"During his long diplomatic career, Dobbins became an expert in helping to put together states shattered by civil war or invasion. Having served in this capacity in Somalia, Haiti, Bosnia, and Kosovo, he was a natural pick for this role in Afghanistan as the United States turned to the task of overthrowing the Taliban and chasing al Qaeda after 9/11. Dobbins weaves into his narrative such matters as how he wended his way through a thicket of bureaucratic infighting and engaged in multilateral diplomacy with Afghanistan's many factions, Afghanistan's neighbors, other outside powers, and the United Nations."

— Foreign Affairs, November/December 2008

"The Air Force's examination of its role in major combat operations is notable mostly for its absence… Given this sorry state of affairs, the publication of Benjamin Lambeth's fascinating book, 'Air Power Against Terror: America's Conduct of Operation Enduring Freedom', is all the more timely and important.

"A senior analyst at Rand, Lambeth has published widely on air power issues over the past three decades, including a book on the campaign against Serbia that is required reading for any serious student of modern military operations. Although trained as a Soviet specialist with a doctorate from Harvard, he has bolstered his academic expertise with operational knowledge gained from flights in 35 types of U.S. and foreign combat aircraft. He was, for instance, the first American civilian to fly in the Soviet MiG-29 fighter.

"Lambeth attempts to provide a broad overview of the use of U.S. air power against the Taliban regime and al-Qaida in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks. To the author's immense credit, however, it is anything but a dry, academic work. On the contrary, if the events it describes were not real, 'Air Power Against Terror' could be read as a thriller. Using superb writing, Lambeth grabs hold of the reader with his tense account of the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, then traces the Air Force response, from the mounting of combat air patrols in the U.S. to the development and execution of the brilliant campaign in Afghanistan…

"As technological advances bring senior policy-makers closer to the battlefield and compel ever more cooperation between the services, the need for books like Lambeth's is all the greater. 'Air Power Against Terror' should be a wake-up call to the Air Force leadership — not simply for its operational analysis about the Afghan war, but also for the importance of sponsoring and initiating serious, independent research about the service… There is no reason that the Air Force cannot rediscover this tradition. Otherwise, as illustrated by Lambeth, misunderstandings both within the Air Force and with its sister services are certain to continue, and the nation will be unable to fully capitalize on its capabilities at a time of war."

— Armed Forces Journal, June 2006

"This is the only recommendation I have concerning airpower in recent operations. Lambeth presents a very revealing book that lays out many behind-the-scenes issues, and has a relatively robust discussion/critique of the role of JAGs in combat operations. An absolute 'must read' for anyone deploying to work in an air operations' center."

— Brigadier General Charles J. Dunlap, Jr., in The Reporter, Office of the Judge Advocate General

"For almost 60 years, the RAND Corporation has provided military and policy decisionmakers with effective solutions to the challenges facing America in times of peace and conflict. Following in that sterling tradition is the publication of Benjamin S. Lambeth's latest work, 'Air Power Against Terror'. The author provides readers with an analysis of the Bush Administration's preparation for Operation Enduring Freedom—from the initial planning for the response to 9/11, to the attacks against al Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan. Lambeth's insight into the enabling capabilities of US air power against determined foes in what can only be characterized as an extremely hostile environment leaves readers with a new understanding of the approach that America will use to counter such threats in the 21st century."

— Parameters, "Editor's Shelf," Spring 2006

"'Air Power in the New Counterinsurgency Era' delivers far more than the title implies. In the best tradition of RAND studies, this work combines theory, model development, and policy applications for developing counterinsurgency (COIN) strategy writ large and for improving USAF COIN capabilities specifically… 'Air Power and the New Counterinsurgency Era' is a work of critical importance for the USAF's senior leadership and the rank and file. It offers a prescient analysis of COIN warfare and strategy and provides trenchant recommendations for enhancing the Service's capability in the Long War against Islamic extremism."

— Joint Force Quarterly, 1st Quarter 2008

"[This monograph] has much to offer the reader concerning COIN. The authors spend a majority of their time clearly defining and categorizing insurgencies, detailing COIN principles, and discussing grand strategic options for COIN. They advocate a 'new' strategy of 'precautionary' COIN—very limited military intervention at the earliest stages—as the most cost-effective means of combating insurgency… A case study on El Salvador's insurgency and an examination of considerations in the development of COIN capabilities highlight important issues for US military planners: that smaller footprints and closer contact are often preferable, that the host nation must win the political as well as military battle, that military restraint is a virtue, and that airpower offers important capabilities."

— Air & Space Power Journal, Summer 2007

"An important contribution toward our understanding of the issues and political forces involved, and how they can (and do) affect the United States and Western Europe."

— The Midwest Book Review

"Lay readers interested in contemporary Algeria have been largely out of luck, as most available books are out-of-date, unreadable, or excruciatingly expensive. Fuller's report is none of these. In clear prose, he details the history of Algeria's colonial struggle, the emergence of the National Liberation Front and of the Islamic Salvation Front."

— Publishers Weekly

by: James Dobbins, John G. McGinn, Keith Crane, Seth G. Jones, Rollie Lal, Andrew Rathmell, Rachel Swanger, and Anga Timilsina

"James Dobbins' 'America's Role in Nation-Building' must become essential reading among Washington's bureaucrats and in all six American war colleges. The author, an experienced nation-building (or reconstruction) practitioner, and his co-authors have written a no-nonsense, spare, well-analyzed and lucid volume that illuminates the path for those engaged in this difficult and thankless, but necessary mission. The authors cover two successes, Germany and Japan; two abject failures, Haiti and Somalia; Bosnia, a 'mixed success'; Kosovo, a 'modest success'; and one case too early to tell, Afghanistan. The final chapter is an application of lessons from all these case studies to the reconstruction effort in Iraq… There is outstanding wisdom in this book."

— Washington Times

"Committed multilateralists could be forgiven for shivering at the title of this book. They should not. In many respects Washington is the Rome of our time: its cohorts and legions are unchallenged, while its monetary system and language are increasingly ubiquitous. Like it or not, the US is in the nation-building game and in all probability must lead it. This report is less a comprehensive analytical work than a set of important and correct policy recommendations aimed at the US establishment and backed up by convincing case-studies taken from both good and bad national experience. Irrespective of its wishes, further nation-building challenges will be presented to the Rome of our time over the coming decades. The policy recommendations contained in this study should be taken to heart and then further researched and refined for future use… Undeniably, the key conclusions of the report are: the importance of unity of command, the inverse correlation between the size of the stabilization force and the level of risk, the either benign or malign influence that neighbouring states can bring to bear and that accountability for past injustices is difficult but necessary if reconciliation is a strategic aim. There is no quick route through nation-building and on balance the most important variable factor under the control of intervening forces is the level of effort measured in time, manpower and money… This report is a valuable first step down a long and difficult road which the US must tread, simply because of its pre-eminent position. Its main messages are utterly in accord with the broader experiences of the peace-building community. It is important that future studies continue to shed light on how the US can manage the nation-building process more effectively."

— International Affairs

"James Dobbins has long been one of those troubleshooters who never seem to miss a crisis. As the special United States envoy for Afghanistan, Mr. Dobbins was responsible for finding and installing a successor to the Taliban after they were toppled in 2001. During the 1990's, Mr. Dobbins hop-scotched from one trouble spot to another as he served as special envoy to Kosovo, Bosnia, Haiti and Somalia. So when he offers a critique of the Bush administration's nation-building effort in Iraq, it is worth paying attention. Now out of government, Mr. Dobbins, who has worked for Republican as well as Democratic administrations, does not have a partisan ax to grind."

— New York Times

"With the Iraqi Governing Council appointing cabinet officers, it would seem that at least some specifics of that nation's rebuilding are finally beginning to come into focus. That, of course, begs the question: What next? With this in mind, the RAND Corporation has compiled a series of case studies on previous postwar rebuilding efforts spearheaded by the United States, including the various challenges and outcomes. James Dobbins, who has served as special U.S. envoy to Afghanistan, Kosovo, Bosnia, Haiti and Somalia, leads a team of scholars through a review of case studies for Germany, Japan, Somalia, Haiti, Bosnia, Kosovo and Afghanistan.

While the authors note that post-World War II Germany and Japan set the standard for post-conflict nation-building, all the case studies are thorough. Each examines that area's postwar inputs, such as assistance funding, and outputs, like an electoral process and variance in gross domestic product… As for what these experiences portend for nation-building in Iraq, this text is clear and concise. While the RAND authors don't necessarily offer a rosy picture of what rebuilding in Iraq will be like, their predictions aren't all that dreary, either. Calling the challenge 'ambitious' on the scale of Germany and Japan, they clearly lay out the country's pre-existent civil administration infrastructure and oil-related financial independence as aides to future growth. With any luck, those playing a role in the execution of this unwieldy task will pick up a copy of 'America's Role In Nation-Building' to help guide their way."

— NationalJournal.com

by Ashley J. Tellis, Thomas S. Szayna, James A. Winnefeld

"The basic model is relatively simple and is constructed as a methodology rather than a theory…It is presented with admirable crispness, and its use is explained in a 'how to' section…The model's main strengths are its neatness and the wide range of applicability. This book is useful for showing how the study of these issues is progressing in official circles, and is equally useful as a contribution to the basic literature on causes of conflict and early warning. This all adds up to a concise volume worth reading, and a model worth testing."

— Journal of Peace Research

"Rated 4 stars out of 5.

How does a seemingly normal person become a terrorist willing to savagely take human life? What makes that person able to adopt new strategies? Simply put, it is something learned, often through indoctrination. A two-volume work by RAND explores this phenomenon, studying the concepts and processes of learning and applying it to the world of terrorism. Volume one guides the reader through this process of learning, highlighting why terror groups must learn how to be effective and how tactical knowledge, or lack thereof, ultimately influences the effectiveness of the group. The beauty of volume one is its versatility. Though written with an eye towards terrorist groups, its concepts are equally applicable to any criminal enterprise. Simply substituting the word 'criminal' for 'terrorist' makes this book germane to anyone tasked with predicting or countering crime. Overall, the volume is a fascinating study of how terrorists, and criminals, become who they are."

— Security Management, January 2006

"Rated 4 stars out of 5.

Jemaah Islamiyah, Aum Shinrikyo, Hizballah, the Provisional Irish Republican Army, and the radical environmentalist movement are singled out for case studies in volume two of this RAND examination of how terrorists learn. Readers come to understand the backgrounds, operations and tactics, training methods, logistics, and intelligence operations of these groups. With these highlighted biographies, readers can easily see how the prosperity or demise of these groups is commensurate with their ability to learn and adapt. Studying these groups is certainly helpful, but the authors don't pretend that understanding their learning process will make the intelligence officer's job of tracking terrorists an easy task. However, insight into their thinking and learning processes is a critical first step."

— Security Management, January 2006

Winner: 2005 Next LA Honor Award, American Institute of Architects/Los Angeles

"Clear, functional logic… a great project."

— Architecture, January 2006

"Clear and compelling framework plan. . . conveyed with extraordinary sensitivity. . . a visionary plan built on logical approach to infrastructure creating immeasurable hope for a displaced people and nation."

— American Institute of Architects, January 2006

"The excitement, enthusiasm, and self-belief of the research team are tangible, and the production values are of the highest quality; superb color graphics bring the Arc vividly to life. The concept is also put forth in high-quality DVD presentation that accompanies the book: for anyone engaged in teaching Palestinian politics, it can provide an unusually uplifting resource. Importantly, it has also been translated into Arabic, presumably with a view to gaining traction within Palestinian planning circles. Happily, the authors remain sensitive, and repeatedly underline the importance of Palestinian choice, local input, and design."

— Middle East Journal, Summer 2007

"'The Arc: A Formal Structure for a Palestinian State', presents plans for improving housing and strengthening the transportation infrastructure in an independent state… 'The Arc' grapples with a solution to the conundrum of returning Palestinians [with] a transportation system that would link the West Bank and Gaza with ports in major towns such as Jenin, Gaza, Ramallah, Jerusalem, Bethlehem and Hebron… While they fully acknowledge the scope of the challenges at hand, 'Building a Palestinian State' and 'The Arc' spotlight potential success rather than focusing on setbacks and conflict."

— NationalJournal.com

"… A reimagining not only of the landscape… but also of the Palestinian experience."

— The New York Times, May 15, 2005

"The RAND Corporation has done itself proud with these publications on how to set up a Palestinian state…'The Arc' offers a model of the most efficient settlement and transportation configuration for this small and densely populated land. It is one of those rare planning documents, enriched with comparative data and meaningful illustrations, that both instructs and persuades."

— Foreign Affairs, Sept/Oct 2005

"What is especially elegant about the plan is that it focuses not on some eventual peace agreement on a state's boundaries, but on how life might be lived the day after peace—on 'the patterns of human life as shaped by its setting.' "

— Urban Land, July 2005

"The authors constructed a database of more than 500 articles and conducted field research. Methodologically, then, this is one of the soundest of the growing number of research reports on arms trafficking."

— Journal of Peace Research, November 2004

by John D. Woodward, Katharine Watkins Webb, et al.

"Although prepared for the US Army, this report may be the best available technology assessment of biometrics."

— Future Survey

" ‘The Beginner’s Guide to Nation-Building’ is a magnificent work. Many readers should recognize the vital implications of your work for foreign policy in the next administration. But I would add that your study offers valuable new insights into some of the greatest questions in political science and economics, questions about the foundations of the state and successful societies. Successful democracy then requires many leaders with good reputations, which can be encouraged by starting with local democracy, as Dobbins et al. argue in this book."

— Roger B. Myerson, Glen A. Lloyd Distinguished Service Professor, Department of Economics, University of Chicago; 2007 Nobel Prize Laureate in Economics

"This new book produced by the RAND Corporation is a remarkable success. You have to read 'The Beginner's Guide to Nation Building', by James Dobbins et al , carefully although the text is clearly written and far from excessively technical. The reason is that many nation building missions we deem damn near impossible, in most countries, [see Part II of Security First], RAND considers possible. But Dobbins points out such nation building exercises are difficult to achieve, can be achieved only after hostilities have ceased, are much more costly than you would expect, and take much longer than expected as well."

