Warrior Politics
"One of the most thought-provoking and profound books that I have recently read. As readable as it is stimulating."
Henry P. Kissinger
"I read Warrior Politics with fascination. Kaplan makes a persuasive case that the insights of ancient philosophers--from Sun-Tzu to Machiavelli--are relevant to modern security problems. This book will be read by scholars, but it should also be read by those responsible today for making the decisions that affect our national security."
William J. Perry, Former Secretary Of Defense
"Robert Kaplan skillfully captures the relevance of classical political theory for today's leaders, whether they manage crises in the boardroom or the Oval Office."
William S. Cohen, Former Secretary Of Defense
"Warrior Politics should be read by every citizen deeply concerned about America's role in the world. I highly recommend Kaplan's brilliant new book to anyone trying to understand what needs to be done in response to September 11."
Newt Gingrich, Former Speaker of the House
"This is a brilliant and incisive book that should be read and discussed by policy makers and informed citizens alike, to help us think about how the modern state can exist, prosper, and survive in the face of twenty-first-century challenges."
Denis A. Bovin, Vice Chairman, Bear Stearns
"This is an extraordinary book, one to be read by anyone interested in surviving in the twenty-first century. But it is not a book for bedtime reading . . . at least not if you like sleeping. Always provocative, Kaplan takes, head-on, lessons of conflict over the centuries, which continue to be true because humans continue to be human."
Norman R. Augustine, Ugustine, CEO Of Lockheed Martin
"A profound and timely meditation on twenty-first-century global politics and America's place in it. Deeply versed in classical scholarship, Robert Kaplan shows how the philosophers and historians of ancient Greece and Rome offer vital lessons for American leaders today."
John Gray, Professor European Thought, London School Of Economics
"Sun-Tzu also suggested that with the battle won, the best leader persuades his followers that they did it themselves: one great lesson among many others in this gem of a book for present and future leaders."
Sidney Harman, Executive Chairman, International Industries
"The side that knows when to fight and when not will take the victory. There are roadways not to be traveled, armies not to be attacked, walled cities not to be assaulted."
Sun- Tzu
Robert Kaplan
Related Programs:
The Bernard L. Schwartz Fellows Program
Topics:
Books, Foreign Policy, Political History
"One of the most thought-provoking and profound books that I have recently read. As readable as it is stimulating."
Henry P. Kissinger
"I read Warrior Politics with fascination. Kaplan makes a persuasive case that the insights of ancient philosophers--from Sun-Tzu to Machiavelli--are relevant to modern security problems. This book will be read by scholars, but it should also be read by those responsible today for making the decisions that affect our national security."
William J. Perry, Former Secretary Of Defense
"Robert Kaplan skillfully captures the relevance of classical political theory for today's leaders, whether they manage crises in the boardroom or the Oval Office."
William S. Cohen, Former Secretary Of Defense
"Warrior Politics should be read by every citizen deeply concerned about America's role in the world. I highly recommend Kaplan's brilliant new book to anyone trying to understand what needs to be done in response to September 11."
Newt Gingrich, Former Speaker of the House
"This is a brilliant and incisive book that should be read and discussed by policy makers and informed citizens alike, to help us think about how the modern state can exist, prosper, and survive in the face of twenty-first-century challenges."
Denis A. Bovin, Vice Chairman, Bear Stearns
"This is an extraordinary book, one to be read by anyone interested in surviving in the twenty-first century. But it is not a book for bedtime reading . . . at least not if you like sleeping. Always provocative, Kaplan takes, head-on, lessons of conflict over the centuries, which continue to be true because humans continue to be human."
Norman R. Augustine, Ugustine, CEO Of Lockheed Martin
"A profound and timely meditation on twenty-first-century global politics and America's place in it. Deeply versed in classical scholarship, Robert Kaplan shows how the philosophers and historians of ancient Greece and Rome offer vital lessons for American leaders today."
John Gray, Professor European Thought, London School Of Economics
"Sun-Tzu also suggested that with the battle won, the best leader persuades his followers that they did it themselves: one great lesson among many others in this gem of a book for present and future leaders."
Sidney Harman, Executive Chairman, International Industries
"The side that knows when to fight and when not will take the victory. There are roadways not to be traveled, armies not to be attacked, walled cities not to be assaulted."
Sun- Tzu
The Bernard L. Schwartz Fellows Program
Selected reviews of Warrior Politics are featured below:
Publishers Weekly
Tuesday, January 15, 2002
Years of reporting from combat zones in Bosnia, Uganda, the Sudan, Sierra Leone, Pakistan, Ethiopia and Eritrea have convinced Kaplan (Balkan Ghosts, The Coming Anarchy) that Thucydides and Sun-Tzu are still right on the money when they wrote that war is not an aberration and that civilization can repress barbarism but cannot eradicate it.
Reminding readers that "The greater the disregard of history, the greater the delusions regarding the future," Kaplan conducts a brisk tour through the works of Machiavelli, Malthus and Hobbes, among others, to support his advocacy of foreign policy based on the morality of results rather than good intentions. From those classics, he extracts historical models and rationales for exploiting military might, stealth, cunning and what he dubs "anxious foresight" (which some may regard as pessimism based on disasters past) in order to lead, fight and bring adversaries to their knees should they challenge the prevailing balance of power. He also adapts this model to business, exploring the ways modern-day CEOs can benefit from history's lessons.
Kaplan's discussion of the world's breeding grounds for rogue warriors out to disrupt daily life in bizarre new ways will strike a chord with most readers, as will his recounting of the brilliant statesmanship of Churchill and Roosevelt during World War II. Some readers, however, may take exception to the potshots Kaplan aims at (unnamed) media personalities and human rights advocates. This is a provocative, smart and polemical work that will stimulate lively discussion.
