Daydream Believers: How a Few Grand Ideas Wrecked American Power | 
|  | | | Title: | Daydream Believers: How a Few Grand Ideas Wrecked American Power | | Author: | Fred Kaplan | | Publisher: | Wiley [Website] | | Type: | Book / Hardcover | | Publication Date: | 29 January, 2008 | | ISBN / ISBN-13: | 0470121181 / 9780470121184 | | List Price: | $25.95 | | You Save: | $8.82 | | Amazon Price: | $17.13 | |
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Product Description
America's power is in decline, its allies alienated, its soldiers trapped in a war that even generals regard as unwinnable. What has happened these past few years is well known. Why it happened continues to puzzle. Celebrated Slate columnist Fred Kaplan explains the grave misconceptions that enabled George W. Bush and his aides to get so far off track, and traces the genesis and evolution of these ideas from the era of Nixon through Reagan to the present day.
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Customer Reviews:
• More Than Just Facts And Figures 24 October, 2008
How American foreign policy got so off-track in the 21st Century has been well covered in other books. Why it got so off-track is the subject of this book.
It stems from two huge misconceptions made by the Bush White House and the neo-cons. The first is that, on 9/11, the world did not change. It certainly changed in that America suddenly found itself more vulnerable than ever before. But the nature of power, politics and warfare did not change. The second is that, after the Cold War, America found itself as the world's only superpower. With its superior military technology, America thought that it was now free to topple unfriendly regimes, ignore treaties and generally do whatever it wanted around the world. Now that the Soviet Union was gone as an enemy, Cold War allies no longer felt compelled to see things America's way. An American president could deal with this new landscape in one of two ways: emphasize the military, and don't hesitate to use American power around the world, or, emphasize diplomacy, and restructure old alliances (and create new ones) around the world.
The invasion of Iraq was supposed to be the example of Bush's belief that, with Saddam Hussein out of the way, Iraq will suddenly turn into a democratic country, and that democracy will spread throughout the Mideast. The Pentagon cared more about the military part than about the aftermath. Turmoil in Iraq was practically guaranteed by the first two decrees issued by Paul Bremer in the early days of the occupation: disbanding the Iraqi army, and removing all Baathists from the government.
The author also looks at the Administration's decision to abrogate the ABM Treaty with Russia, and resume deployment of Ronald Reagan's missile defense shield, despite the fact that its operational capabilities are somewhere between questionable and non-existent.
This is a really good book, and I learned something from it. There is more than just facts and figures here; the author profiles people in the military world, some of whom do not get their names in the media. It's worth reading.
- Reviewed by customer ID: A25P31WA3F4040
• A Worthy Addition To The Growing Library Of Bush 43 Criticism. 02 November, 2008
I enjoyed the book, but, as usual after reading more of how the Bush Administration screwed up not only the war, but foreign policy in general; it tends to depress a person. This book is similar to State of Denial, Bush at War, Part III by Bob Woodward and The Greatest Story ever SOLD, The rise and fall of Truth in Bush's America by Frank Rich. In Woodward's book, Bush is portrayed as out of touch when things need to change, he "stays the course" in Iraq as things fall apart. In the Greatest Story ever SOLD, the lies, misstatements, spin, misrepresentations and deliberate falsehoods of the Bush Administration, particularly relating to Iraq are revealed and revealing how the media played along even knowing differently.
In Daydream Believers, the author submits that Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld and Rice among others misread the meaning of the end of the Cold War. They saw America with unfettered power and thus could do anything the US wanted without regard to allies and any others when in reality the end of the Cold War gave us less power because other countries were less constrained by having to side either with the Soviet Union or the United States. Because of this misreading, Bush and others made disastrous decisions relating to foreign policy and the war in Iraq, adopting a "go it alone" policy. In the end, Kaplan lays blame also on the Democrats for not resisting this president and the Republican Congress that led us down this path.
- Reviewed by customer ID: A33CLVW2K7SL1P
• To A Daydream Bush And His Homecoming Voters 09 October, 2008
I served my country for nine years before creaky knees put me out of the Navy and into a writer's seat. Whether behind a desk, behind enemy lines--or just the back of the bread line--Americans watch the 2000 Bush Administration with growing dismay.
Even as Iraq somewhat stabilizes, the Taliban resurges in Afghanistan, while a Second Cold War brews with Russia. For every Libya that seems to bow before the Bush Doctrine, America faces a defiant North Korea.
Enter Columnist Fred Kaplan. He asks nothing--not how this happened, or why--because he has an answer.