— The Communitarian Network

"The United States and the United Nations have, with increasing frequency, embarked on military interventions and nation-building operations that have become larger, longer, and more ambitious. Dobbins and his associates at RAND have led the way in reflecting on these experiences in an effort to find lessons for the future. In this volume, they offer insights drawn from the review of 24 nation-building missions. Some of their findings take the shape of a list of guidelines for planning and deploying personnel and resources—not least the realistic matching of goals to assets…"

— Foreign Affairs, May/June 2007

"No challenge in international relations today is more pressing or more difficult than that of supporting weak states. James Dobbins, one of the leading practitioners of the art, offers a set of clear, simple prescriptions for helping to build a stable peace in the wake of conflict and disorder. Drawing on the often painful lessons of recent history, Dobbins brings a new level of rigor and openness to this essential subject, and provides a useful tool for all in the United Nations who are engaged in meeting this challenge."

— Kofi A. Annan, United Nations Secretary-General

"I cooperated closely with Ambassador Dobbins in facing the challenges of postconflict stabilization in the Balkans and then Afghanistan, and came to greatly value his expertise. This latest RAND study draws upon that expertise and demonstrates his deep insights into the field of nation-building."

— Joschka Fisher, Visiting Professor at Princeton University, former German Foreign Minister and Vice Chancellor

"Cogent, concise, and yet remarkably comprehensive in both its thematic and country coverage, 'The Beginner's Guide to Nation-Building' distills the lessons from 24 historical case studies. The resulting wisdom—detailed, accessible, sobering, and instructive—should guide every policymaker who considers or prepares for such bold intervention, and every student and analyst who attempts to assess it. This is (and will likely remain for some time) the essential manual for rebuilding war-torn states."

— Larry Diamond, Senior Fellow, Hoover Institution, Stanford University

"The value in this Guide is as much in the questions it forces policymakers to ask as in the recommendations it offers. If policymakers had asked before going into Iraq who would maintain law and order, how quickly could local police and military maintain the peace, how would local governance be established, or what would be the source of creating jobs—and found that they had few answers—then perhaps the whole mission would have been radically reassessed. The Guide also presents a challenge to our civilian institutions and the U.S. Congress. If we hope to manage the international consequences posed by conflict abroad, then we must build civilian capacities to support governance, the rule of law, and job creation, just as we would never expect to fight a war without training and equipping our soldiers."

— Carlos Pascual, Vice President of the Brookings Institution, former Coordinator for Stabilization and Reconstruction, U.S. Department of State

"I know of no challenge in international affairs as demanding as that of state-building—what in the U.S. is called nationbuilding— and none where it is as imperative to learn from our experiences—good as well as bad—during the last few years. James Dobbins has not only guided U.S. policy on some of these operations, but has also led the groundbreaking work by RAND to draw the necessary lessons from them. This book will be required reading for policymakers and practitioners alike."

— Carl Bildt, Swedish Foreign Minister, former Prime Minister, and first High Representative in Bosnia-Herzegovina

"In addition to examining the evolution of al-Qaeda since 11 September 2001, the authors outline the threat posed by al- Qaeda affiliates and other groups that share its worldview and operational goals. They conclude with a four-pronged strategy to defeat terrorist groups. [In part 2] the authors profile major 'independent' terrorist organisations — both Islamist and non-Islamist — around the world, and offer strategies that could be used to prevent their destructive activities."

— Survival, August-September 2008

"The RAND Corporation… has provided an excellent two volume analysis [to defeating al-Qaeda]. The first volume looks at the ideology of the movement, its tactics, finances, and the 'nebula' of al-Qaeda that includes local affiliate groups from Southeast Asia, South Asia, North Africa, the Caucasus, and of course, Iraq… This volume covers the al-Qaeda phenomena in a competent and comprehensive way… [The two volumes] are sober, evenhanded, and worthwhile reads."

— Middle East Quarterly, Spring 2008

"'Know your enemy' is as foundational a military maxim as there is, yet it can be surprisingly difficult to get military and policy communities to focus on the nature of the adversary with meaningful depth or breadth…. With this in mind, one can only praise RAND: Project Air Force for the publication of the two-book set Beyond al-Qaeda… a current, thoroughly researched, and accessible analysis of the adversaries and potential adversaries in the WOT… Those looking to get a sense of the landscape, to better understand the full range of the al-Qaeda or terrorist threat, or in need for professional reasons of an accessible, encyclopedic reference on modern terrorist groups are well served by Beyond al-Qaeda."

— Strategic Studies Quarterly, Fall 2007

"While few Americans had heard of Osama Bin Laden prior to September 11th, 2001, the United States learned the full extent of al Qaeda s hatred for America on that fateful day. Since then, much has changed in the global terrorism environment and there are many more groups both Muslim and non-Muslim - that would harm the US if they had the chance. This study examines potential threats to the US emanating from al Qaeda, al Qaeda-inspired groups, groups without links to al Qaeda, and the nexus between terrorism and organized crime. All of these potential threats must be taken seriously and the authors identify unique strategies to deal with each."

— Journal of Counterterrorism and Homeland Security International, Fall 2007

"…For a reader seeking a description of al-Qaeda's history, structure, financing, tactics, and evolution, this work provides a concise explanation of these key elements of the terrorist network. It is free of unnecessary and confusing jargon and accessible to students at any level… While the first part focuses on al-Qaeda, as the title suggests, the second part examines the multitude of Islamist, left-wing, and right-wing terror groups around the world. Part 2 clearly shows that al Qaeda is but one of many. Readers will find this work useful in developing a general understanding of al-Qaeda and the terror nexus that is the focus of the current global war on terror. Summing Up: Recommended. All readership levels."

— Choice Magazine, May 2007

"The United States and other nations continually deploy new tactics and techniques to combat terrorists and disrupt their operations. The enemy, however, is an inherently agile and adaptive one. This book from the renowned RAND Corp. assesses how major terrorist groups have responded to counterterrorism efforts with their own countermeasures and counter-countermeasures… While technology is indispensable in fighting terror, the authors note that it is not a 'silver bullet'. They highlight the importance of other tools, such as human intelligence. Here, the book';s value is most evident… The book is not just a collection of facts and statements but an open-ended analysis that can aid the reader';s comprehension of the issue… RAND and its research staff have a long-standing reputation for high quality work in the terrorism arena and have readily kept pace with evolving international and homeland security environments. Because of its unique approach, this book would be of interest both to the accomplished security practitioner and to the student of the trade. This is truly a book to add to your professional bookshelf."

— Security Management, May 2008

"The [authors] examine a number of terrorist organizations and their attempts to defeat or counter the technological systems utilized by the United States and its allies to guarantee security. By analyzing a number of case studies detailing terrorist attempts to counter the technologies currently used, the authors are able to present a picture of potential weaknesses, thereby providing the basis for improving design and capability. The authors have provided a work that should be of great interest to any security policymaker or student of domestic security issues."

— Parameters, US Army Ware College Quarterly, Winter 2007-08

"The research in this group endeavor was sponsored by the Department of Homeland Security. Its purpose is to identify potential weaknesses in defensive technology systems and thereby provide a basis for improving the design of 'future defensive technologies'…

"Readers in fear of technocrats (as I am) will be grateful for the book's prevailing view that technology alone cannot combat terrorism. Rather, human intelligence is 'the most important element of an effort to combat terrorists' activities"…

"While alarming, the good news in this extensively researched book is its confirmation of terrorist capabilities in the high-tech realm. Unwritten here is the bad news: Our curious national reluctance to face the facts—as with the World Trace Center bombing in 1993. According to polls in mid-June 2007, public views that terrorist attacks in America are imminent were at their lowest point in two years. I fear that recent incidents in London and Glasgow will only temporarily reverse that trend."

— Proceedings, US Naval Institute, August 2007

"If [Palestinian] statehood is realized, the RAND Palestinian State Study Team have given much thought as to how to make it work. Side-stepping the issue of how to get there, 'Building a Successful Palestinian State' assumes it will happen and sets out to answer an alternative question: 'How can an independent Palestinian state be made successful?' The result is a refreshingly upbeat 'how to' manual that identifies four fundamental challenges for success: security, for Palestinians, as well as Israelis and other neighbors; governance, predicated on regime legitimacy; economic development, leading to eventual self-reliance; and the broad well-being of the Palestinian people, measured according to several indices, among them food security, health and education."

— Middle East Journal, Summer 2007

"Palestinians have been yearning for a state of their own for generations. But if that goal is met, what then? A new collection of books and studies by the RAND Corporation attempts to answer just that question. 'Building a Successful Palestinian State' is packed with statistical data on specific policy implementations for a potential Palestinian state… RAND's study focuses not only on what is needed to build and sustain a Palestinian state, but also on the expenditures necessary to see it through… Although weighty in statistical analysis, the meticulous detail in the RAND studies would prove instrumental to any reader with a vested interest in Middle Eastern foreign policy. Besides focusing on the obvious economic and geostrategic problems, the tracts also explore issues of health care, education, and riparian rights. And while they fully acknowledge the scope of the challenges at hand, 'Building a Palestinian State' and 'The Arc' spotlight potential success rather than focusing on setbacks and conflict."

— NationalJournal.com

"The RAND Corporation has done itself proud with these publications on how to set up a Palestinian state. 'Building a Successful Palestinian State', organized into separate chapters on governance, internal security, demographics, economics, water, health, and education, is not, admittedly, an easy read. Bringing together masses of technical data and comprehensive in coverage, it will serve as an invaluable study for those who become directly involved in the state-building process but will serve mainly as a reference work for others."

— Foreign Affairs, Sept/Oct 2005

"What is especially elegant about the plan is that it focuses not on some eventual peace agreement on a state's boundaries, but on how life might be lived the day after peace—on 'the patterns of human life as shaped by its setting.' "

— Urban Land, July 2005

"Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates and above."

— CHOICE, January 2006

"When I suggest that radical Muslims are the problem and that moderate Muslims are the solution, the nearly inevitable retort from most people is: 'What moderate Muslims?'… Moderate Muslims do exist. But, of course, they constitute a very small movement when compared to the Islamist onslaught. This means that the American government and other powerful institutions should give priority to locating, meeting with, funding, forwarding, empowering, and celebrating those brave Muslims who, at personal risk, stand up and confront the totalitarians. 'Building Moderate Muslim Networks' methodically takes up and thinks through this concept. [The authors] grapple intelligently with the innovative issue of helping moderate Muslims to grow and prosper… [The book] marks a major step toward the systematic reconfiguration of Washington's policy for combating Islamism. The study's meaty contents, clear analysis, and bold recommendations usefully move the debate forward, offering precisely the in-depth strategizing that Westerners urgently need."

— Daniel Pipes, Middle East Forum, April 2007

"'Building Moderate Muslim Networks' is both refreshing and thought provoking in its examination of the tough work needed to achieve democratic transformation in the Muslim world. It avoids the twin pitfalls of demonizing Muslim nations and denying the social and political differences between those nations and ours. The book's authors provide an overview of the 'war of ideas' going on in the Muslim world, criticize the shortsighted U.S. approach to this 'war', and call for a clear long-term policy… The book is worth reading for its insights on countering extremism in the Muslim world and the questions it inspires about our policy priorities."

— Military Review, November-December 2007

"…In [this] landmark report, four RAND scholars draw a nuanced yet common-sense distinction between radical and moderate Muslims, and make sweeping policy prescriptions that, if implemented, will fundamentally alter the way Western governments tackle what is arguably the most pressing threat of our times… All in all, this important contribution to the policy debate ought to get the serious attention it deserves."

— Far Eastern Economic Review, May 2007

"The lesson from Libicki et al.'s 'Byting Back' is that getting not just warfighters but also governments and the public to make more and better use of technology is crucial in 'regaining information superiority' in the battle against the second of the global jihad's 'heads', the regional al-Qaeda affiliates. The fundamental point of this book, part of a larger RAND series examining counter-insurgency, is that allied forces in Afghanistan and Iraq are failing to maximise the potential technological benefits they could be leveraging in countering insurgents on the battlefield… [This book offers] a detailed analysis of different aspects of the modern anti-terrorist battlespace, and considers the difficult question of what can be done to win the battle; unfortunately, [it also] succeeds in proving that there is no silver bullet"

— Survival, December 2008-January 2009

"A thorough examination of some very sophisticated issues presented in an easy-to-understand and concise format. Casualties and Consensus is an excellent study of an important issue, and is of use to students and researchers in military studies, all aspects of political science, and history. This work is highly recommended for all libraries."

— Academic Library Book Review

"Highly informative, very well researched, Casualties and Consensus is a valuable contribution to the national dialog."

— The Midwest Book Review

"Both informative in an academic sense and useful to those who would plan, command, or make policy regarding the use of U.S. military forces."

— U.S. Naval Institute Proceedings

"… This study should not be underestimated. It makes a valuable contribution, if incremental contribution to the evolving understanding of how the DAUBERT standard is actually working."

— The Law and Politics Book Review

"… It should be on the reading list for those with a strong interest in the subject."

— CHOICE

"The most detailed and sophisticated analysis yet of the complex internal factors influencing Chinese foreign policy and the differing foreign policy views of the Chinese elite… At a time when America's China policy seems to be in disarray, with Congress and the administration veering in different directions, this report should be widely read."

— Foreign Affairs

"This detailed, solidly based and logically argued study… is especially valuable and deserves wide reading by those wanting a relatively easy introduction to the influences on domestic decision-making in China."

— The China Journal

"… A highly recommended contribution to International Studies and Economic Studies reading lists and reference collections."

— Internet Bookwatch/Midwest Book Review

"This book provides excellent chapters on the history of the PLAAF and evaluations of individual aircraft… This volume is the best military and industrial investigation of Chinese airpower since Richard Bueschel's Communist Chinese Air Power in 1968."

