Download or read book Politics Paradigms and Intelligence Failures written by Ofira Seliktar and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2015-05-20 with total page 297 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Washington's failure to foresee the collapse of its superpower rival ranks high in the pantheon of predictive failures. The question of who got what right or wrong has been intertwined with the deeper issue of "who won" the Cold War. Like the disputes over "who lost" China and Iran, this debate has been fought out along ideological and partisan lines, with conservatives claiming credit for the Evil Empire's demise and liberals arguing that the causes were internal to the Soviet Union. The intelligence community has come in for harsh criticism for overestimating Soviet strength and overlooking the symptoms of crisis; the discipline of "Sovietology" has dissolved into acrimonious irrelevance. Drawing on declassified documents, interviews, and careful analysis of contemporaneous literature, this book offers the first systematic analysis of this predictive failure at the paradigmatic, foreign policy, and intelligence levels. Although it is focused on the Soviet case, it offers lessons that are both timely and necessary.
Download or read book The Politics of Intelligence and American Wars with Iraq written by Ofira Seliktar and published by Palgrave MacMillan. This book was released on 2008-01-15 with total page 232 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Coming at the heels of September 11, Operation Iraqi Freedom has focused the limelight on the way in which the United States predicts and manages political change. The failure to find WMD and more important, the continued violence in Iraq instead of the hoped for democracy, has engender an acrimonious debate on the motives of the Bush administration and its uses or misuses of intelligence. The question of who got what right or wrong has been fought out along ideological, and partisan lines, with supporters claiming that, given what was known about Saddam Hussein, the decision to change his regime was justified and detractors arguing that a group of largely Jewish neoconservatives, acting on behalf of Israel, manipulated intelligence in order to trick the United States into an unnecessary and costly war. The book provides a systematic and objective analysis of the problems that faced American intelligence in deciphering the behavior of the highly secretive and confusing Iraq regime and its enigmatic leader.
Download or read book Politics of Confrontation written by Babak Ganji and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2006-04-28 with total page 329 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Did the United States know more than it acknowledges about growing unrest under the Shah in mid-1970s Iran? Have historians of American-Iranian relations focused too narrowly on prevailing historical theory and personal recollection? In a period of escalating tension between the United States and Iran, what can the two nations' history of conflict tell us about their diplomatic future? Covering Carter's policy from the end of the Shah's reign to the revolution under Ayatollah Khomeini, Babak Ganji explores the nature of their perpetually antagonistic relations and the mistrust and misunderstanding that fuels it. Politics of Confrontation is a penetrating critique of international relations theory within the historical framework of US-Iranian relations, as well as a thorough examination of American policy towards Iran. It is the first in-depth look at documents seized by revolutionary students from the American Embassy during the infamous hostage crisis, and debunks the myth that US officials were unaware of the nature of opposition to the Shah or of Soviet influence on senior clerics. These findings are an essential addition to the discourse of foreign policy theorists and invaluable for historians of the US, Iran and the Cold War.
Download or read book The Politics of Intelligence and American Wars with Iraq written by O. Seliktar and published by Springer. This book was released on 2008-02-18 with total page 219 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Coming at the heels of September 11, Operation Iraqi Freedom has focused the limelight on the way in which the United States predicts and manages political change. The failure to find WMD and more important, the continued violence in Iraq instead of the hoped for democracy, has engender an acrimonious debate on the motives of the Bush administration and its uses or misuses of intelligence. The question of who got what right or wrong has been fought out along ideological, and partisan lines, with supporters claiming that, given what was known about Saddam Hussein, the decision to change his regime was justified and detractors arguing that a group of largely Jewish neoconservatives, acting on behalf of Israel, manipulated intelligence in order to trick the United States into an unnecessary and costly war. The book provides a systematic and objective analysis of the problems that faced American intelligence in deciphering the behavior of the highly secretive and confusing Iraq regime and its enigmatic leader.