I don't often read magazines, but I find Kaplan articles intelligent enough. His style strikes me as straight and clear, if also a bit graceless. In *Daydream Believers: How A Few Grand Ideas Wrecked America Power*, Kaplan comes out swinging:
"Nearly all of America's blunders in war and peace these past few years stem from a single, grand misconception: that the world changed after September 11, when in fact it didn't."
With that hook, Kaplan argues that American leadership hung up on four major fallacies:
--The illusion of "shock and awe" victories in Afghanistan and Iraq--
--The inflexible righteousness of President Bush--
--The preoccupation with the ideal of missile defense.
--The ignorance and myth of Bush foreign policy.
Daydream Believers isn't just a light-weight alternative to State of Denial, or any these other massive tomes on the controversies of Bush Doctrine. For Mr. Kaplan concentrates on hereditary policy--on the recurrent theories and strategies assembled during the Cold War, then road-tested during the 1990's before driving off into that Bush sunset.
The book generally does not recreate conversations and meetings. Nor does it detail interviews and events during historical moments. Nevertheless, Kaplan cites and condenses a large number of sources for it slim size. He builds his book mainly from second or third hand information: from previous studies such as *Rise of the Vulcans* and Bob Woodward's "Bush at War" series, as well as television interviews and internet transcripts. He also cites declassified documents from a variety of archives, on the internet and elsewhere. Finally, a few personal interviews round out the foundation. It's not as credible as the extensive original research in many of its big brothers, but Daydream Believers does the job here.
Sometimes in a hurried and disjointed manner. Going over Kaplan's old columns, I recognize statements from *Daydream Believers*. For example, I found similar remarks about North Korean policy in the May 2004 article "Rolling Blunder"--the section "Sunshine and moral clarity" is repeated almost verbatim in the book. Overall, it seems he built *Daydream* by combining and expanding various articles. This isn't necessarily bad--it probably saved some time and energy--but it does limit the flow and the scope. Certain chapters delve much more into history than others--most notably missile defense--and the use of examples to support his topics tend to be uneven.
In the chapter, "Chasing Silver Bullets", Kaplan takes us back to the 1950's, and methodically works his way up to 2004. It's a showcase of Kaplan's expertise--he previously published a book on nuclear war strategy--as well as a relevant exploration of where these Grand Ideas come from. The rest of the book, unfortunately, does not offer this depth of exploration. Kaplan does dip back into the 20th Century from time to time, when exploring North Korean policy in Chapter 2, or the general philosophy of the Bush Doctrine in Chapter 4, but these sections lack the same sense of specific history and chronological connections found in "Silver Bullets".
Kaplan may have been keen on rushing this book out in time for the troop surge--I received the proof for review in August 2007--or he wanted to focus like a laser on certain issues. Whatever the reason, these stylistic issues aren't deal breakers. Though one could always argue that his choices hamper credibility, another might appreciate Kaplan's brevity and overall accessibility.
For me, certain omissions keep Daydream Believers from being all it could be.
The image of a black-hooded prisoner hooked to electrical wires has been burned into my conscious, if not many Americans. Thus the policies of "enemy combatant" and extraordinary rendition--combined with the rampant prisoner abuse scandals--must stand among the essential fallacies of the Bush Doctrine. Few subjects illustrate the weakening of American power more--or appear less in the text.
I can think of a few subjects, though. The obvious politicization of intelligence also deserves its own chapter. Having served under both Clinton and Bush, in the combat nerve center of a warship, I know from experience the roles that intelligence can play... as well as the disparity between interpretations. The leap to conclusions, from the impotence of Iraq to an imminent apocalypse, surely counts as one of those Grand Ideas which wrecked our power.
Finally, grand ideas are not limited to Cabinet meetings. I'm particularly interested in the John Wayne attitude of the White House, and the general air of a bad eighties action movie which permeates its activities. Our culture is plainly an influence on our decisions, and I have thought for years that voters, tax payers, and elected leader alike made the mistake of applying Tom Clancy novels to the real world.
As a Cliff Notes to the foibles of American power under Bush, readers could do worse than Daydream Believers, but I feel the content doesn't measure up to the breadth and depth of Kaplan's thesis. In future editions, the author should look at:
--include a chapter on prisoner abuse and the attitude which made it permissible under a democracy.
--include a chapter on the historic fallacies and problems of intelligence interpretation by the White House.
--and explore some of the pop culture fallacies which enabled America to initially support their wayward president.
- Reviewed by customer ID: A26PAN8REXYBYH
• What Went Wrong 12 August, 2008
Let me start out by saying that this is the first 'current affairs' book I've read about the current administration so this book probably impressed me more than if I had some more knowledge when I began reading it.
