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Trapped in the War on Terror Hardcover – September 1, 2006

by Ian S. Lustick (Author)

8 customer reviews

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The first principle of terrorism is to understand that the weak win by exploiting the strength of the powerful. When 9/11 terrorists with box cutters hijacked American airliners, they transformed America's preeminent transportation system into a devastating weapon of attack. They also set a trap with the promise of revenge and security as the bait. The hijackers' biggest victory was to goad our government into taking the bait by unleashing the War on Terror. The worry, witch-hunt, and waste that have ensued are, according to Ian S. Lustick, destroying American confidence, undermining our economy, warping our political life, and isolating us from our international allies.

The media have given constant attention to possible terrorist-initiated catastrophes and to the failures and weaknesses of the government's response. Trapped in the War on Terror, however, questions the very rationale for the War on Terror. By analyzing the virtual absence of evidence of a terrorist threat inside the United States along with the motives and strategic purposes of al-Qaeda, Lustick shows how disconnected the War on Terror is from the real but remote threat terrorism poses. He explains how the generalized War on Terror began as part of the justification for invading Iraq, but then took on a life of its own. A whirlwind of fear, failure, and recrimination, this "war" drags every interest group and politician, he argues, into selfish competition for its spoils.

Facing the threat of nuclear incineration during the Cold War, America overcame panic about nonexistent communist sleeper cells poised to destroy the country, a panic fueled by the destructive hysteria of McCarthyism. Through careful analysis of the Soviet threat, the nation managed to sustain a productive national life and achieve victory, despite the terrifying daily possibility of catastrophe. This book is inspired by that success. It points the way forward, not toward victory in the War on Terror but to victory over it. The first and most difficult step toward that victory is to know the enemy. In large measure, as Trapped in the War on Terror shows, that means understanding how al-Qaeda is making us our own worst enemy.

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Editorial Reviews

Review

"A must and timely read for all who worry that we are trapped in a self-defeating strategy. Lustick courageously swims against the within-beltway wisdom by raising the question whether the U.S. government treatment of counterterrorism is worse than the disease itself."—Marc Sageman, author of Understanding Terror Networks

"Ian Lustick has written a brave, forceful, and very valuable book. I wish that every politician promising to 'defend' America would read what he has to say. Failing that, the voters should."—James Fallows, National Correspondent, The Atlantic Monthly

"An important book. . . . [Ian Lustick] is willing to engage in a critical examination and speaks truths that politicians and pundits run from."—Middle East Policy

"Ian Lustick's excellent book presents in an engaging and most intelligent manner a point of view that should be far more widely considered. It brings the problem of terrorism, such as it is, back down to earth and deftly skewers the large political, economic, and media industry that has an interest in exaggerating terrorism's effect and in scaring people unnecessarily. I recommend the book highly."—John Mueller, Professor of Political Science, Ohio State University

About the Author

Ian S. Lustick is Professor of Political Science, Bess W. Heyman Chair, at the University of Pennsylvania. He is the author of many books and coeditor (with Ann M. Lesch) of Exile and Return: Predicaments of Palestinians and Jews, also available from the University of Pennsylvania Press.

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Product details

Hardcover: 200 pages
Publisher: University of Pennsylvania Press (September 1, 2006)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0812239830
ISBN-13: 978-0812239836
Product Dimensions: 6 x 0.6 x 9 inches
Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 8 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,683,558 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #4706 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Politics & Government > Specific Topics > Terrorism
- #5159 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Politics & Government > International & World Politics > Security
- #25624 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Politics & Government > Public Affairs & Policy

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Retired Reader

Knowledge Based Strategy

May 9, 2007

Verified Purchase

The thesis of this book is that the so-called `War on Terror' is an exercise in futility that is driven by opportunism and demagoguery. Strong words, but they are backed by very persuasive arguments. This book is a good follow up to "Overblown" by John Mueller (Amazon.com) that effectively puts the much hyped terrorist threat into perspective. This book provides the approaches that would best mitigate an over-hyped, but still real threat from minority elements of the Islamic extremist movement.

Social scientist that he is, Lustick devotes the first two chapters of the book to statistical analysis concerning the average U.S. citizen's understanding of terrorism and real or imagined terrorist threats. He then attempts to demonstrate, successfully I think, that the tragedy of the 9/11 attacks has been transformed into a massive fraud dubbed the `War on Terror'. In Lustick's opinion, the reality of the terrorist threat has been turned into a political hobby horse by politicians of both parties, a ratings game by the print and electronic media, and a money cow by almost everyone else. These of course are matters of opinion, but they have a ring of truth to them. The War on Terror itself is a really silly concept rather like declaring a war on skirmishing. You can't fight a war against a tactic. In point of fact, the strategy for the War on Terror is fundamentally and irretrievably flawed.

