Illuminating The Dark Arts Of War

Terrorism, sabotage, and subversion are analyzed to challenge the dominant views that a ‘new conflict’ is now posing unprecedented threats to U.S. homeland security.

Since 9/11, the dominant view is that we have entered an era of new conflict in which technology has empowered non-state actors who now pose unprecedented and unmanageable threats to U.S. national security. This unique work studies a range of threats, from homegrown and foreign terrorism to the possibility of cyber- or Chinese sabotage and fears of religious subversion to challenge every aspects of this new conflict argument and expose its underlying exaggerations and misunderstandings. Examining such issues as political violence, the role of religion in terrorism, the impact of technology, and the political aspects of homeland security, this unique survey demonstrates how such activities as terrorism are limited by their clandestine nature. It also addresses why we need to switch our strategic focus and increase the role citizens have in dealing with such threats.

Using espionage as a test case, The End of Intelligence criticizes claims that the recent information revolution has weakened the state, revolutionized warfare, and changed the balance of power between states and non-state actors—and it assesses the potential for realizing any hopes we might have for reforming intelligence and espionage. Examining espionage, counterintelligence, and covert action, the book argues that, contrary to prevailing views, the information revolution is increasing the power of states relative to non-state actors and threatening privacy more than secrecy. Arguing that intelligence organizations may be taken as the paradigmatic organizations of the information age, author David Tucker shows the limits of information gathering and analysis even in these organizations, where failures at self-knowledge point to broader limits on human knowledge—even in our supposed age of transparency. He argues that, in this complex context, both intuitive judgment and morality remain as important as ever and undervalued by those arguing for the transformative effects of information. This book will challenge what we think we know about the power of information and the state, and about the likely twenty-first century fate of secrecy and privacy.

This exploration of the links between imperialism and insurgency is “a reliable introduction to a complex subject” (Dennis E. Showalter, coauthor of If the Allies Had Fallen). In this provocative history, David Tucker argues that “irregular warfare”—including terrorism, guerrilla warfare, and other insurgency tactics—is intimately linked to the rise and decline of Euro-American empire around the globe. Tracing the evolution of resistance warfare from the age of the conquistadors through the United States’ recent ventures in Afghanistan and Iraq, Revolution and Resistance demonstrates that contemporary conflicts in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia are simply the final stages in the unraveling of Euro-American imperialism. Tucker explores why it was so difficult for indigenous people and states to resist imperial power, which possessed superior military technology and was driven by a curious moral imperative to conquer. He also explains how native populations eventually learned to fight back by successfully combining guerrilla warfare with political warfare. By exploiting certain Euro-American weaknesses—above all, the instability created by the fading rationale for empire—insurgents were able to subvert imperialism by using its own ideologies against it. Tucker also examines how the development of free trade and world finance began to undermine the need for direct political control of foreign territory. Touching on Pontiac’s Rebellion of 1763, Abd el-Kader’s jihad in nineteenth-century Algeria, the national liberation movements in twentieth-century Palestine, Vietnam, and Ireland, and contemporary terrorist activity, this book shows how changing means have been used to wage the same struggle. Emphasizing moral rather than economic or technological explanations for the rise and fall of Euro-American imperialism, this concise, comprehensive book is required reading for anyone seeking to understand the character of contemporary conflict.

This Citizen’s Guide addresses the public policy issues of terrorism and counterterrorism in the United States after Bin Laden’s death. Written for the thinking citizen and student alike, this succinct and up-to-date book takes a "grand strategy" approach toward terrorism and uses examples and issues drawn from present-day perpetrators and actors. Christopher Harmon, a veteran academic of military theory who has also instructed U.S. and foreign military officers, organizes his book into four sections. He first introduces the problem of America’s continued vulnerability to terrorist attack by reviewing the long line of recent attacks and attempts against the U.S., focusing specifically on New York City. Part II examines the varied ways in which the U.S. is already fighting terrorism, highlighting the labors of diverse experts, government offices, intelligence and military personnel, and foreign allies. The book outlines the various aspects of the U.S. strategy, including intelligence, diplomacy, public diplomacy, economic counterterrorism, and law and law-making. Next, Harmon sketches the prospects for further action, steering clear of simple partisanship and instead listing recommendations with pros and cons and also including factual stories of how individual citizens have made a difference in the national effort against terrorism. This concise book will contribute to our understanding of the problems surrounding terrorism and counterterrorism—and the approaches the United States may take to meet them—in the early 21st century

Using concepts that are not already a part of the militant discourse as a way to undermine extremism, Countering Heedless Jihad explores a stratagem aimed at defusing jihadist ideology. It explains how to counteract idealist theology using concepts from it, borrowing ideas from some revered Islamic theologians and positioning them in a way that sabotages jihadist ideology. By integrating the theology with viable methods for dissemination, it presents a viable means for confusing existing members of radical groups and for neutralizing their recruiting effort. The book includes contributions by Major General Michael Lehnert, USMC; U.S. Ambassador David J. Dunford; and Dr. Khuram Iqbal.

Since 9/11, the dominant view is that we have entered an era of 'new conflict' in which technology has empowered non-state actors who now pose unprecedented and unmanageable threats to U.S. national security. This unique work studies a range of threats, from homegrown and foreign terrorism to the possibility of cyber- or Chinese sabotage and fears of religious subversion to challenge every aspects of this 'new conflict' argument and expose its underlying exaggerations and misunderstandings. Examining such issues as political violence, the role of religion in terrorism, the impact of technology, and the political aspects of homeland security, this unique survey demonstrates how such activities as terrorism are limited by their clandestine nature. It also addresses why we need to switch our strategic focus and increase the role citizens have in dealing with such threats. This historically informed and critical analysis fills a void in the debates on the threats and conflicts that the U.S. confronts at home and abroad and will appeal to anyone interested in national security and terrorism.

In this second edition, America’s Urban History now includes contemporary analysis of race, immigration, and cities under the Trump administration and has been fully updated with new scholarship on early urbanization, mass incarceration and cities, the Great Society, the diversification of the suburbs, and environmental justice. The United States is one of the most heavily urbanized places in the world, and its urban history is essential to understanding the fundamental narrative of American history. This book is an accessible overview of the history of American cities, including Indigenous settlements, colonial America, the American West, the postwar metropolis, and the present-day landscape of suburban sprawl and an urbanized population. It examines the ways in which urbanization is connected to divisions of society along the lines of race, class, and gender, but it also studies how cities have been sources of opportunity, hope, and success for individuals and the nation. Images, maps, tables, and a guide to further reading provide engaging accompaniment to illustrate key concepts and themes. Spanning centuries of America’s urban past, this book’s depth and insight make it an ideal text for students and scholars in urban studies and American history.