Download or read book Constructing Cassandra written by Milo Jones and published by Stanford University Press. This book was released on 2013-08-21 with total page 389 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Constructing Cassandra analyzes the intelligence failures at the CIA that resulted in four key strategic surprises experienced by the US: the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962, the Iranian revolution of 1978, the collapse of the USSR in 1991, and the 9/11 terrorist attacks—surprises still play out today in U.S. policy. Although there has been no shortage of studies exploring how intelligence failures can happen, none of them have been able to provide a unified understanding of the phenomenon. To correct that omission, this book brings culture and identity to the foreground to present a unified model of strategic surprise; one that focuses on the internal make-up the CIA, and takes seriously those Cassandras who offered warnings, but were ignored. This systematic exploration of the sources of the CIA's intelligence failures points to ways to prevent future strategic surprises.
Download or read book Israeli National Intelligence Culture written by Itai Shapira and published by Taylor & Francis. This book was released on 2024-09-30 with total page 257 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The book offers a novel conceptualization of Israeli national intelligence culture, describing the way in which Israelis perceive and practice intelligence. Different nations have different national intelligence cultures, relying on different ideas of intelligence, perceiving and practicing intelligence in different ways. Written by a former senior intelligence officer, this book is the first study dedicated to Israeli intelligence culture and the way it reflects Israeli strategic culture. Relying on more than 30 elite interviews with acting and former Israeli practitioners, the book highlights the Israeli aversion to intelligence theory and scientific methods, as well as to the structured management of the intelligence system at the national level. It describes the intelligence system's emphasis on contrarian thinking and moral courage as the foundations of intelligence professionalism, and the growing inclination of Israeli intelligence toward action and influence. Intelligence is perceived and practiced by Israelis as a tool for problem-solving, addressing unique Israeli challenges. While some traits of the Israeli national intelligence culture have contributed to its high reputation and its ‘success story’, others might have also contributed to its failure in anticipating the Hamas terrorist attack on October 2023 or have remained aspirational norms rather than realized practice. The October 2023 failure, as that of the Yom Kippur War in 1973, will undoubtfully influence Israeli national intelligence culture for many years to come. This book will be of much interest to students of intelligence studies, Israeli politics, strategic studies, and international relations.
Download or read book The Image of the Enemy written by Paul Maddrell and published by Georgetown University Press. This book was released on 2015-11-01 with total page 311 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Intelligence agencies spend huge sums of money to collect and analyze vast quantities of national security data for their political leaders. How well is this intelligence analyzed, how often is it acted on by policymakers, and does it have a positive or negative effect on decision making? Drawing on declassified documents, interviews with intelligence veterans and policymakers, and other sources, The Image of the Enemy breaks new ground as it examines how seven countries analyzed and used intelligence to shape their understanding of their main adversary. The cases in the book include the Soviet Union's analysis of the United States (and vice versa), East Germany's analysis of West Germany (and vice versa), British intelligence in the early years of the Troubles in Northern Ireland, Israeli intelligence about the Palestinians, Pakistani intelligence on India, and US intelligence about Islamist terrorists. These rivalries provide rich case studies for scholars and offer today’s analysts and policymakers the opportunity to closely evaluate past successes and failures in intelligence analysis and the best ways to give information support to policymakers. Using these lessons from the past, they can move forward to improve analysis of current adversaries and future threats.
Download or read book Studies in Intelligence written by and published by . This book was released on 2007 with total page 618 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Chinese Models of Development written by Tse-Kang Leng and published by Lexington Books. This book was released on 2014-11-20 with total page 321 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Discussion of the “Chinese Model” abounds with the rise of China. This volume analyzes the Chinese case in a theoretical framework, provides an evolutionary perspective, and compares it with other models of development. Instead of focusing on one specific case, the book's contributors shed light on the application of theories of international relations, comparative politics, and development studies to the topic under deliberation. This book reflects that the “uniqueness” of the Chinese model should also be put in an historical and evolutionary context. It also provides insights into comparisons with other models of development, such as the East Asian model and experiences of the former Soviet Union. The authors in the book argue that while globalization constrains state power, it may also open new windows of accommodation and adjustments. Linkages between the domestic dynamics of development and external forces of change become pertinent in understanding the Chinese models of development.