— Foreign Service Journal

"This informative volume sheds light not only on the People's Liberation Army Air Force, but also on the Chinese military more broadly."

— Foreign Affairs

"Taking a straightforward approach, the authors outline the results of the data analysis, presenting separately for each of the six predictor variables [income, education, race/ethnicity, age, sex, and location of residence]. Using clear narrative and information graphs, the point is made that contrary to popular perception the 'digital divide' is in some cases widening as opposed to narrowing. The results of the CPS [Current Population Survey] data analysis are interesting and informative. Clearly, articulated reports such as the one under review are a good start in providing policymakers with unequivocal data on the persistent inequalities in the digital age."

— Journal of Government Information

"In this extremely short work, Benard seeks to structure a design that will allow for better interaction between the West and the Islamic world. Her credentials are worth noting: she is a senior political analyst at the RAND Corporation, former associate professor of political science at the University of Vienna, and is a specialist in Afghanistan and the Middle East. Her approach is certainly commendable. She offers a useful seven-part typology of Muslims: radical fundamentalists, scriptural fundamentalists, conservative traditionalists, reformists, traditionalists, modernists, mainstream secularists, and radical secularists. She rightly points out that the fundamentalists and traditionalists have a good infrastructure upon which to rely. And she astutely notes that some aspects of U.S. culture work to the traditionalists' advantage since this group, with its view of its Islamic garb, better fits the image most Americans expect… This is far too important a subject for Benard to leave here. Let us hope that, in conjunction with the many capable specialists on these issues, she will broaden the scope of her study."

— Middle East Quarterly, Summer 2005

"Allowing few individuals to represent the legal interests of many who do not participate in the lawsuit but are nonetheless bound by its outcome is the defining and controversial feature of class actions… Conducted by Hensler et al, this Rand report, the result of a four-year study on class action litigation in the US, provides policy and legislative recommendations based on systematic empirical research… The data portray a telling image of mass action suits as money-gorging enterprises benefiting lawyers who are 'motivated by the prospect of substantial fees for relatively little effort'… This is an exceptionally rich resource on the current state of the American class action system for policy makers, legal practitioners, researchers, and graduate students."

— CHOICE Magazine

Class action suits often provoke extreme reactions in people: some see them as the ultimate guarantors of justice in David-and-Goliath type situations, while others see them as nothing more than a cover for large-scale money-grabbing by avaricious lawyers. The truth probably lies somewhere in-between, as this magisterial study on the subject reveals… One of its main conclusions is that 'judges hold the key to improving the balance of good and ill consequences of damage class actions.' To this end, the study makes a number of well-thought out recommendations which deserve serious consideration.

— The Commonwealth Lawyer

"A keen and generally neutral observer of the torts war has been the Institute of Civil Justice (ICJ) a research program within RAND… Class Action Dilemmas is an ambitious attempt in this tradition to assess the costs and benefits of class action lawsuits…"

— Law and Politics Book Review

"This in-depth, benchmark study examines newly compiled information about class action law suits and offers a thoughtful discussion of current trends in mass litigation and their implications for the future…Class Action Dilemmas is a very highly recommended addition to professional, governmental, academic, and judicial reference libraries."

— Wisconsin Bookwatch

"In this powerful and insightful work, the authors examine the policy implications of closing the gap in educational attainment by equalizing high school graduation rates, first-year college-going rates, college retention rates, and finally college-completion rates…their assumptions are reasonable and their analytic techniques appropriate because their conclusions--that the benefits of each of the equalization strategies far exceed the costs--are powerful enough to make this a must-read for all educational policy makers as well as researchers. Highly recommended for general readers, uppper-division undergraduates, graduate students, faculty, and researchers."

— CHOICE Magazine

"Not a day seems to go by without reference in the general press to the role presently played by high resolution imaging satellites in the war against terrorism. This excellent compilation is therefore both topical and timely, placing the U.S. IKONOS and other current 'dual use' military/ civil satellites in an historical and political context, in an era where new communications technology can now provide near 'on-demand' access to their metre level ground resolution imagery… The authors propose that the applicability of these imagery products to an increasing range of real-world issues provides both an opportunity for economic and political development but also a threat to policy makers; global transparency is fast becoming a fact of life! A highly recommended overview."

— The Aerospace Professional

"This is not only a book about space technology. It tackles the question of how space technologies are part, or even become drivers of, strategic global development. In the case of this book it is the influence of Earth observation by satellite on the global information society and its trend towards steadily increasing transparency… To give an immediate assessment of [the editors'] effort, it can be stated that they have succeeded in not only providing a most fascinating and illustrative description of the capabilities of this space application, but they also arrive at an exemplary analysis of the various policy issues… It is a particular virtue of this book that it draws a truly realistic picture of the subject and provides convincing answers to every question it poses."

— Space Policy

"An international group of experts provides 26 chapters on all aspects of the topic, including emerging policy issues, US and non-US satellite remote sensing programs, and remote sensing applications to international problems, including Dayton Peace talks, the Ecuador-Peru peace process, remote monitoring in the South China Sea, the role of commercial satellite imagery in locating south Asian nuclear test sites, and supporting humanitarian relief operations. Two of the editors are affiliated with the RAND Corporation, the third teaches at the George Washington University Space Policy Institute."

— Book News, Inc.

"While the [U.S. military space policy] review is underway, the RAND Corporation thank tank has released a new study of commercial remote sensing that will likely be a definitive guide for policymakers during the current round of studies."

— Spacelift Washington

"This publication is a useful addition to the remote sensing literature. It contains policy issues that many users of the data have not considered nor been well informed of. The book is well presented, well organized and easy to use. It could conceivably be a textbook on a policy in remote sensing course. Most users will use it selectively as a reference book or for general knowledge. In addition to the policy issues, there is a considerable amount of other information."

— Photogrammetric Engineering & Remote Sensing

"Kugler's voluminous and provocative account of NATO's role and American NATO policy indicates that past history remains a potent element in current politics… The main attraction of Kugler's monumental book lies in the evaluations of various phases of NATO policy and of American NATO policies."

— The Journal of Strategic Studies

"Despite all the problems telephone-reliant pollsters have faced in recent years, such as declining response rates and increasing use of cell phones, the idea of taking surveys to the Internet to gauge opinion remains a controversial idea… Regardless of one's personal opinions on the matter, 'Conducting Research Surveys Via E-Mail And The Web' is full of useful information for anyone interested in the future of polling."

— NationalJournal.com

"This slender volume, by Matthias Schonlau, Ronald Fricker, and Marc N. Elliott, addresses how to choose the contact method for a survey and explicitly describes process steps, sources of cost, sources of error, and other elements of practical survey administration and survey methodology… As a result of its brevity, clarity, and breadth, this belongs on the desk as a reference for those who are new to surveying and as a checklist for experienced researchers."

— The Library Quarterly

"… Lambeth (author of NATO's Air War for Kosovo: A Strategic and Operational Assessment) and Hosmer have reviewed the literature on both sides of the Atlantic, as well as conducted interviews with some key NATO and Serb leaders, and have provided the most authoritative look yet at what went on, and why, in this significant and unusual war."

— The Journal of Military History

"This book provides an interesting management insight into the mechanics of space research"

— Science and Technology Journal

"…provides a comprehensive review of small spacecraft and how they can best be used to continue this nation's legacy of success in space exploration."

— Richard DalBello, Vice President, Government Affairs, ICO Global Communications

The authors of this study, who are senior analysts at RAND, the renowned national security think tank, analyze how, at the dawn of the 21st century, the historical contours of terrorism have been replaced by new types of groups whose motivations, organizational structures, and tactics greatly differ from their earlier counterparts… The book's findings will be of great interest to those concerned about terrorism, counterterrorism, and U.S. national security policy.

— Journal of Homeland Security

"… Provides an effective overview of the emerging forms of terrorism and the strategies to counter it."

— U.S.I. Journal

"… In chapter 3, entitled 'Networks, Netwar, and Information-Age Terrorism', John Arquilla, David Ronfeldt, and Michele Zanini, each an expert in international terrorism, spin a cautionary tale regarding the security of networked global information systems. John Arquilla and David Ronfeldt were among the first to study the impact of information technology on warfare. They are credited with coining the terms 'cyberwar' and 'netwar'… Chapter 3 describes one change in the focus of international terrorism of which librarians and information professionals particularly should take note. Terrorists' strategy has been radically altered by the availability, use, and vulnerability of networked information systems… The message…should be heeded by librarians and information professionals of all types-the vulnerability of information systems to threats of systematic disruption is clear, serious, and in need of critical analysis and review."

— The Library Quarterly

"Countering the New Terrorism is an insightful and practical volume for those involved in the world of counterterrorist policy."

— Joint Forces Quarterly, Spring 2000

"Countering the New Terrorism is a compilation of articles from some of the best and brightest analysts at RAND. Bruce Hoffman, one of the foremost authorities on terrorism, describes his views on terrorism trends and prospects, while the authors of 'netwar', Arquilla, Ronfeldt, and Zanini discuss networks, netwar, and information-age terrorism. The editor, Ian Lesser, details implications for strategy to counter the new terrorism. This book is full of fresh new ideas, and is a must read in considering the future of terrorism."

— Terrorism Research Center

"…goes beyond current debates concerning weapons of mass destruction and provides a new perspective on the changing nature of world politics. The authors' observations on the emergence of amorphous terrorist networks with ambiguous political and religious goals make an important contribution to the literature on terrorism and international affairs."

— Perspectives on Political Science

"Competent and well-structure analysis and clear conclusions make this book a useful source."

— Journal of Peace Research

"…provides a vital foundation for those who wish to understand the changing nature of international order and a framework for action on the part of those responsible for combating it."

— Security Management Magazine

"What are the major factors that allow an insurgency to develop and stick? Native lawlessness and a foreign safe haven for resting and resupply. The mujahadeen hid from the Soviets in Pakistan, now Pakistan also protects the Taliban. Jones, who has made repeated trips to Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India since 2004, stresses the importance of involving local populations in counterinsurgency operations. The history and strategies in this book are important for understanding the nature of unconventional warfare, no matter where in the world it is. Libraries and bookstores can't go wrong with [this] volume. [It is] indispensable for historians, journalists, academics, and policy makers."

— Foreword Magazine, Editor's Notes, August 2008

"According to the authors, ‘escalation is a natural tendency in any form of human competition’. This volume analyses the escalatory threats faced by the United States in the military realm, and looks at how the government can ‘dampen the mechanisms of deliberate, accidental, and inadvertent escalation’ given current security conditions."

— Survival, April-May 2009

"Economic analysts in recent years have accorded population issues a relatively minor role in the wider policy agenda. But in a new report for the RAND Corp., three Harvard School of Public Health professors revisit the relationship between demographic change and the economy, arguing that age structure -- rather than population size -- provides policy-makers with a critical tool for exploiting economic growth. Drawing from research conducted by the United Nations and other groups, David E. Bloom, David Canning and Jaypee Sevilla have put together a study that is concise and easily digested, even for the statistically-challenged… The trio's analysis proves particularly salient given recent demographic trends in the developing world…"

— NationalJournal.com

"Social analysts have generally paid too little attention to demographic trends, as conventional wisdom holds that rapid population growth inhibits improvement in living standards. This short monograph by three authors associated with Harvard's School of Public Health attempts to clarify the complexities of demographic change and economic growth. Modern societies have typically passed through a demographic transition in which the labor force grows more rapidly than total population because a decline in mortality precedes a decline in fertility. In the right policy environment--one conducive to education and to saving--this transition creates the potential for exceptionally rapid economic growth, as has been experienced in recent decades by Ireland and by several East Asian countries. The authors draw attention to this opportunity for many developing countries over the next 20 years, urging these countries to take advantage of the situation. Similarly, rich countries need to prepare for significant aging of their populations and, in some cases, for shrinking labor forces--an altogether new experience in the modern era."

— Foreign Affairs

This short report from RAND is a must-read for operators and for policy-makers who are developing strategy for the global war on terrorism… The authors open the report with a discussion of terrorists' motivations and commitment to their cause, the cultural traditions of violence, and al-Qaeda's organizational structure… The authors complete the report with broad strategic prescriptions and discussions on deterring the use of weapons of mass destruction, on political warfare, and on the clash between American values and those of several of our regional allies. Davis and Jenkins cannot provide a complete strategy in a short report, but they do provide a useful template and techniques for developing a comprehensive strategy for the global war on terrorism. Their report should be on the reading list of every policy-maker or strategist.

— Special Warfare

"It is highly recommended for courses on security politics in Eastern Europe… The book is rich in empirical detail, comparative, critical, and without competition on the current book market."

— Contemporary Security Policy

"This report provides concrete evidence that sustained investments in research can ensure that America remains at the forefront of scientific capability, thereby enhancing our ability to shape a more prosperous future for ourselves, our children, and future generations while building a better America for the twenty-first century."

— President Bill Clinton, June 15, 2000

"As the literature continues to grow on NATO's air strikes in Yugoslavia in 1999, Bruce R. Nardulli et al. add yet another useful study to the array of existing research… I know of no other work that so succinctly and comprehensively provides such a detailed overview of the Serbs' military capabilities… Disjointed War provides excellent coverage of the problems faced by Task Force Hawk. The logistical difficulties were considerable in Albania, and the authors do an outstanding job of revealing these problems."

— Parameters

"A quick read, the study is an excellent and current overview of the military reform process in Eastern Europe."

— European Security

"The Emergence of Peer Competitors: A Framework for Analysis by Thomas S. Szayna et al., is intended for intelligence analysts in the hope of providing a framework for thinking systematically about possible peer competitors. Although published for the intelligence community, the study will certainly tweak the interests of the academic and defense establishments, as well as anyone involved in long-range assessments of America's future."

