King George's Folly
I've liked Barbara Tuchman's The March of Folly: From Troy to Vietnam ever since I first read it. It's more approachable than, say, her examination of the start of the First World War (The Guns of August) or her in-depth exploration of The Zimmermann Telegram. Of course, one can marvel at the folly of the European heads of state in 1914 and 1916, but the first book contains the better overall account, I think.
Naturally, that look at folly has never been far from my mind when considering the current misadventure in Iraq--or the looming debacle over Iran. It would seem that I have some company in this respect. Digby at Hullabaloo points us to Arthur Silber's Once Upon a Time..., where Mr. Silber is kind enough to illustrate clearly the folly of our current foreign policy honchos.
It's well worth your time, as is Dr. Tuchman's book. I can loan it to you, if you'd like.
I've liked Barbara Tuchman's The March of Folly: From Troy to Vietnam ever since I first read it. It's more approachable than, say, her examination of the start of the First World War (The Guns of August) or her in-depth exploration of The Zimmermann Telegram. Of course, one can marvel at the folly of the European heads of state in 1914 and 1916, but the first book contains the better overall account, I think.
Naturally, that look at folly has never been far from my mind when considering the current misadventure in Iraq--or the looming debacle over Iran. It would seem that I have some company in this respect. Digby at Hullabaloo points us to Arthur Silber's Once Upon a Time..., where Mr. Silber is kind enough to illustrate clearly the folly of our current foreign policy honchos.
It's well worth your time, as is Dr. Tuchman's book. I can loan it to you, if you'd like.
Labels: cluster fuck, History, Iran, Iraq
posted by Jude at 12:54 PM
