Choosing your battles : American civil-military relations and the use of force ; with a new afterword / by the authors Peter D. Feaver and Christopher Gelpi
The civil-military opinion gap over the use of force -- The impact of elite veterans on American decisions to use force -- Casualty sensitivity and civil-military relations -- Exploring the determination of casualty sensitivity
Summary
America's debate over whether and how to invade Iraq clustered into civilian versus military camps. Top military officials appeared reluctant to use force, the most hawkish voices in government were civilians who had not served in uniform, and everyone was worried that the American public would not tolerate casualties in war. This book shows that this civilian-military argument--which has characterized earlier debates over Bosnia, Somalia, and Kosovo--is typical, not exceptional. Indeed, the underlying pattern has shaped U.S. foreign policy at least since 1816. The new afterword by Peter Feav
Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references (pages 215-228) and indexes