— Parameters

"…Based on the conference proceedings of several meetings (2002-04) of a 42-member North American-European-Russian working group established by the RAND Corporation and the Institute for the USA and Canada Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences in late 2001. It was created to examine the growing cooperation between NATO and Russia and to suggest ways to foster it… This report is essential for understanding what the new goals for NATO-Russia cooperation after 2006 might be. It is important to understand the changing role of NATO within the US National Defense Strategy and the importance of areas of cooperation beyond the NATO-Russia framework. This is why potential differences in vision and policy assessments are important."

— Survival, March 2006

"Enlarging NATO is a valuable resource for policy makers and interested policy observers. Kugler offers a clear explanation of the background leading to the present challenge of managing the process of NATO expansion …A timely and thoughful analytic contribution to a policy- making community …"

— Airpower Journal

"Recommended for general readers."

— CHOICE Library Journal

"Richard Kugler's excellent work… is an especially timely, thoughtful, and provocative look at the problem of achieving NATO's stated goal of proceeding with enlargement while simultaneously strengthening European security, without erecting new divisions within Europe as a result of this process… This work is invaluable for any Western analyst and/or advisor, especially at NATO itself, who is dealing with NATO enlargement from a bilateral or alliance perspective."

— European Security

"Astute analysis of delicate dealings… While one may agree or disagree with Mr. Kugler's analysis, one cannot disagree with his conclusions: 'As the West goes about the task of enlarging, managing East Central Europe's geopolitics, and dealing with Russia, strategic thinking will be required… The West cannot afford to deal with the challenges ahead by muddling through. It needs to think clearly about its objectives and to fashion policies for attaining them--and a positive outcome.' 'Enlarging NATO' is a major step in that direction."

— Washington Times

" 'We will help you'. What sounds like the title of a Queen rock anthem is actually a simple promise around which the US military might develop a branding strategy. It is part of 22 broad recommendations for the American armed forces in 'Enlisting Madison Avenue', aimed at leveraging the lessons of the marketing and advertising worlds to help the military win its nation's wars. The study's lead author, Todd C. Helmus, is a behavioral scientist with a doctorate in clinical psychology. Thus, he is well suited to examine the cognitive side of modern combat in this monograph, prepared at the request of the US Joint Forces Command… Whereas other recent literature on the subject tends to focus on overall US government public diplomacy efforts, Enlisting Madison Avenue's marketing-inspired recommendations are specific to the armed forces and provide real-life, rubber-meets-the-road suggestions… They [also] point out that US foreign policy and its actions on the ground often drive public opinion but do not absolve the United States from attempting to inform and influence relevant populations."

— Strategic Studies Quarterly, Summer 2008

"The authors suggest that the military could create more support for its operations, and thereby achieve greater success in conflicts like those in Iraq and Afghanistan, if it updated its 'brand' identity using models such as Apple, Lexus, and Starbucks. For instance, just as the marketing world uses 'segmentation' to identify different groups of customers and focus on the most profitable ones, the military could use 'enemy prisoner-of-war interrogations, focus groups, and surveys' to identify potential partners within local populations. The study also suggests that the military do more to meet and manage 'customer' expectations, taking a page from Continental Airlines, which tells passengers as much as possible about flight delays instead of keeping them in the dark… The report also makes a case for re-branding the military, advertising it more as an organization that's doing good in the world, through relief efforts like those in post-tsunami Southeast Asia or in post-earthquake Pakistan."

— The Atlantic, January/February 2008

"Policy analysts studying interdisciplinary topics (such as population-environment issues) must synthesize research from various sources and fields into a policy-friendly and -relevant format. RAND's Population Matters project has undertaken this challenging task for policymakers on population issues. The Environmental Implications of Population Dynamics is Population Matters' first look at macro-level population and environment trends--and the implications these trends pose for policy at the local, national, and global levels… [It] is an exemplary sample of work targeted to a policy audience. Its recommendations are clear, concise, and easy to find within the text. Hunters' use of case studies and examples coupled with research and data provides analysts and policymakers all the tools they need for informed decisions. In addition, Hunter includes a useful list of references for those wanting to read more about population and environment linkages. The report is targeted specifically toward those doing policy work, but it would also be a useful tool for students wanting an introduction to the topic from a policy perspective."

— ECSP Report

"Aimed at policy makers but accessible to general readers, this study draws on environmental and demographic literature in order to assess the relationship between population dynamics and the environment. Chapters cover environmental effects of population size, distribution, and composition, then discuss possible mediating factors and climate change, concluding with discussions on implications of the findings."

— Reference & Research Book News

"Postintervention reconstruction and democratization are highly topical these days, and this RAND Corporation study poses policy and case study conclusions about 'best practice' in establishing stability and security… The triple emphasis on policy inputs, outputs, and outcomes are comprehensive and worthwhile. Recommended. General readers through practitioners."

— CHOICE Magazine

"This study evaluates Europe's success in using armed force in nation-building efforts in such countries as Albania and Sierra Leone and compares them to similar efforts by the United States and the UN. The authors emphasise the importance of a multilateral approach involving actors such the European Union and NATO."

— Survival, June-July 2009

"The third in a series of studies looking at nation building (the first two of which focused on U.S.- and UN-led efforts), this volume examines Europe's expanding role in trying to bring peace and stability to trouble spots. Under the direction of Dobbins — a former top diplomat with crisis-management experience in the Balkans, Somalia, Haiti, and Afghanistan — a team of RAND scholars has compiled large amounts of data about such missions in an effort to bring some rigor to the debate about different sorts of nation-building efforts… The number of variables involved in such different cases makes scientific comparison difficult, but the study does show that European Union missions have been not only fairly successful but also smaller, safer, shorter, and less challenging than those run by the United States or the United Nations. The EU is developing a nation-building capability, but it remains embryonic."

— Foreign Affairs, November/December 2008

"… No other book gives such impressive and detailed analysis of the European contributions. The book is especially interesting and well researched regarding NATO's target selection process. It is also well written, and it will be useful to students, military professionals, and policymakers alike."

— Parameters

"… Provides useful detail on the evolution of the European Union's efforts to develop an autonomous defense and security policy."

— Foreign Affairs

"In November 2002 the sixteenth Congress of the Chinese Communist Party set China an ambitious new target: to quadruple the size of the economy by 2020. Growth will need to hum along at an average 7.4 per cent each year if the economy is really to double in size by 2010 and surpass $4 trillion by 2020. The economy has managed 9.6 per cent a year on average since 1978, and in the first half of 2003 year-on-year growth was a SARS-resilient 8.3 per cent. Is such a brisk pace sustainable?… China's 2020 vision is attainable. But making it means that all the problems already present in the economy have to be kept under control. [This] new study … calmly describes, analyses and calculates the potential impact that the problems will have on China's growth… Moreover, as the RAND analysts admit, many of the factors are interrelated … Vicious and virtuous circles are both possible. The point is clear: China's 2020 vision is possible, but it would not pay to believe in it blindly."

— International Affairs

"Those who fear China should read this sobering assessment of the challenges that it may soon face. Prepared by a RAND team for the Defense Department's Office of Net Assessment, it is an exercise in futurology that explores alternative scenarios that could adversely affect China's economic growth… Of course, it is possible that none of these threats will materialize (something the authors consider implausible), but if one does, it could easily trigger the development of others. Only skillful management and good luck will keep China on a course of robust growth."

— Foreign Affairs

"Behind the facade of the emerging giant, just how fragile is China?… At a time when everyone and his investment adviser are singing China's economic praises, [this book] strings together a lot of sour notes… RAND, therefore, has done China an enormous (if unintentional) favor. It is precisely when things are going relatively well that one needs to plan for the worst… Whether or not this provocative RAND study is read in China, few, if any, of the problems cited are going to disappear on their own."

— Seattle Times

"The strength of this book is that it brings together descriptions of a wide range of problems, and the treatment of each problem area is competently handled… For US policymakers and teachers alike, this book may provide a fresh perspective on why we might need to worry about China's growth, for the problem is not just that China may keep growing rapidly, but also that China might not."

— The China Journal, January 2005

"Faultlines is a must-have textbook for the professional analyst or the student. It covers a broad range of subjects including political, economic and social factors that shape Central Asia and the South Caucasus. One could write volumes on these subjects independently, but the editors have created a one-stop desk reference for anyone who needs to know details on virtually any topic relating to this region."

— Comparative Strategy, Volume 23/Number 2

"This fact-filled, jargon-free guide to the political, economic, and religious tensions of the region contains many tables and will serve as a handy reference book for any library. Highly recommended."

— CHOICE Magazine, June 2004

"Overall, the analysis is solid and reliable, so the book carries a lot of convincing power and, therefore, is of significant interest for many categories of readers."

— Journal of Peace Research

"Presents useful strategies for increasing funding for computers in schools."

— Computing Reviews

"My bookshelf contains several fine government and private reports on the use of educational technology, but none has the scope and immediacy of this book from RAND's Critical Technologies Institute."

— Educational Testing Service

"A recent report by the RAND Corporation provides strong support for using educational technology resources. The RAND group reports that much of the current impetus to bring more technology into schools is not motivated merely by a desire to necessarily improve the learning of students in academic areas. It is also motivated by the sense that information and computational technology has become so ubiquitous in our lives, that schools must develop basic skills in students so they can function in further schooling and work. Increasing the level of technology enables fundamental changes in pedagogy. In the information that students can use, and in the manner in which they use their time. These changes then result in significant improvements in their learning."

— Michele Sokoloff, Media & Methods

"…A scholarly and engaging survey and analysis of the dynamics of America's media arts… From Celluloid to Cyberspace is a fascinating, informative, and confidently recommended study of how the American silver screen continues to evolve and influence American popular culture."

— Midwest Book Review/The Bookwatch

"This collection offers an up-to-date regional survey that seeks, with considerable success, to integrate many different issues and countries into an overview… Topics treated include political and economic reform, Middle Eastern oil, and weapons of mass destruction, plus civil-military relations, the information revolution, and the prospects of impending leadership changes in the area. With its regional approach, the book reveals how the issues of WMD, terrorism, U.S support for the status quo versus championing reform, putting Iraq back together, and that hardy perennial-Israel and the Arabs-are all intertwined. U.S. policy, it says, must be 'flexible and robust'…"

— Foreign Affairs

"… The report's authors, respected Middle Eastern experts, address the fundamental domestic and regional issues confronting Turkey as it plots its strategic course in the new world order… It is an excellent primer for students of this pivotal nation's current events."

— Military Review

"The authors…should be commended for their accomplishments. This work is of great significance for policymakers and students of Turkish politics."

— Middle East Insight

"…Addresses the key factors that affect Turkish-Western Relations The authors…should be commended for their accomplishments. [This work is] of great significance for policymakers and students of Turkish politics."

— Middle East Insight

"Research findings inform us as to how we can reduce our risk of various diseases and increase our life spans — we can stop smoking, drink less alcohol, exercise more, and eat less. Yet despite this simple advice, many people fail to take the steps necessary to maximize their health. This observation has prompted Chloe Bird and Patricia Rieker to write this book, in which they examine the opportunities and choices that men and women confront when making health-related decisions, the constraints that are imposed on that decisionmaking process, and the differential effect of those constraints depending on sex … ‘Gender and Health'; does not provide answers to the questions posed. Rather, the authors challenge their readers to adopt a broader perspective in their approach to the formulation and evaluation of social policy, the conduct of research, and the provision of patient care through an integrated consideration of the biological and social dimensions of gender"

— New England Journal of Medicine, September 11, 2008

"I strongly support the central message of 'Gifts of the Muse.' Although the arts bestow important secondary benefits—economic, educational, social, and therapeutic—it is their intrinsic value that makes them essential and irreplaceable. The arts enhance, enlarge, and awaken our humanity in ways no other activities can equal. That is why the arts exist, and why we must support them."

—Dana Gioia, Chairman, National Endowment for the Arts

"A detailed review, based upon the American experience, of the actual and potential commercial/military uses of the GPS position location system and the implications on U.S. national policies."

— Royal Aeronautical Society Library Additions

"Comprehensive, and insightful…the one to read on GPS"

— Charles R. Trimble, CEO, Trimble Navigation

"Brower and Chalk's book is a powerful and useful argument for the urgent need to integrate and streamline public health and national security strategies."

— Emerging Infectious Diseases

"The SARS virus is only the latest sign that infectious diseases truly are a global threat. With world travel so commonplace, concerns about the mysterious new illness went world-wide almost instantly. In 'The Global Threat of New and Reemerging Infectious Diseases', Jennifer Brower and Peter Chalk make the case that government officials need to put just as much focus on infectious diseases as they do on bioterrorism… The health risk from disease is widespread -- and as SARS shows, it's not something that can be contained within one nation's borders. Brower and Chalk's short book provides evidence that in this case we must both think and act globally."

— NationalJournal.com

"The Army will need to master a range of green practices — from recycling motor oil to reducing plastic waste — in order to succeed in the drawn-out stability operations of Iraq and Afghanistan. During long engagements, toxic environments threaten soldiers' health; waste disposal creates logistical and security nightmares; clean water and viable farmland are crucial to winning over the locals; and discarded hazardous materials can blow up unexpectedly or provide targets for terrorists."

— The Atlantic, December 2008

"The Handbook of Human Tissue Resources attempts to provide comprehensive information on the hundreds of human tissue archives. These range from tens of millions of samples held by the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology to scattered collections in university departments across the United States…the guide will be particularly useful for researchers at smaller institutions lacking specialist facilities to help their scientists find samples."

— Nature

"…Health Information Systems is an introductory textbook of health services research, framed explicitly within the context of measuring quality and, to a lesser extent, assessing costs and determining payments (e.g. for capitated plans). Although much of the content will be familiar to established investigators, newcomers to the field will welcome the clear and easily accessible suggestions for all aspects of policy-oriented research, from identifying relevant questions to choosing or creating data sources to conducting statistical analyses. This is an elegant 'how to' book for a field which has offered few such resources."

— International Journal for Quality in Health Care

"A 'tour de force' covering the most pressing issues in health care and providing a course on analytic methods and statistics."

