Winning and Losing the War against Global Terror

Arguing that true "homeland security" is unlikely to be achieved with current policy assumptions and actions, Falk (international law, Princeton U.) assesses the U.S. government's response to September 11, 2001 and reflects on possibilities for minimizing terrorist threats. Much of his analysis is based on "just war" theory that, in Falk's formulation, judges the war in Afghanistan to have been necessary (if flawed) but sees no necessity for war against Iraq. Also addressed is the necessity to reformulate American foreign policy to minimize hostility, with a particular emphasis placed on providing a "fair solution" to the Palestinian problem. In order to achieve these goals, Falk says, it is important to challenge the hyper-patriotism that has gripped the United States. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)