Book
> The long war ahead
The Long War Ahead and the Short War Upon Us, provides an assessment of the successes and failures of the United States' War on Terror, six years after 9/11. As important, it provides a fresh perspective on how to meet the challenges posed by a war with many fronts in a complex and shifting environment.
Mr. Wohlstetter sees two wars with very different challenges: a Long War lasting generations, against radical Islamist ideology, a civilizational war of survival, between imperfect civilization and perfect barbarism. The Short War is a war of prevention, attempting to head-off a WMD catastrophe, whose impact could make eventual victory in the Long War seem hollow. We have, Wohlstetter writes, failed to invest enough human and material resources to give ourselves the best chance to prevail. The only thing we cannot afford in a war of survival is to lose, and "even a single large-scale WMD event will make any foregone security investment seem cheap by comparison."
The book is the first by Discovery Institute Senior Fellow John Wohlstetter, and draws upon his years of experience studying defense policy and his work on national security telecommunications issues during a long career in the telephone industry. His background also includes experience in corporate and communication law, and strategic assessment. Mr. Wohlstetter is also the author a Discovery Institute blog, Letter from the Capitol, which covers a broad range of topics with a particular focus on war-related issues.
By John C. Wohlstetter
Paperback: 240 pages
Publisher: Discovery Institute Press (2008)
ISBN-10: 0979014115
ISBN-13: 978-0979014116
Retail price $16.95