— Virginia Riehl, Health Care Consultant

"This volume of essays is RAND's follow-up to the second Volcker Commission. But it is more than that: It presents a bird's-eye view of RAND's perspective on what needs to be done to improve government performance generally. It is important because RAND's work is influential in shaping public policy and influences public managers throughout the United States and abroad. The most significant aspect of this symposium is that it brought together much current thinking about the state of the art of public management…

"The RAND [researchers] know a great deal and can put what they know into an inviting framework. They are adventurous and venture where others fear to tread. Although they possibly stick too close to the Volcker Commission framework, they go much further afield to describe and explain the latest trends in contemporary American governance, intellectual movements, management theory, statistical findings, research projects, public opinion surveys, academic leanings, business methods, scholastic tools, and international developments. They try to be as current as possible. So whatever they write deserves attention. Hence, this book is an essential companion not just to the 2003 Volcker Commission report but to any study of the federal government and government in general. Every contribution is thought provoking and an education in itself."

— Public Administration Review, January/February 2006

"This volume presents practical perspectives and approaches to restructuring government agencies by mission, enhancing leadership, and creating flexible and performance-driven agencies. This book actually includes the full text of the Volcker Commission report and 12 thoughtful chapters that address future governance challenges (market state and high-performance government) as well as specific responses to the commission's three primary recommendations."

— Public Administration Review, April 2005

"'High-Performance Government' is worthy of attentive reading because it plunges right into the heart of the debates on government reform. [Its] contribution is evading a naïve rationalism and simplification that would arise from the benchmarking of the private sector as a source of truth for the state, and instead be built from what the anthropologist Clifford Geertz calls a 'size-up-and-solve social science': a social science of evaluation and resolution.

— Futuribles, May 2005

"Many studies have asked how terrorist groups are born; relatively few have described how such groups are best put out of business. A recent effort to do the latter, by RAND Corporation, an American think-tank, is therefore welcome. It considers the fate of some 650 groups (defined widely), between 1968 and 2006, asking in particular what put an end to them. In the process it casts some useful light on a hoary old question of counterterrorism: whether military force or smart policing is the more effective method for tackling terrorists and insurgents… The recommendations of the report are not just of interest to anti-terrorist organisations; their opponents may be worried that the insights can help to bring about their own demise. Possibly to guard against this possibility one jihadist apparently translated much of the RAND report and posted a copy online within only a few days of its original publication."

— The Economist

" 'I Want You!' is an exhaustive, ground-breaking study that explores this nation's transition from a conscripted military to an established, all-volunteer force that continues today despite three decades of opposition and economic pressures. Words hardly do justice to the thoroughness of Bernard Rostker's research. He has produced an impressive work of scholarship for the serious student. Not just a lengthy narrative, it is a well-organized and well-written study backed up by 2,300 primary documents. The notes in the print version are more than sufficient to support the text. However, the DVD version is much more useful and well worth the extra expense. Not only can readers perform searches of key words and phrases but also they can avail themselves of direct links to 1,700 of the 2,300 sources."

— Air & Space Power Journal, Spring 2008

In 'I Want You! The Evolution of the All-Volunteer Force', Bernard Rostker describes the development and history of our all-volunteer military from 1960 through 2006… A fascinating and truly useful aspect of this book is Rostker's pairing of narrative chapters describing historical developments with documentary chapters in which he reviews the analyses and studies instrumental in the policy making of each phase. Thus the reader finds both history and its sources proximate in the same volume. Each chapter of 'I Want You!' is meticulously documented, including a chapter focused on the role of women and a wrap-up chapter assessing overall success throughout the period. (An accompanying DVD makes the pursuit of supporting details even more efficient.) Rostker is a senior fellow at the RAND Corporation with a distinguished record of public service, including service as Undersecretary of the Army and Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness. Having personally participated in many of the analyses and deliberations he describes, he has a superb background from which to write this book."

— Brig Gen. John S. Brown, US Army retired, Army Magazine, December 2007

"… Can today's volunteer system produce enough quality soldiers to marshal America's future? Or must we return to the draft? To address these questions, we need to review where we were when Vietnam-era conscription ended, and how we navigated the next 34 years of the all-volunteer force to reach the current mess. 'I Want You!' is an invaluable aid in that project… If history is any indication, the coming debate [about the draft] will be acrimonious and ill informed. Those interested in bringing some reason to the table will do well to consult 'I Want You!' We can't know where we're going unless we know where we've been."

— Philip Gold, Wilson Quarterly, Winter 2007

"This book should be required reading for lawmakers, analysts, and policymakers charged with addressing today's complex military manpower issues. Bernard Rostker is a veteran Pentagon analyst and manager. A former under secretary of defense, under secretary of the Army, assistant secretary of the Navy, and senior fellow of the RAND Corporation, he has dealt with manpower issues for more than three decades. This comprehensive history is balanced, insightful, and as clear about the arcane world of budgets, manpower research, and analysis as a book can be made to be. "The most important aspect of the book is the accompanying DVD containing hundreds of important official records and analytical studies relating to the volunteer force from its inception through the Clinton and into the Bush years…"

— Ronald Spector, Proceedings, March 2007, U.S. Naval Institute

"Rostker, who has held numerous federal posts and is currently a senior fellow at the RAND Corporation, is the ideal scholar to have written this study, a massive and definitive history of the all-volunteer military force in the US from its genesis in the late 1960s to early 2005. It is a unique contribution. Rostker's research is prodigious to say the least, relying on over 1,700 original documents, including congressional testimony, analytical studies, interviews, and other archival sources--most of which are included on an accompanying DVD."

— CHOICE, March 2007

"In the long history of the U.S. Army the total force has been volunteer except for a brief time in World War I, and from the start of World War II (with a year of no draft in 1947-48) until 1973. Concomitantly with the drawdown of the Army following Vietnam, there had been an effort to go to an all-volunteer force. As a systems analyst, Bernard Rostker had been closely associated with this thrust from its beginning. He has compiled a monumental study of the modern volunteer Army that should be of interest to any professional soldier… [and] anyone wearing an Army uniform in a position of functional responsibility concerning raising, maintaining and reducing the Army. Likewise, it should be of interest to the civilians in the Army and Defense Secretariats. Perhaps even more important, the subject should be of vital interest to members of Congress and their staffs.

"The current situations in Iraq and Afghanistan have generated more and more discussion, particularly with the Washington pundits, pertaining to reinstituting a draft. For any of those so inclined, all the pros and cons of the proposition can be found in the book…

"Perhaps the prime value of this book is the accompanying DVD that lists more than 1,700 primary source documents…

"This is the seminal study of the Cold War personnel processes of the Army… a book that any professional should purchase, study and refer to for a thorough understanding of the witches' brew that is endearingly referred to as the personnel system."

— Army Magazine, December 2006. Reviewed by LT. GEN. RICHARD G. TREFRY, USA Ret., served as Army Inspector General from 1978 to 1983

"The authors have undertaken the difficult task of identifying potential conflicts and attempting to distill information gathered into a manageable list of factors and logical deductions with which to develop policy and strategy."

— Military Review

"… In the new world order of the 21st century, internal ethnic conflicts dominate crises around the globe… With the rise of global communications, global economics, and worldwide interests, it behooves the intelligence community to be able to predict when a crisis will erupt. The authors introduce a model that enables analysts to track and predict ethnic conflicts. The model is quite comprehensive. The criteria, and subsections of each, provide a systematic approach for predicting the outbreak of ethnic violence… The best part of the book is the four case studies. In two of the case studies, Yugoslavia and South Africa, the authors conduct a historical review of events to prove their model. In the remaining two, Ethiopia and Saudi Arabia, the authors predict the possibility of ethnic conflict becoming a reality. The Yugoslavia case study is one of the most comprehensive I have seen. The South African case is also well done. Those who conduct case-study analyses might find these sections particularly useful."

— Parameters

"In this book, edited by Thomas Szayna, a model is outlined that can be used to predict the likelihood of ethnic war. While the intended audience is the United States intelligence community, it is likely that political analysts and scholars elsewhere may also find it useful… On the whole, the book achieves what it sets out to do-helping political analysts to order their thinking when observing a political landscape… The caveat to be borne in mind is that the model only supports, but does not take away the necessity of detailed knowledge about the particular country under review."

— African Security Review

"An edited collection that attempts t set out a model for anticipating the outbreak of ethnic conflict and the potential for conflict across states… [it is] more thorough in its methodology and application than others, and academics and students outside the intended readership may get something out of the book."

— >Journal of Refugee Studies

"Through the development of a 'process model' of ethnic mobilization and ethnic challenge to statist power, this book aims at the long-range assessment of probable ethnic strife rather than with forecasting imminent ethnic violence and state breakdown. Identifying Potential Ethnic Conflict is a scholarly work which has much to say to those grappling with the problem of prediction in ethnically-divided states… The book is well-written and concise. It does an admirable job in fulfilling its tasks of identifying what to look for, focusing on the need for certain analytical resources, and synthesizing existing literature. With supplemental readings, this book might serve as the foundation of a course on ethnic conflict. . ."

— Nationalities Papers

"…a well-written, technically well-executed and balanced analysis of the characteristics and impact of immigration on California's economy over the past three and one-half decades."

— Journal of American Ethnic History

"The thoroughness of the RAND report, combined with the fact that it chimes in with mounting worries about 'poorly regulated' immigration, ensures that it will have a big impact."

— The Economist

"…this book is a rich resource for the researcher on immigration to the USA, well-illustrated with many graphs and tables, as well as a splendid bibiography…Here, as elsewhere, a proactive policy for the economic integration of immigrants, as soon as possible, is recommended and the study ends with a call for better public education about immigration issues. Much of this research and its outcomes is very relevant for the British, and the European, scenario of immigration today."

— Immigration & Nationality Law & Practice

"Immigration in a Changing Economy is clearly an important work…the report provides the most detailed picture of California's immigrant population produced to date. Moreover, [the authors'] general observation that immigration should not be seen as inherently positive or negative, but instead that its effects are dependent on the volume and characteristics of the immigrants, is unassailable. Anyone seeking to better understand the implications of immigration for California, the largest and most important state in the country, would do well to read this book."

— Immigration Review

"A fact-filled sober, and sane analysis of California's immigrants."

— Foreign Affairs

"Berends offers a refreshingly frank evaluation of an ambitious effort -- the system-wide application of whole school reform models…This RAND report would be a good resource for policy discussion of the strengths and weaknesses of whole school reform and is timely for current political discussions."

— CHOICE Magazine

"RAND associates overview the first three years of a whole-school reform project launched in 1991 by the nonprofit New American Schools. Includes studies used in RAND's evaluation of the project and methodological notes."

— Reference & Research Book News

"RAND, a nonprofit policy and decision-making research institution, presents results of an examination of state-level achievement scores on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) tests given in mathematics and reading from 1990 through 1996. The report develops three measures that compare state performance: raw achievement scores, estimates of score differences for students with similar family characteristics, and estimated improvement trends… The report indicates that preschool programs and small class size improve long-term student achievement… The message of this report is that public education is reformable. Recommended for undergraduates, graduate students, researchers, faculty, and professionals."

— CHOICE Magazine

"…this careful report examines the evidence from student scores on the National Assessment of Educational Progress tests given in math and reading at the fourth- and eighth-grade levels between 1990 and 1996…The merit of this study is that it covers new ground by giving new interpretation of the empirical evidence…This work will be of particular interest to policymakers, the state judiciary, and school administrators, and parents will find sections on family variables helpful. Recommended for all academic and public libraries."

— Library Journal

"RAND … presents results of an examination of state-level achievement scores on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) tests given in mathematics and reading from 1990 through 1996. The report develops three measures that compare state performance: raw achievement scores, estimates of score differences for students with similar family characteristics, and estimated improvement trends… The message of this report is that public education is reformable. Recommended for undergraduates, graduate students, researchers, faculty, and professionals."

— CHOICE Magazine/The Association of College and Research Libraries

"Although some of its passages will be of more interest to philosophers than to soldiers, In Athena's Camp is an interesting book. It should be read by anyone in the special-operations community who is interested in information operations, especially those in PSYOP, a field that is only beginning to better use technology to form network-hierarchy hybrids in order to act faster than our competitors."

— Special Warfare

"Typically thorough RAND fashion…the authors ponder, correctly, whether a rigid, military command structure can adapt to the decentralized organizational restructuring that Net war will demand…The book correctly points out the importance of creating new doctrines within which to place the new technological developments. After all, to be effective, information must be combined with a coherent strategy, consistent organization and proper management of resources."

— IntellectualCapital.com

"I enjoyed reading the book In Athena's Camp with its hard-hitting ideas and historical images of tactical warfare down the ages…a real eye-opener…I found the book to be thought provoking and an excellent reference guide on the use of information in warfare - past, present and possible future. Anyone interested in military history and cyberspace should read this book."

— Science and Technology Journal

"Arquilla and Ronfeldt's contributions provide the most interesting conceptual meat of the book…They propose that 'information is a bigger, deeper concept than traditionally presumed and should be treated as a basic, underlying, and overarching dynamic of all theory and practice about warfare in the information-age.' This view of information as having a 'transcendent, if not independent, role' leads them into fascinating discussions of the nature of information and knowledge."

— Information, Communication, Society

"This lively and highly readable survey of trends in information warfare provides an excellent overview of an expanding field in military science. The editors, John Arquilla of the Naval Postgraduate School and David Ronfeldt of the RAND Corporation, are well versed in the complex theories of information warfare, and they render the subject highly approachable to those not fully engaged in the debate…it represents one-stop shopping for any serious military analyst seeking to understand the current language, trend lines, and tensions in the discussion of information warfare."

— Naval War College Review

"Some scholars can always be counted upon to deliver thoughtful, penetrating studies that address the meat of any issue. Jonathan Pollack and Richard Yang are among the best of these, and they have assembled a cast of equal quality for this volume of RAND conference papgers. This superb collection of chapters by carefully selected security experts offers regional and national perspectives on the dominant power in Asia - China. The focus of the conference was on the effects of Chinese power - economic, political and military - on China's neighbours. The title In China's Shadow is particularly apropos, since the looming, big-bellied dragon casts a long shadow over continental and archipelagic Asia. Perspectives from Russia, Taiwan (two particularly insightful papers), Australia, the United States, Hong Kong, South Asia, Japan, Korea and Southeast Asia are included."

