Even with the end of the cold war, hot war has not gone out of fashion. The United States retains a far-flung network of air, naval, and land forces prepared for combat on short notice. How and when these forces are used depends in large part on how the US public perceives the need.
In The Ruses for War, John Quigley explores U.S. military actions over the last half-century. What emerges is a tale of coverups, distortion, and manipulation of the media by America's leaders for the purpose of gaining public support. The implications are severe. If presidents shade the truth when they send troops into battle, one of the basic premises of democracy - that a nation's leaders be held accountable to the electorate - is undermined. Quigley urges that America's citizens be given the real reasons behind any future action so they may act accordingly. Otherwise, their young men and women will continue to be sent to their deaths overseas without really knowing why.
John Quigley is professor of law at Ohio State University and is the author of Basic Laws on the Structure of the Soviet State, The Soviet Foreign Trade Monopoly, Law After Revolution, and Palestine and Israel: A Challenge to Justice.
310 pages
ISBN 0-87975-767-1
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