilson's Ghost: Reducing the Risk of Conflict, Killing, and Catastrophe in the 21st Century - Hardcover

McNamara, Robert S.; Blight, James G.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1891620894 ISBN 13: 9781891620898

Publisher: PublicAffairs, 2001

Synopsis

Woodrow Wilson's vision of a collective international action to resist aggressive conflict after the carnage of World War I failed tragically. Over 160 million people died in war during the 20th century, and in Wilson's Ghost, Robert S. McNamara and James G. Blight put forth a decisive, multi-faceted action program for realizing Wilson's dream during this century. The plan begins with a moral imperative that establishes as a major goal of foreign policy across the globe the avoidance of war. To that end,enforcement entails only multilateral intervention on the part of the United States; full reconciliation with Russia and China to integrate those nations into relations with the other Great Powers; restructuring the United Nations to greater effectiveness; defining and deterring war crimes; creating UN enforcement; and finally, reducing nuclear danger by eliminating the huge arsenal held by the United States and Russia, and by signing into law the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty. The authors support their plan with specific, achievable steps that can begin now to ensure a more peaceful 21st century.

About this title

About the Author

Robert S. McNamara was president of the Ford Motor Company, secretary of defense to Presidents Kennedy and Johnson, and president of the World Bank. He is the author of In Retrospect: The Tragedy and Lessons of Vietnam, and co-author of Argument Without End: In Search of Answers to the Vietnam Tragedy. James G. Blight is professor of international relations (research) at the Watson Institute for International Studies at Brown University, and the author or editor of a dozen books on the recent history of U.S. foreign policy, including Argument Without End.

Reviews

In the 20th century, 160 million people died in war and political violence, the bloodiest century on record. But, warn the authors, unless there is a radical change in the conduct of international affairs, the 21st century could see far more carnage. Drawing on the Wilsonian tradition in American foreign policy, former Secretary of Defense McNamara and Brown University international relations professor Blight (the two also coauthored Argument Without End: In Search of Answers to the Vietnam Tragedy) offer two imperatives the U.S. should follow: a "Moral Imperative," to make it a major goal of U.S. foreign policy to avoid the violence of the previous century, and a "Multilateral Imperative," to disavow the unilateral use of U.S. economic, political and military power when confronting foreign crises or challenges. A moral imperative does not mean violence will never occur, but with such an imperative in place leaders will be far more cautious than in the past in resorting to violence. For the U.S., the moral imperative must be tied to a multilateral imperative. The U.S. is indeed powerful and must lead, but it is not omnipotent, say the authors. Multilateral action can help ensure that the U.S. does not act precipitously, in an ignorant and arrogant fashion. The authors amplify on these imperatives in separate vignettes on the Cuban missile crisis of 1962, where they were applied, and on the Vietnam War, where they were not (McNamara was a participant in both). Finally, the authors address in detail three major problems confronting U.S. foreign policy bringing Russia and China fully into the world community, reducing communal or ethnic violence, eliminating nuclear weapons. Deftly written and cogently argued, this is one of the best recent books on foreign policy. (On-sale: June 5) Forecast: The day before this book hits the stores, McNamara will appear on the Today Show, kicking off a tour to New York, D.C., Boston, Philadelphia, Los Angeles and San Francisco. Given McNamara's position and background, this will generate media attention, but is unlikely to bolster sales much beyond foreign policy-wonk circles.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Former Secretary of Defense McNamara, perhaps as controversial today as in the 1960s, reunites with Blight, the Brown University international relations professor with whom he wrote Argument Without End (1999), to suggest what should be done to realize Woodrow Wilson's dream of an end to war. Reducing human carnage in the new century, they hold, "requires an unprecedented moral commitment to avoid killing, in addition to an equally unprecedented commitment to 'zero-tolerance multilateralism.'" To prevent Great Power conflict, McNamara and Blight suggest, it is essential to "bring Russia and China in from the Cold." To reduce "communal killing" as in Bosnia or Rwanda, they call for multilateral intervention in "dangerous, troubled, failed, murderous states." To avoid nuclear catastrophe, they insist, "nuclear weapons can and must now be eliminated . . . rather than trying . . . to construct a defensive 'shield.'" George W. Bush earned points in the 2000 election for calling for a more humble U.S. foreign policy. McNamara and Blight also stress humility, but empathy is an equally important part of their foreign policy prescription. Thoughtful, provocative analysis. Mary Carroll
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Former Secretary of Defense McNamara is 85 and still atoning for his role in the Vietnam conflict (see In Retrospect: The Tragedy and Lessons of Vietnam, LJ 4/15/95). His new book, written with international relations expert Blight, takes the ideas and idealism of Woodrow Wilson and sets forth a moral and multilateral formula for achieving peace in the world. The authors advocate the importance of "democratic decision-making" in U.S. foreign policy and increased empathy toward Russia and China. They also warn that the plague of communal violence within nations poses a dilemma for the United States and international organizations, as intervention might not lead to a satisfactory solution of the conflict. McNamara and Blight are especially eloquent in their pleas to end the threat of nuclear catastrophe, and McNamara inserts his personal reflections on the Cuban missile crisis (as well as on the lost opportunities for an early resolution in Vietnam). The authors critique major foreign policy theories and develop a convincing "Wilsonian" framework for U.S. policy. This stimulating and challenging work will do much to redeem McNamara's legacy; recommended for academic and large public libraries. Thomas A. Karel, Franklin & Marshall Coll. Lib., Lancaster, PA
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: PublicAffairs
• Publication date: 2001
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1891620894
• ISBN 13: 9781891620898
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 240