Download or read book The new politics of Russia written by Andrew Monaghan and published by Manchester University Press. This book was released on 2024-03-19 with total page 206 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This illuminating book explains how and why Russia’s relations with the west have deteriorated to the point of initiating a new era of ‘great power competition’. An updated version of the bestselling 2016 edition, it explores the decline in relations since the early 2000s, taking in the war in Syria and the 2022 escalation in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Beyond geopolitical considerations, the book delves into the nature of power in Russia itself, providing an in-depth examination of the networks of influence that define the country's political landscape. In doing so it moves beyond the simplistic, Putin-centric narratives often found in western accounts, offering readers a fresh perspective on Russian politics. Understanding Russia is crucial for western leaders seeking to establish stable and constructive relations in the future. The new politics of Russia serves as a key resource, challenging conventional wisdom and unpicking the complex dynamics at play in the relationship between Russia and the west.
Download or read book Access to History for the IB Diploma Communism in Crisis 1976 89 written by Rakesh Pathak and published by Hodder Education. This book was released on 2012-12-14 with total page 235 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This series has taken the clarity, accessibility, reliability and in-depth analysis of our best-selling Access to History series and tailor-made it for the History IB Diploma. Each title in the series supports a specific topic in the IB History guide through thorough content coverage and examination guidance - helping students develop a good knowledge and understanding of the required content alongside the skills they need to do well. Communism in crisis 1976-89 has been written to fully support Prescribed subject 3 and includes: - authoritative, clear and engaging narrative which combines depth of content with accessibility of approach - a wide variety of sources and guidance on developing source skills - up-to-date historiography with clear analysis and associated TOK activities - guidance on answering exam-style questions with model answers and practice questions.
Download or read book Political Ideologies in Contemporary Russia written by Elena Chebankova and published by McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP. This book was released on 2020-11-18 with total page 336 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the realm of political discourse there is a distinct gap in understanding between Russia and the West. To an outsider, the ideas that animate the actions of Russia's ruling elite, opposition, and civil society - from the motivations driving Russia's political actors to the class structure and international and domestic constraints that shape Russia's political thinking - remain shrouded in mystery. Contrary to the view that a bleak discursive uniformity reigns in Vladimir Putin's Russia, Political Ideologies in Contemporary Russia shows that the country is engaging in serious theoretical debates across a wide spectrum of modern ideologies including liberalism, nationalism, feminism, and multiculturalism. Elena Chebankova argues that the nation is fragmented and the state seeks to balance the various ideological movements to ensure that none dominates. She shows that each of the main ideological trends is far from uniform, but the major opposition is between liberalism and traditionalism. The pluralistic picture she describes contests many current portrayals of Russia as an authoritarian or even totalitarian state. Offering an alternative to the Western lens through which to view global politics, Political Ideologies in Contemporary Russia is a major contribution to our understanding of this world power.
Download or read book The End of Illusions written by Andreas Reckwitz and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2021-06-28 with total page 167 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: We live in a time of great uncertainty about the future. Those heady days of the late twentieth century, when the end of the Cold War seemed to be ushering in a new and more optimistic age, now seem like a distant memory. During the last couple of decades, we’ve been battered by one crisis after another and the idea that humanity is on a progressive path to a better future seems like an illusion. It is only now that we can see clearly the real scope and structure of the profound shifts that Western societies have undergone over the last 30 years. Classical industrial society has been transformed into a late-modern society that is molded by polarization and paradoxes. The pervasive singularization of the social, the orientation toward the unique and exceptional, generates systematic asymmetries and disparities, and hence progress and unease go hand in hand. Reckwitz examines this dual structure of singularization and polarization as it plays itself out in the different sectors of our societies and, in so doing, he outlines the central structural features of the present: the new class society, the characteristics of a postindustrial economy, the conflict about culture and identity, the exhaustion of the self resulting from the imperative to seek authentic fulfillment, and the political crisis of liberalism. Building on his path-breaking work The Society of Singularities, this new book will be of great interest to students and scholars in sociology, politics, and the social sciences generally, and to anyone concerned with the great social and political issues of our time.
