Customer Reviews

The Lessons of Terror: A History of Warfare Against Civilians: Why It has Always Failed and Why It Will Fail Again

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Despite the critism, this is a good book. I bought it after seeing him speak on CSPAN. It is post 9/11 so it does address that but our recent bought with islamic terrorism is not the main emphasis. Rather he explores some very interesting and rather obscure parts of history, including Rome's uses of terror, warfare in the 1500s, and Sherman's March. While I am sure people can stress their mind to prove that some form of terrorism can work (such as the other critic's example of Hiroshima), Carr's main point is nonetheless very compelling. It should probably apply to any "hearts and minds" strategy now in Afganistan or Iraq, as well as applicable lessons in Israel/Palestine. You may not agree with his conclusions (though I do), but it is informative.

I listened to the audiobook version of this book and it was painful. The reader's voice was annoying and I couldn't wait for the book to be over.

As far as the book goes, I don't think it was that great. OK, you do learn some history of how warfare has been conducted over the past 2000 years. And yes, civilians are killed often - I guess this is what Carr calls terrorism. So in his view, what happened on 9/11 is not so strange in the history of warfare. We are war with Al Qaeda and terrorism is offten a major facet of war. I was not utterly convinced that 9/11 is of the same flavor of terrorism as troops overstepping boundaries during wartime. We would call that latter war crimes but the 'war on terror' is of a definitely different sort of war. Like most things, terrorism is a term that is a spectrum of tactics and not a one size fits all definition. One must also consider motivations: is the motivation of saturation bombing the same as 9/11? It would seem to me that bombing is more to destroy an enemies resources that what 9/11 was - destroy American symbols and innocents.

Even more doubtful is Carr's contention that his widely defined terrorism ALWAYS backfires on those who use it. When it seems not to, he say for example Rome succeeded so well 'in spite of' it's terrorist tactics not because of. Yes, creating malice in people will usually cause them to be malicious. Terror is one way that can happen. But not the only and probably not the most dominant. Of course the nuclear bombing of Japan seems to contradict Carr's premise. We killed a lot of civilians which directly contributed to us winning the war against Japan. And Japan has not sought revenge since as far as I know of. Is the lesson here that a large enough act of terrorism can actually lead to success for the terrorizers? It seems truer than Carr's categorical statements.

Written in 2002, there is no comment on the Iraq War.

And did I hear him call the Byzantine Empire, the Holy Roman Empire?

Skip this one.

Despite some unfair negative press, this book is yet another example of Carr's masterful writing style and unparalleled ability to create strong, lasting images. Some readers expecting historical fiction might not appreciate Carr's subject matter, but it is important to remember that military history is Carr's field of expertise. Knowing this going in, I was able to immerse myself and enjoy from beginning to end.

After September 11, it is important to have a reasonable, intelligent response that avoids sensationalism and fear-mongering. Carr's approach (and use of history) not only describes the ultimate futility of terrorist actions, but attempts something few people in the media dare to do -- provide context and comparative understanding. Our plight might seem unique and unprecedented to those in the full arrogance of their Americanism, but Carr rightfully dashes such nonsense, demonstrating that terror, far from a "Middle East problem," is (and has been) world-wide in scope, taking various shapes and employing wide-ranging tactics.

Above all, however, Carr is simply a wonderful writer. His prose is clear and direct, yet always intellectually sound. This is far from the simplistic rants one comes to expect in this area; Carr always takes his book in the right direction and (thankfully!) expects his audience to bring more than a working knowledge of the subjects at hand. He is a challenging, provocative author, always avoiding self-righteousness and easy targets.

Buy -- and read -- with confidence. Carr is, as always, the man to seek in such matters. I only wish he gave us more non-fiction for his love (and knowledge) of the subjet is quite apparent.