The book makes clear that a "serious understanding of motivations and predicaments of al Qaeda and other Jihadist groups" is absolutely essential to developing a defensive strategy that can mitigate the threat from Islamic brands of terrorism. One might add that such a strategy ought to also be based on an understanding of the organizational structures of al Qaeda and other such entities. Lustick cites the work of George Kennan, whose grand strategy guided the successful U.S. prosecution of the Cold War. According to Lustick, Kennan's strategy was founded on an enormous accumulation of knowledge on the Soviet Union and the Russian people developed over almost thirty years of careful study and analysis. Lustick makes the point that this store of target knowledge was the principal reason Kennan was able to devise such a successful strategy. Needless to say no such store of knowledge has informed the strategies lumped under the rubric "War on Terror" or unfortunately one of its key strategic concepts, the creation of democratic Iraq to serve as an example of the fruits of democracy and moderation. By the end of this book, one has to marvel at ignorance and venality that appears to lay at the heart of our counter-terrorist strategy.

6 people found this helpful7 people found this helpful

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Kindle Customer

Five Stars

November 3, 2016

Verified Purchase

This is an excellent reference book.

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John S.

Well put-together case

December 12, 2006

Verified Purchase

I was especially struck by the author's parallels between today's "terrorist" cells and those of 1950's Communists (equally far-fetched). Also appreciated his coverage of the Administration's mixed messages of "there are plotters everywhere" and "don't panic". My only disappointment was that he never touches on the overblown airport security situation (Kabuki as its often called); one could infer that he agrees with that policy, although logically he wouldn't.

8 people found this helpful9 people found this helpful

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Clifford Bob

Sanity about the "war on terror"

June 25, 2007

Finally some sanity about the so-called "war on terror": Ian Lustick's "Trapped in the War on Terror" persuasively argues that the real peril is not terrorists but the "war" itself.

Lustick shows how a cabal of neoconservative leaders hijacked the country's response to 9/11, hatching long-held plans to attack Iraq while vastly enlarging executive power. Most originally, he details the ways in which the "war" has grown. Stoked by continual fear-mongering by pandering politicians, newly-minted terror "experts," and an unquestioning media, the "war" has spiraled into a whirlwind none can control. The result has been monumental waste of money and lives. Beyond the Iraq war and the Homeland Security behemoth, countless billions of federal dollars are now being squandered on terror-related programs. Smelling an opportunity, all manner of businesses, interest groups, bureaucrats, and others have been only too happy to feed at the anti-terror trough. Meanwhile, political leaders on both left and right are too cowardly to tell Americans some simple truths. The bad news: terrorism has always been and will always be a tool in some political conflicts. Therefore, the "war" on terror can never be won. The good news: terrorism poses remarkably little danger to Americans compared to any number of risks we blithely run every day. The most dangerous forms, such as a nuclear bomb exploding in a city, are extremely unlikely.

Few have had the courage or ability to tell this story. Read "Trapped in the War on Terror" as a necessary first step for bringing America back to its senses.

4 people found this helpful5 people found this helpful

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DSMOLEN

The Cure is Worse than the Disease

July 13, 2007

Professor Lustick's book is a devestating critique of the so-called "war on terror", which has been a disaster for the nation and must end. He quite correctly argues that the cure (the WOT) has been much worse than the disease (terrorism).

The WOT has created an awful culture of fear that now permeates our society. Prof. Lustick talks about how we can face the terrorist threat in a rational way and not give in to fear.

This is a great book and the only disappointment is that there are not more books like it. Wake up America! The only thing we have to fear is fear itself. One day people like Prof. Lustick will be viewed as being ahead of their time.

3 people found this helpful4 people found this helpful

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Mark Sumner

The first sensible book on the subject

September 7, 2006

With the "war" generating more harsh rhetoric and more flying spittle by the day, here's the first book that dares to tell the truth: the metaphor doesn't fit. The prosecution of the war on terror makes about as much sense as trying to fight the war on poverty by sending tanks into West Virginia.

Lustick gets past the distortions of the day and gets to the heart of the matter.

23 people found this helpful24 people found this helpful

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Corey

Great concepts, poor framework.

July 17, 2013

I liked his perspective: the "war on terror" has become something of a stigmatic monster, I agree. I also agree that as a society we need to avoid putting all of our eggs in one basket. However, I could not fully accept many of his examples because he is grossly misinformed on many subjects mentioned in the book. He lost most of his credibility in the first few chapters. I wouldn't expect the average college student or even academic to be able to pick up on these misconceptions, but I would warn readers to be critical and remember that many examples do not equate to truth. The author is compounding on a very important subject, but he needs to have valid arguments to back up his claims. I would enjoy reading a re-work if there was fact checking and the political language was a bit more neutral.

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