— The China Journal

"The Copernican Revolution, which kicked humanity off the center of the universe, had a jolting effect on the Catholic Church, which took a long time to accept this fact. Likewise, it is not easy for the hegemonic West to reconcile itself to the fact that non-Western countries can also make and explode nuclear weapons. In this context it is useful and necessary not just to recognize that science and technological capabilities transcend national and ethnic boundaries, but also to understand the cultural, political, and psychological factors that provoke countries like India to expend significant chunks of their resources to make nuclear weapons… In this thoroughly researched scholarly book, based on extensive reading and interviews with key people, RAND researcher Tellis offers a remarkably cogent and factual account of the context of India's joining the Nuclear Club. Certainly informative and insightful, this work will be very valuable to US planners working in this new world. Upper-division undergraduates and up."

— CHOICE Magazine

"The great value of Ashley Tellis's work is that it seeks to look at the logic that propelled Prime Minister Vajpayee's decision to break the 24-year old self-imposed embargo and order the Shakti tests, and offers an analysis of the course that India is likely to undertake in the coming years… Tellis's work has benefited the Indian government's permission to meet a cross-section of serving officials, including those directly involved in the nuclear weapons programme. This unprecedented access, combined with Tellis's systematic trawling of published literature have given this work a definitive quality evidenced also by its sheer bulk."

— Strategic Affairs

"There is an impressive comprehensiveness about the opus… It is essential reading for all those who are interested in understanding the important and difficult choices facing India."

— Frontline

"Tellis has done a great job by producing an excellent, timely, very detailed and objective study of India's nuclear logic, strategic requirements, and possible choices concerning the nuclear programme…"

— Contemporary Southeast Asia

"… This is a lucid account of the likely evolution of India's nuclear-weapons policy by an adviser to the American ambassador to India."

— The Economist

"For those prompted to look deeper into [the nuclear future of South Asia], there is no better guide than Ashley Tellis's brilliant book India's Emerging Nuclear Posture. Drawing on years of research at the RAND Corporation and countless interviews with Indian civilian and military officials, he provides a deeper and more thorough analysis of India's strategic priorities and capabilities than the Indian government itself likely has produced. India cognoscenti must read this book; everyone interested in post-Cold War approaches to nuclear deterrence should read it. In his foray through India's nuclear options, Tellis cuts through the jungle of accepted thought about nuclear deterrence and exposes the thin soil on which the cold War model stands."

— Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, by George Perkovich

"What are the characteristics of India's future nuclear arsenal and operational posture? This is the problem to which Ashley Tellis supplies a persuasive answer: India will seek what Tellis calls a 'force-in-being'…Tellis's brilliant and richly documented analysis is worth reading…A must-read for South Asia watchers, this book deserves a wider audience. In a time when many do not question the claimed security imperatives that justify possession of nuclear weapons, Tellis offers a hard-headed, detailed analysis of the Indo-Pakistan and Sino-Indian military relationships… Going further, Tellis persuasively questions long-standing US (and Russian) premises regarding the types of forces and operational postures required for deterrence."

— Survival, by George Perkovich

"…Ashley Tellis's India's Emerging Nuclear Posture is unlikely to be surpassed in the near future as the definitive account of the country's evolving nuclear strategy. It scores on all three features necessary for a study to be seen as making a significant contribution to knowledge: imaginative use of new sources, rigour of analysis and originality of interpretation."

— The Indian Express

"Buoyed by the reputation of the RAND Corporation and the rigorous research of American academia comes another book on India's emerging nuclear policy. Ashley Tellis, an American of Indian origin and currently, the adviser to the U.S. ambassador in India, begins with India's overt nuclear tests in 1998 and analyses its nuclear ambitions. Disagreeing with the government's view that India is a nuclear weapon state in the true sense, Tellis senses that the government is at a crossroad of indecision, pulled in different directions by a historical commitment to disarmament, economic constraints and world pressure on the one hand, and the dynamics of nuclear strategy and stability on the other."

— Outlook India

"The events of September 11 have made most Indian strategic analysts forget the biggest security story of the past 10 years up to that point: India's nuclear programme and the tests at Pokhran in May 1998. Ashley Tellis' new book should get us over this amnesia and rekindle the conversation on matters nuclear in this country… India's Emerging Nuclear Posture: Between Recessed Deterrence and Ready Arsenal is a classic of its kind and will adorn the shelves of strategic studies' libraries for many years… [It] been long awaited both in the US and in South Asia, and it must be said that the book does not disappoint… This stone-cold, sober book is a must read for pro- and anti-nuclear groups in India. Pro-nuclear readers will find much here to clarify their thinking on the nature of India's posture and its adequacy. Anti-nuclear readers will get a better idea of what direction Indian military planners are likely to take in the years to come and how to structure a systematic assessment of the Indian programme in the future. If you are interested in India's nuclear choices, this is one of two indispensable intellectual companions and guides-how ironic that they should both come from Americans."

— India Today

"With its two nuclear tests in 1998, India provoked bitter international criticism and retaliatory tests from Pakistan. … Until recently no systematic book-length treatment of the subject was available. Now Ashley Tellis' India's Emerging Nuclear Posture - carefully researched, meticulously documented, and tightly argued - ably fills this void. It is not merely a tour d'horizon of the likely future of the Indian nuclear weapons program, but a tour de force on the subject of nuclear proliferation in general…"

— Foreign Affairs

" 'India's Emerging Nuclear Posture' is a wonderful compendium of the public record on India's nuclear policy. Even though the book is primarily an intellectual audit of India's current and future nuclear posture, it has extensive chapters on the technical characteristics of India's nuclear arsenal—fissile material inventory, delivery vehicles and so on. Meticulously documented, detailed and systematically argued, its value as a reference book can scarcely be overstated. This book should be on the shelf of anyone interested in India's nuclear weapons policy."

— Science and Global Security

"… An excellent introduction, especially for the non-specialist reader to recent developments in Indonesia… Provides a balanced, well-researched and succinct analysis of political developments from the fall of Soeharto to the later part of the Wahid government… The authors must be commended for putting so much useful information and analysis into so few pages."

— Contemporary Southeast Asia

A "useful look … at the impact of the information revolution on warfare. The RAND volume is heavier on civilian technology than on its military applications, but it raises at least one central issue: the 'de-layering' of structured, hierarchical organizations."

— Foreign Affairs

Michael Swaine, author of the outstanding The Military & Political Succession in China (1992), and his fellow RAND analyst Ashley Tellis have written a very good book about Chinese security in both historical and future perspective. It will certainly be of interest to the policy community, as it should be to all who work on Asian security…an impressive study of China's grand strategy, and it is worthy of serious examination.

— Naval War College Review

"This is an impressive work. It sets out China's grand strategy as manifest in the entire sweep of history, from the Han Dynasty to fifty years of the People's Republic…This is an excellent introduction to China's past as precedent to present and prospective foreign policies."

— The China Quarterly

"Swaine and Tellis have written a well-balanced book which merits reading well beyond the circle of those interested in US-China security policies."

— New Delhi World Affairs

"A sober and useful review of Chinese strategy."

— Foreign Affairs

"By going beyond the narrow contemporary perspective and locating their discussions of China's grand strategy in a meta-historical analytical context, Swaine and Tellis undoubtedly make a major contribution to our understanding of China's current strategic behavior…particularly at a time when China's international relations community and policy establishment are in search of China's grand strategy in the post-Cold War international context. Even more importantly, Swaine and Tellis have opened a wider space for discussion of the idea of history in strategic and security studies, and more broadly in international relations."

— Contemporary Southeast Asia

"This generous and varied compendium of citations goes far beyond relatively standard [terrorist] messages to give a remarkably in-depth view of what jihadis are saying not only to the world, but to each other. Author David Aaron focuses primarily on al-Qaeda and related groups… His sources are quotations from the books, manuals, fatwas web postings and other written and oral discourse from jihadi leaders, as well as some direct quotations from Muslim holy texts, especially where they are used in justification or explanation of acts of jihad… It should be noted that the author makes clear in his preface, introduction and elsewhere in the text that the reader must separate between Muslim jihadists and terrorists, and Muslims in general, an important distinction for all readers to keep in mind.

‘In Their Own Words: Voices of Jihad';, is a unique compilation of materials that are difficult for even the professional reader to access. The book will be an excellent addition to the library of any student of Jihadism, Terrorism, the history of Islam, and Middle Eastern studies, as well as anyone with an interest in the current global political picture. A picture seen by jihadists which indicates that the current imbalance of superpowers caused by the fall of the Soviet Union indicates that we are in a time of transition, and that a change will be wrought by them in the name of their god."

— Journal of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, Volume 5, issue 1, 2008

"Compiled by RAND's director of [the Center for] Middle East Public Policy, David Aaron, [this] book provides a wide variety of views, stories, and justifications by individuals who promote terrorism in the name of Islam. While terrorism may have always been a tactic of warfare, seldom have its authors been so well documented. Libraries and bookstores can't go wrong with [this] volume. [It is] indispensable for historians, journalists, academics, and policy makers"

— Foreword Magazine, Editor's Notes, August 2008

"Economic analyses can help early intervention research inform policy and practice. This book represents a balanced, thoughtful analysis of such programs, including illustrative economic analyses, that will be an enormously useful resource for policy planners and early intervention researchers."

— David Olds, PhD, The Kempe Prevention Research Center for Family and Child Health, Colorado

"In the most comprehensive study to date of programs designed to improve the lives of poor children, RAND has found that investments in the first five years of childhood yield substantial and lasting benefits."

— Los Angeles Times

"Overall, her book engenders thoughtful consideration of gender constructs in U.S. military culture, with a special focus on individuals who are generally 'invisible' and whose voices are unheard."

— Armed Forces & Society

"Harrell's book is not a traditional academic volume; it reads more like an interesting set of stories about three different women. Based on life-history interviews, the stories relate the experiences and perceptions of three spouses of junior enlisted Army men… The stories are quite moving and give voice to women too often ignored."

— Gender & Society

"Invisible Women confronts an issue crucial to military morale and readiness: the increasing number of married volunteers who today hold junior ranks historically filled by bachelor draftees, people who must struggle with low salaries, life on often-isolated bases, and 24-7 schedules distinctly unsuited to family life. But in the process of addressing this olive-drab dilemma, the author also opens new windows onto a host of other issues—abortion, work, debt, welfare, upward mobility—that resonate far beyond the military world. And this slim paperback illuminates not only policy, but humanity as well."

— National Journal

"…a study—unusual for a RAND analyst (or anyone else, for that matter)--of the often blissless married lives at the very bottom of the Army's chain of command."

— The Atlantic Online

An article about Invisible Women appeared in the July 16, 2001 issue of TIME magazine. Click here to view: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1101010716-166675,00.html

"There are many women who support the military community whose lives and work go virtually unnoticed—wives of military personnel. Invisible Women addresses this issue. …Harrell hopes that presenting these voices will have an overall effect on military policy toward enlisted families."

— Feminist Academic Press Column

"Invisible Women is an objective, balanced and thoughtful book portraying the real lives of young enlisted families. People who aren't familiar with the military—and those who think they are—should read it and learn."

— Washington Times

"Invisible Women is highly recommended reading for anyone considering family life within the context of military service, women's studies groups, and military life reference collections."

— The Midwest Book Review

"A compilation of extensive research and an excellent sociological study… Anyone in the military, especially those in positions of authority, will find Invisible Women a useful tool. Military leaders can take a glimpse into the personal lives of their troops, seeing just how they have to struggle and how families are impacted. They will find the women in the book both depict and challenge the stereotypes. While the military doesn't 'issue' spouses, it's important to recognize spouses as a part of the military even if they don't wear the uniform. Invisible Women reaffirms that."

— militarylifestyle.com

WINNER — 2008 PROSE Award — Clinical Medicine
The American Publishers Award for Professional and Scholarly Excellence

"Must Read. In this report, the RAND Corporation discusses psychological and cognitive injuries from war, their consequences, and services to assist recovery"

— Council on Foreign Relations

"The wounds described in ‘Invisible Wounds of War'; are, of course, the mental health problems of military personnel; specifically, the book summarises a study of US personnel deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan … Its strength lies in a comprehensive and clearly defined review that is well distilled into key facts… Overall, this is not the easiest of reads, but it is doubtful one would expect a cocktail of mental health, geopolitics, and health economics to be so. What it does well is advance a set of problems, attempt to quantify them, and to suggest how the state may be able to address them. This has to be a core text for anybody in the field of military mental health, its lessons are universally applicable."

— The Lancet, Vol 372, November 15, 2008

"[This volume] covers political, ethnic, and demographic issues, and predicts economic trajectories of growth. Clear and to-the-point, the book finishes with a set of policy recommendations that include discouraging ethnic groups from violently opposing the regime and encouraging the development of markets as the buying power of the electorate translates into less control by the regime. It also recommends that the US not oppose Iran's accession to the WTO. Libraries and bookstores can't go wrong with [this] slender volume. [It is] indispensable for historians, journalists, academics, and policy makers"

— Foreword Magazine, Editor's Notes, August 2008

"…Written by four of the most perceptive analysts of the Iranian security system… It is well worth reading."

— Iranian Studies

A "good volume on U.S.-Japan relations… a brief, comprehensive report."

— Foreign Affairs

"Very readable… League of Airmen is the most balanced survey of airpower in the Gulf War… If I had to pick one to read, I would choose this one. I recommend it to anyone who is interested in the study of modern warfare."

— Airpower Journal

"A useful and generally balanced one-volume account of the air war in the Gulf."

