The Savage Wars of Peace: Small Wars and the Rise of American Power

american empire

It is the fate of empires to be despised, and the u.s. is no different. Max Boot details the military action taken outside america's acknowledged wars and the boon that it has been to the world. More often than not, the u.s. has been a force for good even if it suffers the stigma of an imperialistic thug. How might Vietnam have turned out if a counterinsurgency had been pursued instead of big unit fighting. Holds lessons for the current wars in iraq and afghanistan.

A must read.

By far one of the best books I've read about American history. It includes every Small Wars the U.S has fought. It also focuses on heroes who have been forgotten such as Smedley Butler, Dan Daly, Chesty Puller and many others. Every service member should read this book!

Outstanding

This is a well written summary of some of the little-known military incidents in US history. There are a very few typos regarding dates that the reader should be aware of, but they are of little import. The most valuable contribution of this work is to compel the reader to re-evaluate any notions they might have as to the proper use, and misuse, of military power. Most informative is the discussion of the various reasons the US got involved in South American and Carribean situations, reasons that run directly counter to much conventional wisdom in US academic thinking. Mr. Boot's conclusions are convincing, and enlightening. Also, of great interest is his dealing with the US experience in Vietnam, and how the hard-won lessons of the 1920s and 1930s was unaccountably jettisoned by MacNamara and Johnson.

The Art and Science of Waging Small Wars

In Savage Wars of Peace Small Wars and the Rise of American Power, Max Boot has written an authoritative treatise about guerilla warfare or small wars in which the country has been involved almost since the beginning of its existence. Contrary to the popular myth, the U.S. military has fought numerous small wars in its history to promote the country¿s interests overseas, often without a prior declaration of war. Boot masterfully explains how the country was first a commercial power before becoming a great power in the 1890s and then a superpower in 1941. Boot guides readers around the world and brings back to their memory some American heroes that are sometimes almost completely forgotten in the general public. Boot also clearly shows that the U.S. military progressively lost its hard-won expertise in waging small wars after WWII with disastrous consequences in some small wars overseas that resulted in the birth of the Powell Doctrine (pg. 318-319). Boot reminds his readers that the U.S. military has to use the Powell Doctrine as a benchmark because of the sui generis nature of small wars (pg. 318-320, 336-341, 352). The U.S. military should continue to nurture its different branches with the same care so that it can fight any type of war with equal efficiency (pg. 331, 350-351). Boot also looks at the Body Bag Syndrome and its nefarious consequences on the deterrence power of the U.S. military in the world (pg. 327-330, 347). Under-commitment and lack of confidence are as dangerous as imperial overstretch and hubris (pg. 352). Most importantly, Boot¿s masterpiece contains some life-saving lessons very useful to the duty-bound Coalition accomplishing its mission in Iraq: 1. The massive development aid, which could make ordinary Iraqis increasingly receptive to the coalition efforts, is a long-term project. The most immediate need is to provide Iraqi cities and villages with security against the irregulars who tax locals for food, shelter, intelligence and bodies (pg. 304). 2. Thanks to the nurturing of mixed, well-trained infantry units stationed in all places not yet pacified, coalition troops know from past experience that they can rapidly improve their urban-jungle-warfare skills (pg. 305, 331). Because of their vulnerability, small outposts in Iraqi cities and villages should be perceived as able to count on massive support, if necessary (pg. 306-307). The Iraqi police are not the right candidate to populate these units due to a lack of both proper training and equipment. No restive place such as Fallujah can be off-limits to the combined action platoons (pg. 307, 311); nor can rebel sanctuaries outside Iraq be tolerated (pg. 316-317). Otherwise, the cancer rapidly metastasizes (pg. 350). 3. An efficient program should be developed or further improved in conjunction with law-abiding Iraqi citizens to identify and neutralize the irregulars after the example of the efficient Phoenix program (pg. 310). By interacting in a friendly manner with the native citizens, the mixed fighting units will be able to win their trust and confidence and gain invaluable intelligence supplied by friendly informants about enemy intentions and movements (pg. 305-307). Furthermore, the close involvement of coalition troops in the daily life of ordinary Iraqis gives them a stake in the war (pg. 306). In addition, slow rotations of key members of coalition forces are essential because building trust and confidence is personal and requires time (pg. 306-307). 4. Some coalition soldiers who independently operate from their Iraqi counterparts have limited friendly interaction with ordinary Iraqis mainly due to linguistic and cultural barriers as well as their isolation in their fortified compounds. Their efficiency in the field is not always optimal for these reasons (pg. 306). 5. The large-scale search-and-destroy strategy alone often is a counterproductive attrition strategy in guerilla warfare due to its fu

Awesome!

I first picked up the book as a suggestion by a guy that I know from work. I was really cautious about reading it and it started out kinda slow, but the more you read it, the better it gets until you really feel it. I really like this book and recommend it to all who enjoy history (both general and military)...

Historically Enlightening

If you think you know all there is to know about U.S. military history you will probably find something new in 'Savage Wars of Peace.' Max Boot covers many of the 'small' conflicts the United States participated, many that people know very little. From the Barbary Pirates to the Phillipine action to Somalia, Boot describes in detail the political climate, the reasons behind US intervention, and the soldier's experiences. 'Savage Wars' is a quick enjoyable read.

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