Weapon of mass destruction Books & Reviews

Whereas the principal aim of American nuclear policy during the Cold War was to deter a strong and aggressive Soviet Union, the nuclear risks we face today stem from Russian weakness.

Pierre Hassner's review of my book, The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order, is highly unfavorable, which is his right to be. But it is also a mixture of disingenuousness, inaccuracy, misrepresentation, and calumny.

In retrospect, the film Green Berets serves rather neatly, in conjunction with reviews in the New York Times and other high-toned publications, to illustrate the period's sharp split between elite and mass opinion on the Vietnam War.

Two of the books reviewed here describe how Joshua Muravchik and the late Eric Nordlinger read the post-Soviet map and would have us travel upon it. Both recommend sharp turns at high speeds. The third contains the counsel of Peter Rodman, a man l