— Foreign Affairs

"What makes [this] book especially provocative is how the author structures his analysis of each of the five post-Cold War conflicts. Johnson compares the differences in perceived 'lessons learned' between the air and ground communities. In each case, the communities drew self-serving lessons based on their service cultures. In Kosovo, for example, while the ground-centric view concluded that the threat of a ground invasion was decisive, the air-centric view assessed the strategic air attacks as the key to victory. Johnson also offers a more balanced and integrated assessment of the lessons learned for each conflict… His discussion of these concepts is lucid, instructive, exemplified by his cases, and another reason his text will be useful in professional military education."

— Strategic Studies Quarterly, Summer 2008

"American Airmen have been disagreeing with American Soldiers and Marines over the relative utility of airpower as opposed to ground power since World War I. This longstanding debate has rarely changed opinions on either side, despite the emphasis on jointness mandated by the 1986 Goldwater- Nichols Department of Defense Reorganization Act. Instead, discussions over the years have largely consisted of the participants talking past one another.

"David Johnson's Learning Large Lessons sheds some long needed light on this debate… Air Force chief General T. Michael Moseley has added the book to his professional reading list. Insofar as evidence and balanced analysis can be brought to bear on the ever-divisive issue of modern airpower versus 'boots on the ground', Learning Large Lessons is a gem. It deserves to be read—thoughtfully—by Airmen, Sailors, Soldiers, and Marines alike."

— Joint Force Quarterly, Third Quarter 2007

"It is an enormous challenge to capture a rapidly evolving transformation process in the pages of a printed book. It is even harder to position that book in front of the underlying change with the appropriate recommendations to influence its direction. In spite of those difficulties, Lightning Over Water provides readers with a look at an array of rapid-reaction challenges and their impact on organizational structure, tactics, equipment and emerging technologies… The book contributes to the vital discussions surrounding the Army in the first decade of the 21st century."

— Army Magazine

"… A detailed analysis of the lessons drawn from Kargil… It assumes a working knowledge of Indian and Pakistani relations in general and the Kargil Crisis in particular, it remains a useful examination of the mindset of both sides which appears to have followed and prevailed in its aftermath."

— International Affairs

"[This book] offers a program to rehabilitate the security sector — and in the process suggests how devastating for basic public institutions over a decade of violent depredation can be … How should these institutions be structured so as to encourage democratic control and effectiveness at an affordable cost? This study offers a series of useful guidelines, both for Liberia and for the international community and the United States."

— Foreign Affairs, May/June 2008

"This book achieves its goal of providing a policy level discussion of maritime terrorism risk and liability. The liability discussion should be mandatory reading for policy makers, insurers, and private sector maritime business leaders. The qualitative discussion of the components of the risk of maritime terrorism and the discussion of specific scenarios are [also] very useful."

— Journal of Homeland Security and Emergency Management

"Under the auspices of Project Air force, RAND Corporation's Benjamin Lambeth has produced a thought-provoking analysis of America's military space challenges at the beginning of the twenty-first century. Plumbing nearly six decades of Air Force involvement in space, from the late 1940s through release of the Space Commission report in January 2001, he has pinpointed several longstanding conceptual and organizational impediments to more rapid growth of U.S. military space capabilities… The notes and bibliography for Mastering the Ultimate High Ground reveal good use of sources--books, articles, monographs, reports, documents, congressional testimony, oral histories, and unpublished presentations."

— Air Power History

"Drawing on personal experience in the region and a series of interviews with senior TNI leaders, RAND analyst Angel Rabasa and former U.S. Defense Attaché Colonel John Haseman provide a concise primer on the TNI and what the United States might expect in the near future… The study is an excellent factual introduction to current security issues in Indonesia."

— Military Review, June 2004

"This detailed and data-heavy study was commissioned by the US Air Force as part of a larger study of 'collateral damage', or unintentional and incidental damage to non-military targets during combat…The authors offer a number of conclusions, some more expected than others…This is an important study, not least because it is so firmly grounded empirically…One of the most important conclusions is that, for the military, getting the story right is more important than getting it out quickly. Contradictory and inaccurate information can erode credibility, and defeat the purpose of scooping the enemy or beating media deadlines. A second is that non-US audiences are far more likely to believe that civilian casualties result from a callous disregard for life, or even from design, on the part of the United States. There is little the US military could do in its own right to rectify this; it is a problem of perceptions of America more broadly…"

— Survival, April-May 2008

"Just as I began reading this volume, the news media reported from Iraq that the U.S. military had killed 17 men in the village of al-Khalis after mistakenly identifying them as al Qaeda fighters. A few days earlier, seven children had been killed during an air strike by the U.S.-led coalition in Afghanistan on what was believed to be a religious compound and hideout of al Qaeda. Although the authors examine news reporting and public opinion about civilian deaths during military deployments in the past, this book is nevertheless very timely."

— Political Science Quarterly, Winter 2007-08

"Part of a larger study of collateral damage commissioned by the U.S. Air Force, this monograph examines and compares five incidents involving civilian casualties that occurred in recent U.S. wars… Employing quantitative analyses of news reports in elite print and electronic media outlets before and after the incidents and extensive analyses of public opinion polls, the authors sought to determine whether and how the incidents affected U.S. and foreign media reporting and public support.

Their findings, much simplified here, are straightforward. In each case study, civilian casualties received considerable attention in the press and were played up by adversary governments, which sought to use them to erode American support for the wars in question. Whatever the reporting of the press and the bantering of enemy propagandists, however, most Americans appeared to understand that it will never be possible to eliminate all civilian casualties from modern warfare. As in the Vietnam War, although concerned about civilian casualties, they placed far more importance among their own and allied forces…"

— Journal of Military History, October 2007

"The authors address how the US press and public react to civilian deaths during war, arguing that the public is more realistic about casualties during war than conventional wisdom may suggest. Larson and Savych suggest that what matters most for public support of military actions is whether the public and press believe that the military is doing all it can to minimize civilian casualties… Recommended."

— CHOICE, October 2007

"This is a substantial study of the important question of public reactions to incidents in war that result in substantial civilian casualties. After considering the full range of reactions to high-profile incidents in the Gulf War, Kosovo, and the Iraq war, the authors conclude that the public understands the issues and difficulties perfectly well, despite the media's fixation on these incidents and the attempt by adversaries to exploit them. Reactions ultimately depend on whether the public believes that attempts are being made to limit civilian casualties (rather than depending on the number of civilian casualties). The problem, which has become more serious since the main case studies covered in this book, is that foreign audiences may not be so understanding or so ready to trust the U.S. military."

— Foreign Affairs, Sept/October 2007

"As the title implies, the authors set out to rigorously examine what has largely been a hunch of those who support democracy promotion: More open and democratic political systems may not resolve the problem of terrorism, but progressive political change will likely reduce the number of individuals attracted to extremist ideologies and political violence. . . . To their credit, the authors recognize the limitations of their analysis. They cannot really know whether more democracy decreases terrorism because none of their case studies — Egypt, Jordan, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Algeria, and Morocco — are democracies… Still, Kaye et al.'s findings are interesting; they confirm some prevailing notions about the effect democratic change can have on political violence while undermining others … Policymakers, analysts, and other observers of ter¬rorism and the Middle East would be wise to learn the lessons ‘More Freedom, Less Terror?' offers."

— Middle East Journal, Spring 2009

"The strengths of this work are its comprehensiveness, its accuracy, its relevance to existing policy concerns, and its organization of a welter of data (with well-conceived charts bringing needed clarity to complexities such as the diverse Muslim groups in Indonesia)."

— Foreign Affairs, March/April 2005

"RAND has produced an excellent overview and digest of most Islamic movements with special attention to extremist ones… An extremely useful handbook for scholars, journalists, and government officials… The studies are good mix of historical and current factors. Highly recommended. Upper-division undergraduates and above."

— CHOICE Magazine, June 2005

OUTSTANDING - "Comprehensive study of the Muslim World including countries of the Mahgreb, Turkey, Iran, Pakistan, India, Central and South Asia and Nigeria. A post 9/11 examination of the trends and historic factors that contribute to the Islamic extremism and divisions between the Arab Muslim and non-Arab Muslim communities as well as the world wide diaspora. This book presents the results of innovative research and indepth assessment of a diverse and complex people and ideology little understood in the U.S."

— Recommended by a committee from the American Association of School Librarians (AASL) and the Public Library Association (PLA) for the 2005 Guide to University Press Books Selected for Public and Secondary School Libraries

"As an operational assessment of Allied Force this book is a sine qua non. It is detailed, accurate, and judicious."

— Contemporary Security Policy

"As the research on NATO's use of force in Kosovo grows, Lambeth provides a useful contribution to the literature… Advanced undergraduates to specialists will benefit from this impressively researched study."

— CHOICE Magazine

"… The Lambeth volume offers a particularly impressive overview of operational and strategic implications for future warfare…"

— Foreign Affairs

"Benjamin Lambeth's 300-page book on the Kosovo war combines concise history, sound strategic analysis, military facts and figures, and a detailed assessment of how NATO's air war was conducted and what it should tell us about future conflict. In all these areas, Lambeth's writing and research is strong."

— Survival

"… Lambeth and Hosmer [author of The Conflict Over Kosovo: Why Milosevic Decided to Settle When He Did] have reviewed the literature on both sides of the Atlantic, as well as conducted interviews with some key NATO and Serb leaders, and have provided the most authoritative look yet at what went on, and why, in this significant and unusual war."

— The Journal of Military History

"NATO's Air War for Kosovo: A Strategic and Operational Assessment, by RAND researcher Benjamin S. Lambeth, provides one of the most comprehensive reviews to date of Operation Allied Force. As advertised, the study focuses on the air war's strategic and operational objectives. However, Lambeth goes beyond the traditional perspectives to provide the reader with an understanding that although Yugoslavian President Slobodan Milosevic may have capitulated following 78 days of bombing, that result in no way should be interpreted as an unqualified endorsement of the use of air power to resolve regional conflicts. In fact, Lambeth characterizes the use of air power during the operation as 'suboptimal'… The greatest value of this work lies in Lambeth's examination of political and strategic perspectives that may be of use to policymakers conducting such operations in the future."

— Parameters

"In this volume, the US expert on air power, Benjamin S. Lambeth, has produced a detailed and convincing exposition of the progress and achievements of NATO's 78-day war against Yugoslavia in 1999. He sets out the course of the war in great detail, and the book is likely to remain a foundation work in all future assessments of the conflict. It is, in effect as near an official history of the war as we are likely to get for a long time… This fine book will be a starting point for all rational evaluations of NATO's victorious campaign. It will also be an important reference point in future discussions about NATO enlargement, as presumably the administrative and political problems involved in achieving consensus for action in future wars will not be eased by the admission of new members."

— International Affairs

Many of the author's conclusions are right on the mark and should be taken seriously by U.S. and NATO politicians and military leaders."

— Proceedings

"The most complete treatment of the Kosovo air campaign I have read. Many important issues and questions are discussed, as well as useful insights for any future NATO peacekeeping operations."

— Henry A. Kissinger, Secretary of State, 1973-1977

"Ben Lambeth's incisive overview brings together, in a tight, well-structured account, all that we now know about the NATO air campaign. His case that NATO won not because of but in spite of its chosen strategy is made in detail and exhaustively-and it is made well in a straightforward and highly readable style."

— Ivo H. Daalder, Senior Fellow, The Brookings Institution

"In this superb work on an enormously complicated political and military undertaking, Ben Lambeth has once again shown that he is the foremost American writer and analyst on the subject of air power. The manner in which he identifies the issues and sets the record straight makes for a great read. Absolutely a must for political leaders and military professionals of all services."

— General Ronald R. Fogleman, USAF (Ret.) Chief of Staff, U.S. Air Force, 1994-1997

"Comprehensive, deep, insightful, and objective."

— William J. Perry, Secretary of Defense, 1994-1997

"… Offers an interesting and well documented approach to understanding NATO enlargement and what the next round might mean for the alliance."

— Parameters, Winter 2004

"Szayna's analysis is thorough, accurate, and accompanied by quality judgments throughout. Although it remains relatively short, it avoids fallacies of omission such as oversimplification or special pleading, and fallacies of assumption such as begging the question or misusing analogies. It succeeds at identifying the key drivers and factors that will determine NATO's enlargement choices. I recommend this book to laypersons and professionals alike."

— The Journal of Slavic Military Studies

"The first impression this book makes on the casual reader is that it is a timely publication of great topical interest. The attacks of Sept 11 on the World Trade Center and Pentagon have generated interest throughout the world in the way networked technologies are affecting the waging of conflicts around our globe, be they ideological or military. The fact that the writing of the papers preceded the attacks of last September does not diminish their timeliness; on the contrary, these events throw many of the points discussed into relief… [This book is] a comprehensive and well-structured volume that manages to cover many, if not all, aspects of the subject at hand."

— International Journal of Law and Information Technology

"The book is an important contribution to an ongoing dialogue about the nature of non-state actors operating via 'netwars'. In that sense, it is valuable in terms for its implications for the current war on terrorism as well as a potential guide for future state/non-state interactions. It makes the reader more actively consider the future of the state and its ability to meet its obligations in the years to come."

— Terrorism and Political Violence

"Networks and Netwars offers not only a compelling explanation of why organizations such as al Qaeda are so difficult to defeat, but also unusual insight into how government may seek to prevent attacks such as happened on Sept. 11."

— San Francisco Examiner

"This is an interesting and important book on a fascinating subject… All of this is interesting descriptive material, and much of it is clearly written and well organized… Recommended for military and Internet collections. Upper-division undergraduates and above."