Positives: Well-written and interesting chapters - one on the rise of 'transformation' weapons that have been utilized in the current wars, a very eye-opening chapter on the USA and North Korea, another informative chapter on the history of missile defense, and then a couple dryer chapters on the Bush administration and Iraq. What I enjoyed about the first three chapters and the book overall, is that it was more than a anti-Bush diatribe but an interesting history of advanced weaponry and foreign policy from the Cold War to present.
Negatives: Kaplan's account suffers heavily from the narrative fallacy - it is easy to see in hindsight the blunders of the Bush administration; it is easy to explain the muck of Iraq in terms of definite strategic and tactical errors; but were those mistakes so apparent as they were happening? The last chapter especially comes off as a chapter more or less saying 'Bush can do no right".
Despite the negatives, the reader will learn a great deal on what the author sees as the major blunders leading to the continuing occupation of Iraq (the de-Baathification in Iraqi politics, the dispersement of the Iraqi army, and the failure to capture Iraqi ammo depots). Ultimately, Rumsfeld is blamed for these issues - the primary one being the low amount of troops assigned to Iraq initially.
W. Bush comes off as a highly principled leader yet woefully uninformed in the reality of world politics. Kaplan takes Bush at his word that he sincerely desires to promote democracy and freedom - and that these are attainable when dictators are deposed (democratic freedom being the natural state of man).
Much of Kaplan's book hinges on his interpretation (?) that Bush and the neo-cons saw a chance to get rid of evil regimes and extend America's power when the Cold War ended. They believed that America would naturally fill the vacuum left by the Soviets and thereby exert an even larger influence on the world. What was not expected, is that much of the world was out of our control and did not want to be in our control - in short we were blinded by our hubris.
- Reviewed by customer ID: A25MW9XAMMBMP4
• An Incisive Study Of Bush Geo-politics And Related Matters! 20 November, 2008
Four and a half INCISIVE Stars!! Highly informative, deeply revealing!! If I could recommend one book to the new President-elect or the current President, this would be it!! In "DayDream Believers", Fred Kaplan has produced a very detailed study of the George W. Bush administration geopolitics in the 21st Century. But he does not confine himself solely to recent matters and one administration, going back decades in some cases to build his arguments and conclusions, dotted with rich personality profiles; the shifting, slippery international relations; awesome weapons systems; and military theory and intrigue. The author states that following the terrorists attacks on 9-11, the greatest misconception of the administration and the 'Neo-Cons/Vulcans' was that the world was significantly and forever changed after September 11, when the situation was that it did not change. Further, the Bush Administration incorrectly believed that the US was the sole remaining superpower on the planet, coming out of the Cold War, and could they could pursue any policy. But the US was actually "weaker" in Mr Kaplan's estimation. Even so, the administration, in the aftermath of 9/11, took the 'conservative 'Neo Con'-istic global plans laid during the Republican years out of office in the think tanks, especially with regard to Iraq, and acted on them.
This book is a veritable 'gold-mine' of information on political in-fighting at the upper echelons of our government; the thinking and theories of the Bush Administration, the military theories versus the actual conclusions & results on the ground in both Iraq wars and other preceeding wars. While Rumsfeld and DOD got a revolution in military technology, they lacked a revolution in military thinking, strategy, and tactics which were available via people llike US Army therotician Colonel Huba Wass de Czege & theorists like James Dobbins. While some had a clear vision on what was needed, the upper reaches of the DOD and the White House did not and insulated themselves from the necessary help. It's interesting, however, that Bush was influenced by certain books: this book reveals what books and who wrote them. Along the way in this book we meet familiar characters and the unfamiliar in sticky situations: such as Donald Rumsfeld's hostility towards military thinking and strategy in the Pentagon, Andy Marshall in the almost invisible Office of Net Assessment laboring for decades in anonymity waiting for his moment, Air Force Secretary Don Rice conjuring up the invincibility of air power in war, and Wass de Czege's new military strategy. Theories and new thought concerning the "5 Rings theory", the theory of Military Transformation, the "Revolution in Military Affairs" (RMA); weapons like the Assault BreakerTechnology; the Predator; JDAM; and the Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) system and treaty are all over this book. The mistakes as revealed in this book with regard to North Korea, Iraq and Iran are significant, based on deeply flawed policies. The conclusions drawn are both accurate and saddening and they are what makes this book one of the 'must-read' books on the Bush Administration and the current status of world geopolitics. Very Highly Recommended! Four and a half BIG Stars!! (This review is based on a paperback advance copy.)
- Reviewed by customer ID: A2XOV3ZKGDK55G
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