Beyond Terror: Strategy in a Changing World

by Ralph Peters

Book Overview

Acclaimed military strategist and author Ralph Peters assembles 18 essays, some written before and others after the September 11 attacks, that show his writing at its best. Always one step ahead of other military strategists, Peters evaluates the status quo of world affairs and brings years of experience as an Army-insider to bear on the state of terrorism in the world today and his vision for how the United States should be fighting the war against...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0811700240
• ISBN13: 9780811700245
• Release Date: May 2002
• Publisher: Stackpole Books
• Length: 1 Pages
• Weight: 1.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.3" x 5.8" x 8.7"

Customer Reviews

Startling, convincing insights

This is the most original work on strategy and international relations I have ever read. Peters clearly enjoys taking on sacred cows, but what angers academics, I suspect, is the utterly convincing insights he has acquired in his personal experiences around the world--he doesn't rely on other people's research, but goes out and looks at things for himself--then thinks for himself about what he has seen. And what the author has to say just rings true, whether discussing the roots of American strategic power (some surprising views here) or the proper use of the military. This book is great fun to read (I heard Peters lecture last year--he's slyly entertaining and seductive--he ambushes you with ideas--and knows how to laugh at himself, too). It's also worth underlining several times per page. The author's analysis of the root causes of terrorism ring truer than any other propositions I have encountered, and his take on the future potential of the United States as a hegemonic power demonstrates great integrity--Peters refuses to bend to the political left or the right, and he doubtless angers extremists on both sides of the aisle. If I recall correctly, Peters was a career Army officer. Well, if our Army can produce officers who think at this level of originality, the defense of the republic is in very good hands. I suggest giving this book to your friends--but also to any dreary, self-righteous, party-line academics in need of a comeuppance (or a heart attack). And it's written with a sense of humor, too. Try to find that on a campus these days. Serious, extraordinarily original ideas, elegantly presented. The gentleman can write. This book is first rate in every respect and a valuable contribution to American strategic thought. It will outlast its critics by a very long stretch. Recommended for all citizens not afraid to think for themselves.

Tough-minded and timely

Ralph Peters has long been a favorite writer of mine. I've read both his fiction and non-fiction, and "Beyond Terror" may be his best writing yet. His candid insights will ring true to anybody who's travelled in the world's danger zones, but probably will offend those who learn about the world from books. Too bad. A few hours spent with "Beyond Terror" will give the reader a much better understanding of the world we live in than any political science course I've taken--and I've taken many. While his writing is brutally frank, he is never simplistic or jingoistic. The chapter "When Devils Walk the Earth" is perhaps the most original and thoughtful explanation of the terrorist's mentality I've ever read (and I read a great deal on related subjects for my job). Peters takes a refreshingly long view of history, and his writing is a joy to read, even on those rare occasions when I disagree with him. This is an important book. I strongly recommend it for anyone looking to make sense of the world today.

