Overview

Full Product Details

9781498538183

Table of Contents

Reviews

This illuminating and timely work reveals the limited ability of an outside power such as the USG to instill legitimacy in a weak government by encouraging elections during a counterinsurgency campaign. Greene exposes the flawed assumptions inherent in the equation of genuine democratic reform with an externally imposed electoral process-especially in countries like Iraq and Afghanistan. As Greene reminds us, there is a terrible price to be paid for magical thinking about the power of elections to turn the tide against entrenched insurgencies. This book should be required reading for Trump's foreign policy advisors, especially as they consider next steps in the Middle East. -- Vivian S. Walker, Central European University Professor Greene's fundamental insight on the necessary yet insufficient nature of elections in successful counterinsurgencies is a crucial one. In each of his case studies, he demonstrates how too great a concern with the fact of an election has crowded out clear thinking about the fundamental prerequisites for holding an election, and for requirements for transparency and constraint of the victors. His book should be on the shelf of anyone hoping to avoid the errors of the recent and not-so-recent past. -- Thomas Wingfield, National Defense University

This illuminating and timely work reveals the limited ability of an outside power such as the USG to instill legitimacy in a weak government by encouraging elections during a counterinsurgency campaign. Greene exposes the flawed assumptions inherent in the equation of genuine democratic reform with an externally imposed electoral process-especially in countries like Iraq and Afghanistan. As Greene reminds us, there is a terrible price to be paid for magical thinking about the power of elections to turn the tide against entrenched insurgencies. This book should be required reading for Trump's foreign policy advisors, especially as they consider next steps in the Middle East. -- Vivian S. Walker, Central European University Professor Greene's fundamental insight on the necessary yet insufficient nature of elections in successful counterinsurgencies is a crucial one. In each of his case studies, he demonstrates how too great a concern with the fact of an election has crowded out clear thinking about the fundamental prerequisites for holding an election, and for requirements for transparency and constraint of the victors. His book should be on the shelf of anyone hoping to avoid the errors of the recent and not-so-recent past. -- Thomas Wingfield, National Defense University Pathological Counterinsurgency is an invaluable guide for those seeking to understand third-party counterinsurgency campaigns. Greene addresses the critical question of whether elections promote a host country's legitimacy and performance. With implications for counterinsurgency, stability operations, and foreign interventions, Pathological Counterinsurgency should be required reading for those designing and implementing US foreign policy today. -- Peter G. Thompson, National Defense University

This illuminating and timely work reveals the limited ability of an outside power such as the USG to instill legitimacy in a weak government by encouraging elections during a counterinsurgency campaign. Greene exposes the flawed assumptions inherent in the equation of genuine democratic reform with an externally imposed electoral process—especially in countries like Iraq and Afghanistan. As Greene reminds us, there is a terrible price to be paid for magical thinking about the power of elections to turn the tide against entrenched insurgencies. This book should be required reading for Trump’s foreign policy advisors, especially as they consider next steps in the Middle East. -- Vivian S. Walker, Central European University Professor Greene's fundamental insight on the necessary yet insufficient nature of elections in successful counterinsurgencies is a crucial one. In each of his case studies, he demonstrates how too great a concern with the fact of an election has crowded out clear thinking about the fundamental prerequisites for holding an election, and for requirements for transparency and constraint of the victors. His book should be on the shelf of anyone hoping to avoid the errors of the recent and not-so-recent past. -- Thomas Wingfield, National Defense University Pathological Counterinsurgency is an invaluable guide for those seeking to understand third-party counterinsurgency campaigns. Greene addresses the critical question of whether elections promote a host country’s legitimacy and performance. With implications for counterinsurgency, stability operations, and foreign interventions, Pathological Counterinsurgency should be required reading for those designing and implementing US foreign policy today. -- Peter G. Thompson, National Defense University

This illuminating and timely work reveals the limited ability of an outside power such as the USG to instill legitimacy in a weak government by encouraging elections during a counterinsurgency campaign. Greene exposes the flawed assumptions inherent in the equation of genuine democratic reform with an externally imposed electoral process--especially in countries like Iraq and Afghanistan. As Greene reminds us, there is a terrible price to be paid for magical thinking about the power of elections to turn the tide against entrenched insurgencies. This book should be required reading for Trump's foreign policy advisors, especially as they consider next steps in the Middle East.--Vivian S. Walker, Central European University Professor Greene's fundamental insight on the necessary yet insufficient nature of elections in successful counterinsurgencies is a crucial one. In each of his case studies, he demonstrates how too great a concern with the fact of an election has crowded out clear thinking about the fundamental prerequisites for holding an election, and for requirements for transparency and constraint of the victors. His book should be on the shelf of anyone hoping to avoid the errors of the recent and not-so-recent past.--Thomas Wingfield, National Defense University

Author Information

Samuel Greene is associate professor at the Near East South Asia Center for Strategic Studies and the National Defense College in the United Arab Emirates.

Tab Content 6

Customer Reviews

Recent Reviews

Countries Available