Download or read book Know Your Enemy written by David C. Engerman and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2009-11-20 with total page 473 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: As World War II ended, few Americans in government or universities knew much about the Soviet Union. As David Engerman shows in this book, a network of scholars, soldiers, spies, and philanthropists created an enterprise known as Soviet Studies to fill in this dangerous gap in American knowledge. This group brought together some of the nation's best minds from the left, right, and center, colorful and controversial individuals ranging from George Kennan to Margaret Mead to Zbigniew Brzezinski, not to mention historians Sheila Fitzpatrick and Richard Pipes. Together they created the knowledge that helped fight the Cold War and define Cold War thought. Soviet Studies became a vibrant intellectual enterprise, studying not just the Soviet threat, but Soviet society and culture at a time when many said that these were contradictions in terms, as well as Russian history and literature. And this broad network, Engerman argues, forever changed the relationship between the government and academe, connecting the Pentagon with the ivory tower in ways that still matter today.
Download or read book The Case for a Maximum Wage written by Sam Pizzigati and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2018-06-04 with total page 140 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Modern societies set limits, on everything from how fast motorists can drive to how much waste factory owners can dump in our rivers. But incomes in our deeply unequal world have no limits. Could capping top incomes tackle rising inequality more effectively than conventional approaches? In this engaging book, leading analyst Sam Pizzigati details how egalitarians worldwide are demonstrating that a “maximum wage” could be both economically viable and politically practical. He shows how, building on local initiatives, governments could use their tax systems to enforce fair income ratios across the board. The ultimate goal? That ought to be, Pizzigati argues, a world without a super rich. He explains why we need to create that world — and how we could speed its creation.
Download or read book The Routledge Handbook of Terrorism Research written by Alex P. Schmid and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2011-02-25 with total page 738 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This major new Handbook synthesises more than two decades of scholarly research, and provides a comprehensive overview of the field of terrorism studies. The content of the Handbook is based on the responses to a questionnaire by nearly 100 experts from more than 20 countries as well as the specific expertise and experience of the volume editor and the various contributors. Together, they guide the reader through the voluminous literature on terrorism, and propose a new consensus definition of terrorism, based on an extensive review of existing conceptualisations. The work also features a large collection of typologies and surveys a wide range of theories of terrorism. Additional chapters survey terrorist databases and provide a guide to available resources on terrorism in libraries and on the Internet. It also includes the most comprehensive World Directory of Extremist, Terrorist and other Organizations associated with Guerrilla Warfare, Political Violence, Protest and Organized- and Cyber-Crime. The Routledge Handbook of Terrorism Research will be an essential work of reference for students and researchers of terrorism and political violence, security studies, criminology, political science and international relations, and of great interest to policymakers and professionals in the field of counter-terrorism.
Download or read book Assessing the Tradecraft of Intelligence Analysis written by Gregory F. Treverton and published by Rand Corporation. This book was released on 2008-02-27 with total page 75 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This report assesses intelligence analysis across the main U.S. intelligence agencies and makes a number of recommendations, some of which parallel initiatives that have begun in the wake of the December 2004 legislation, for instance, create a Deputy Director of National Intelligence as a focal point for analysis, establish a National Intelligence University, build a Long Term Analysis Unit at the National Intelligence Council, and form an Open Source Center for making more creative use of open-source materials.