Total Vindication for Peters

"Beyond Terror" by Ralph Peters leads off with a perceptive and upbeat essay on America in the post-9-11 environment ("Our Place in History"), and a ringing indictment of Islam ("The world of Islam must now decide whether to wallow in a comforting, medieval form of religion that warms the heart with hatred of others and whose greatest strength lies in its ability to shift blame, or to make the far more difficult choice of attempting to build tolerant, more equitable, open, and honest societies.") In the current War on Terrorism, Peters warns his readers, "Ferocity is the ultimate guarantor of peace." The balance of the book, with the exception of the final chapter, consists of essays published by Peters between 1994 and 2001. During my four-year tenure as a faculty member at the U.S. Army War College, Peters' controversial and usually irreverent views were often showcased, either via his published works, or when he would appear as a guest lecturer. Having worked closely with him during an assignment in 1992-93 to uncover the truth about American military men who were missing in action during the Cold War, I considered Ralph to be perhaps the Army's premier intellect. His is a keen mind, steeped in history and fertilized by on-the-ground experience, its brilliance equalled only by its brashness and Peters' willingness to bluntly rail out at the many innanities of the post-Cold War defense establishment. I unashamedly pushed Peters and his essays on my War College students (colonels all), and was a bit dismayed at how many tuned him out, often because Peters, then a "lowly" major, seemed to them to be a bit of a pretentious upstart. But as the essays in "Beyond Terror" demonstrate, Peters had it right all along. In 1999, for example, Peters wrote in "MacLean's," "Conventional war remains a threat, but a diminishing one. Today's--and tomorrow's enemies are half-trained killers in uniform, tribesmen, mercenaries, criminals, children with rusty Kalashnikovs, shabby despots, and gory men of faith. The most dangerous enemy will be the warrior who ignores, or who does not know,the rules by which our soldiers fight, and who has a gun in one hand, a cell phone in the other, and hatred scorching his heart." Small wonder that Peters reserves special contempt for some senior military officers ("Hucksters in Uniform") who steadfastly remain married to "heavy" forces of the Cold War, and who retire to positions in the defense industry to reap the harvest of seeds they sowed while on active duty. Concerning the Army and its pursuit of leviathan systems like the Crusader artillery system, Peters wrote in May 1999, "Obsessed with building the perfect division at Ft. Hood, Texas, the Army refuses to acccept that the number one requirement for the future is the ability to get out of Texas on short notice." It is a page out of Donald Rumsfeld's book, but the book is Peters', and he was saying it when such views were heresy and Rumsfeld had yet to

More Than Just "Strategy"

Ralph Peters' newest book, 'Beyond Terror,' is an important contribution to the ongoing debate over how best to repond to the emerging terrorist threat to our nation. His earlier Stackpole volume, 'Fighting for the Future,' presciently articulated this threat long before September 11, and this latest book expands and extends the ideas put forth there. Drawing on a vast synthesis of culture, language, history, and most importantly, on-the-ground experience, 'Beyond Terror' sheds a lot of light on the uncertain new terrain (both physical and psychological) on which we must engage our enemies in the years to come. While this book could and should be read by military strategists, politicians, policy wonks, and other Washington types, its scope extends much further, and many of the essays contain insight and commentary relevant to many other disciplines. "The Rejection of the West," is the earliest and longest essay in the book, and it provides the centerpiece thinking out of which all the other articles flow. Every educator in our land would profit greatly by grappling with the ideas therein, although many would be angered by Peters' non-politically-correct thinking, his skewering of "multiculturalism," and his rejection of the glib theories of academia. Politicians on both sides of the national party divide will be discomforted by many of his conclusions--as they well should be, but voters would find that this book would help them define a new set of standards by which to judge those that would represent them. The writing here is anything but a dry iteration of "policy," although there is plenty of food for policy-making thought. Peters' prose is forceful, colorful and witty--a genuine delight to read. I found the book utterly compelling and read nearly all of it in a couple of sittings. 'Beyond Terror' is a passionate plea to our nation to look beyond its conventional notions and thinking to creatively overcome the threats that are emerging in the world, and a call to all Americans to cherish and respect their precious heritage. Urgently recommended.

Terrific Book

Beyond Terror is a compilation of superb essays written by the most gifted military theorist of his generation. These essays predominantly examine the current terrorist threat. The reader should be aware that Ralph Peters is one of the very few writers in this arcane area of study that accurately foresaw the possibility of 9/11. If you want to know why Islamic terrorists attacked the World Trade Center and Pentagon, read this book. If you want to know how such terrorists can best be attacked, read this book. If you want a clearer understanding of the terrorist threat, read this book. If you are tired of academic analysis on terrorism, that says much but clarifies little, read this book. The author is one of the best traveled of the writers on contemporary terrorism. He knows his subject. A former US Army Intelligence Officer, Peters writes with honesty and conviction. Whether you agree or disagree with his analysis, you won't have any difficulty understanding his positions. Such clarity of thought is rare and valuable.More importantly, this reviewer believes that Peters more often than not is correct in his assessments. His opinions are based in a multi-disciplinary approach to his subject matter... using the intellectual tools of psychologists, cultural anthropologists, sociologists, and historians. This approach explains much while obfuscating nothing. Ralph Peters' work is highly recommended because he insists on gaining first-hand experience before writing his opinions... an unusual and laudable characteristic. Beyond Terror is the best of contemporary writings on the critical topic of terrorism.