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Synopsis
In a recent poll conducted by the Chicago Council on Foreign Relations, respondents were asked what they considered the most critical threat to U.S. vital interests. International terrorism was cited as the most pressing danger to America's security. Americans take the threat of terrorism very seriously. But is the U.S. government's approach to combating terrorism the right one?
In this important and provocative new book, Paul R. Pillar argues that, while the U.S. government has done well in its efforts at preventing terrorist attacks and bringing terrorists to justice, too little thought has been given to the integration of counterterrorism into a broader U.S. foreign policy.
Pillar reminds us that the vast majority of terrorist attacks and activities occur overseas and that counterterrorism should be at the forefront of the policymaking process. Pillar emphasizes that combating terrorism may be better served by "more finesse and, if not less fight, then fighting in a carefully calculated and selective way." To do this, he argues, it is essential that the U.S. cooperate more fully with other governments in fighting terrorism, evaluate terrorist threats individually, and abandon counterterrorism measures that do not produce positive results.
October 14, 2001 - New York Times Book Review
"Provides hard realizations about the moral compromises that will be required in this new struggle."