Roots of War

The Men and Institutions Behind US Foreign Policy (subtitle)This book was published during the final stages of the Vietnam debacle at the high-water-mark of intense scholarly scrutiny of US foreign policy. The series of post-WWII undeclared wars had culminated in the tar-baby of SE Asia, the body-bags were arriving home by boatloads, thousands of US prisoners were rotting in the tiger-cages of North Vietnam and finally a significant segment of the US public was demanding to know why.Barnet explores the answers in a good, though fairly one-sided exploration of the factors that led us where we were. In many instances the facts he presents continue to apply in the post-Vietnam Era, though the comparative silence of the guns between Vietnam and the Gulf War would have argued otherwise during those years. However, after the humiliating memories of Vietnam were washed away in the smoke and blood of the Gulf War and overtly bellicose behavior returned to US foreign policy the questions once again are worthy of answers.I'd recommend this book to anyone who's confused about the roots of American policy, how we got here, and who's behind the wheel of the decisions of our government about foreign policy.