The present-day U.S. military qualifies by any measure as highly professional, much more so than its Cold War predecessor. Yet the purpose of today’s professionals is not to preserve peace but to fight unending wars in distant places. Intoxicated by a post-Cold War belief in its own omnipotence, the United States allowed itself to be drawn into a long series of armed conflicts, almost all of them yielding unintended consequences and imposing greater than anticipated costs. Since the end of the Cold War, U.S. forces have destroyed many targets and killed many people. Only rarely, however, have they succeeded in accomplishing their assigned political purposes. . . . [F]rom our present vantage point, it becomes apparent that the “Revolution of ‘89” did not initiate a new era of history. At most, the events of that year fostered various unhelpful illusions that impeded our capacity to recognize and respond to the forces of change that actually matter.

Andrew Bacevich


Saturday, May 16, 2009

Site News

Sorry for the missed post today -- neither Whisker nor I was able to do it. I think that's the first time that has happened in the history of IT/TII. But, right now there are only two of us and we have lives. Anyway, I'll cover both days tomorrow and we'll make sure to keep the documentation as complete as we can. I will also have a review of Juan Cole's new book in the very near future.

We won't let you down.

Posted by Cervantes at 3:49 PM

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