— CHOICE Magazine

"Belying its title, Networks and Netwar is not targeted at technophiles. In fact, this is an excellent text for many reading audiences: social scientists, computer scientists, policy makers, military leaders or anyone interested in emerging threats. All can benefit from the depth of research and breadth of perspective that are adroitly combined in this accessible text…

"RAND researchers Arquilla and Ronfeldt are among the elite futurists who have consistently anticipated the global security implications of the information age. Like Toffler and Kurzweil, they peer into the future of the information age and describe how to prepare for a technology-enabled world…

"This is the kind of text service colleges must embrace. While many individuals and institutions continue to sort through post-cold war confusion, Arquilla and Ronfeldt look ahead, pointing to threats on the horizon. Their revelations suggest an unprecedented need for changing the way that we think about organizations and conflict…

"This is not a book about computer networks. The focus is on people and networking concepts, elucidated within a framework of well-documented historical facts…

"The authors describe netwar as Janus-like, having two faces, one with potential for good, and one with potential for evil. Network power harnessed for social good can empower citizens to realize democratic ideals. Harnessed for evil, network power can enable global terrorism and widespread insurgent violence…

"As the authors were completing the text during the fall of 2001, their 'theory struck home with a vengeance'. The events of September 11 prompted Arquilla and Ronfeldt to note their prescience [in an Afterword]. They warned in Chapter 2 that 'Information-age terrorists like al Qaeda might pursue a war paradigm, developing capabilities to strike multiple targets from multiple directions, in swarming campaigns that extend beyond an incident or two'. Their predictions were frighteningly prescient…

"Arquilla and Ronfeldt's profound observations are a welcome challenge to traditional thinking about technology and conflict. Their precise extension of the definition of war is timely. This book is sure to influence both military and political leaders."

— Army Magazine

"…A useful collection of pieces on how contemporary communications shape nontraditional forms of warfare. The essays include chapters on the tactics of anti-World Trade Organization protesters during the riots in Seattle in 1999; the Internet and international crime; 'hacktivism' (the convergence of hacking with activism); and the rise of what the authors term 'netwar'. Before September 11, readers might have been naturally inclined to pooh-pooh such talk of loose networks of terrorists, criminals, and militant subversives. But the peculiar structure of al-Qaeda vindicates much of the argument here--as the editors point out in a postscript written shortly after the terrorist attacks."

— Foreign Affairs

"…The relevancy of the book is horrifically uncanny; It was finished just before the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington, and includes an Afterword from Arquilla and Ronfeldt examining the terrorist attacks… Anyone who is not afraid to challenge their own thinking about how the war on terrorism is to be fought will find 'Networks and Netwars' thought-provoking and eye-opening, to say the least."

— King Features Weekly Service

"Arquilla and Ronfeldt are a rare breed: strategic thinkers of the information age. In Networks and Netwars they grasp an emerging reality still lost on those preoccupied with the geostrategic balance of power: War in the future will be waged by leaderless networks that can come together quickly out of cyberspace to 'swarm' an opponent. Like few others, they recognize that the flipside of the celebrated global civil society born of the Internet is the 'uncivil society' of terrorists and criminals who will use the same means to spread havoc and instability."

— Nathan Gardels, editor, New Perspectives Quarterly, and author of The Changing Global Order

"Rushing into an increasingly complex world, we need ways to probe the road ahead, to find the quicksand and pitfalls before falling in. Arquilla and Ronfeldt have taken on this hard task, searching for technological threats to a society that has grown reliant on data-based infrastructure. In this collection of cogent articles, by experts in the field of Netwar, they clarify some of the dangers that await us - and reveal possible ways to avoid them."

— David Brin, author of The Postman, Earth, and The Transparent Society: Will Technology Force Us to Choose Between Freedom and Privacy?

RECOMMENDED READING
"Whatever weaponry they employ, contemporary terrorists are using the diffuse, often leaderless, organizational and operational approaches outlined in Networks and Netwars…[T]hese essays valuably set forth 'an emerging form of conflict [and crime]…in which the protagonists use network forms of organization and related doctrines…attuned to the information age.'"

— U.S. News & World Report

"Two RAND analysts continue their leading-edge thinking on Networks and Netwars… Couldn't be more timely."

— Future Survey

"'Networks and Netwars: The Future of Terror, Crime and Militancy', published by RAND and prepared for the Office of the Secretary of Defense, provides an in-depth look into the ways the 'bad guys'— from terrorists to street gangs— organize their networks and utilize technology…

"The book begins with a descriptions of what the word 'netwar' means, and it is more than a group that uses the Internet in its battles. Rather, editors John Arquilla and David Ronfeldt explain, netwar is different from ordinary war because of 'the networked organizational structure of its practitioners—with many groups actually being leaderless— and the suppleness in their ability to come together quickly in swarming attacks'. Think Osama bin Laden's network of terrorist cells…

"Although it is not the only component of netwars, advanced technology can play an important role within networks. In one of the book's most timely chapters, contributors Michele Zanini and Sean J.A. Edwards examine the way networked terrorist organizations operate and the way they utilize technology…

"But networks shouldn't just be associated with terrorists. The editors explain that networks can be used to effect social change as much as they can be used to terrorize. One such example was the 1999 protests of the World Trade Organization meetings in Seattle…

"Besides the chapters on terrorism and the Seattle protests, 'Networks and Netwars' features examinations of organized crime, gangs and street-level netwars, cyber-activism, social netwars in Mexico and the Internet as a tool for influencing foreign policy. Networks, the editors write, are going to be 'the next major form of organization' in our society. 'Networks and Netwars' is an effective tool for people who want to understand them."

— NationalJournal.com

"For the better part of a decade, John Arquilla and David Ronfeldt have been arguing that non-governmental organisations utilising network forms of organisation are emerging as the key competitors to nation states and other hierarchically organised power centres in the post-modern information age. On 11 September 2001, they received an unwanted but nonetheless dramatic endorsement of their view that netwar is the most serious security challenge facing the United States and its allies. Largely written before the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, their latest anthology exposes the essential elements of netwar doctrine and enabling technology that allowed al-Qaeda to exploit the vulnerabilities of a military and economic superpower by asymmetrical means."

— Survival

"The book offers important insights into designs for comprehensive reform… Appropriate for graduate students and researchers interested in school reform."

— CHOICE Magazine

"Written for an audience with a good background in the subject, this work nevertheless provides enough introductory material that it can be read on its own. Undoubtedly of interest to educational administrators and policymakers; recommended for all academic libraries."

— Library Journal

"There is much in this collection of essays to inform and to provoke discussion."

— Journal of Strategic Studies

"An important book."

— Foreign Affairs

"'New Challenges, New Tools for Defense Decisionmaking' is another quality product from the folks at RAND. This edited work of Stuart Johnson, Martin Libicki, and Gregory Treverton provides new techniques and tools for defense planning. Drawing on a series of RAND studies, the book outlines advanced analysis methodologies for strategic planning. The 13 papers that constitute the book present the reader with a number of advanced decisionmaking techniques, including coping with uncertainty, incorporating information technology, exploratory modeling, and what RAND terms 'day after methodology'. This is a must-read for defense planners, policymakers, and those interested in futures assessment and strategic planning."

— Parameters, Autumn 2003

"This monograph does a wonderful job of succinctly packaging simple truths into a very readable volume. ‘New Division of Labor' should be required reading for military leaders and civilian Department of Defense (DoD) policymakers. Have America's political and military leaders properly positioned the DoD to meet all of its security challenges as they pursue the national strategy of promoting freedom and democracy in all cultures? … [This book] does well as a primer for examining which direction the defense establishment should take to meet America's security challenges beyond Iraq."

— Strategic Studies Quarterly

"A first rate book that is not only the first study of its kind, but will become the starting point for all future analyses of Omani foreign policy. This work should serve as a model for much needed studies of the foreign affairs of other Gulf states. Highly recommended."

— Middle East Journal

"Those interested in Oman and the region will be grateful for Kechichian's thorough and informative study."

— Middle East Policy

"An extremely valuable contribution to our understanding of the contemporary Gulf by documenting Oman's foreign policy."

— Gulf States Newsletter

"This volume is a reliable guide to the country's foreign policy… On balance, the country's recent history is a success story, and one will better understand the achievement after reading this book… One of the few books on Oman in English, this volume is a reliable guide to the country's foreign policy … the country's recent history is a success story, and one will better understand the achievement after reading this book."

— Foreign Affairs

"Goes a long way toward filling the gap in our knowledge of the domestic and external dynamics of contemporary Oman… Highly recommended for Middle East specialists and students of foreign policy."

— Library Journal

"An excellent resource for anyone wanting to know more about this remarkable country… The RAND Corporation is noted for the quality of its research and Oman and the World is no exception"

— The Washington Report on Middle East Affairs

"Una compendiosa e completa monografia che risale alle origini dello Stato-nazione di Oman e traccia un quadro preciso degli orientamenti di politica estera del sultano, rilevandone l'aspetto realistico, modernista e indipendente nella valutazione dei problemi della zona e nelle relazioni bilaterali con la penisola araba, il Golfo, i paesi occidentali e le Nazioni Unite."

— Politica Internazionale

"As Joe Kechichian, an experienced observer of the Gulf based at RAND, notes, there has been remarkably little attention paid to this unique foreign policy. His book is the first serious attempt to do so. It will stand as a useful narrative and source of documentation for some time to come… In all, Oman and the World is a useful, and unique, summary of Oman's foreign relations which should be required reference material for all interested in the Gulf."

— Middle East International

"This monograph succinctly summarizes lessons learned again and again in Malaya, Vietnam, Algeria, El Salvador, Nicaragua, and other conflicts in the post-World War Two erra. In six short chapters, Long constructs what is essentially a paradigm for the conduct of counterinsurgency (COIN)… It is of great importance that the lessons summarized in this monograph be incorporated in pre-deployment training so that the actions of US combatants do not become counter-productive to the overall effort (witness the lasting impact of the 2004–2004 Abu Ghraib Prison abuses)… Conventional forces, if they are to be effective in current and future conflict, need to better understand and employ the lessons encapsulated in this book."

— Air Power History, Spring 2008

"[An] essential work for any scholar of small wars and counterinsurgency. Long's 'On "Other War"' contains a wealth of information on doctrinal development and two excellent bibliographies of counterinsurgency publications."

— Journal of Military History, October 2007

"Hosmer is one of RAND's best analysts, a sober student of contemporary military affairs… Hosmer considers direct attacks, coups, rebellions, and invasion and comes to a gloomy conclusion: leadership attacks are difficult to pull off."

— Foreign Affairs

This well-referenced research report addresses multiple aspects of birth control programs in developing nations, from their history and rationales to criticisms, lessons learned, and policy implications.

— Reference & Research Book News

"The authors' bold attempt to estimate the full impact of prevention programs on society, and on the market demand for illegal substances, challenges the current knowledge of the drug control policy community. An Ounce of Prevention, A Pound of Uncertainty succeeds in stretching the limits of current knowledge and measures of effectiveness, and draws attention to prevention as a potentially effective and affordable national drug control policy option."

— The Georgetown Public Policy Review

"At this point in the war on terror, even people who think David Galula is a trendy new chef are quick to point to the need for cultural understanding in successful counterinsurgency. Often, they are quicker still to beat up on our military for supposedly ignoring this. They are quite sure that if we just understood the Iraqis/Afghans/Shiites/Sunnis better, we would have made fewer mistakes… Well, perhaps the most successful counterinsurgency operation ever mounted, David Galula's in Algeria, doesn't build the case for the overweening importance of cultural knowledge. The Algerians pacified thanks to Galula's insights were French-speaking (some of the leaders of the FLN barely spoke Arabic). The French took back territory from the rebels not because Galula convinced them that he understood their culture, but because he convinced them that their interests were better served by affiliation with France. (A dozen pages of Galula are worth more than anything written by anyone mentioned in this article. His 1963 Pacification in Algeria, reissued by RAND last year, is a witty, snappy, pre-PC read.)"

— The Weekly Standard, November 26, 2007

"Throughout the history of armies, counterinsurgency warfare has generally been greatly feared, and the drafting of counterinsurgency doctrine generally avoided. This is evident in the lack of any comprehensive approach to the subject, until recently, in virtually every army, including those that have had to deal with insurgencies on a regular basis. Since the invasion of Iraq by the US-led coalition, various approaches has been tried, and, only with the publishing in December 2006 of U.S. Field Manual 3-24, has a new comprehensive doctrine for counterinsurgency operations been established. [The U.S. Counterinsurgency Field Manual 3-24] was penned under the supervision of General David Petreaus, an innovative American thinker, and, since January 2007, the Commander of Multinational Force Iraq. The inspiration for this field manual was a book written almost 50 years ago, after another counterinsurgency in another Muslim country. In 1963, at the urging of the RAND Corporation, Lieutenant Colonel David Galula, a French officer with extensive counterinsurgency experience, including two years in Algeria, wrote what was to become a personal account of his success in pacifying his area of responsibility…
The Rand Corporation, in the hope that its lessons can be used in Iraq, has reissued Galula's book. Fifty years after being written, it has become enthusiastically embraced by an army seeking a way out of a quandary brought on partially, I believe, by its overconfidence in high technology weaponry. One may hope that this signals a new openness to ideas and opinions penned outside of America. But the lesson of the author is that pacification requires a long-term commitment and imagination. For the author, every war is a special case requiring a unique strategy. And anyone who thinks that they found a ‘quick fix' will have misunderstood David Galula's lesson."

— Canadian Military Journal, Winter 2007/2008

"To understand the new American military strategy in Iraq and Afghanistan you could download a copy of the Army's counterinsurgency field manual, FM 3-24. Or you could read the elegant, entertaining books by French Lt. Col. David Galula that inspired Gen. David Petraeus in producing FM 3-24. Galula wrote 'Pacification in Algeria' in 1963 at the RAND Corporation, followed in 1964 by 'Counterinsurgency Warfare' at Harvard. Now, both have been reissued. 'Pacification' tracks Galula's two years as a company commander in Algeria and the development of his ideas about counterinsurgency into a successful formula soon adopted by the French force in Algeria… The questions Galula raises in the gripping 'Pacification' couldn't be more current. The French haven't won any wars in a long time, but they excel at theorizing about them… Now, practice is catching up with theory, both in Iraq, where American forces are leaving Forward Operating Bases for quarters in the cities, and in Afghanistan."

— Ann Marlowe, New York Post, April 29, 2007

"One of the important theorists of counterinsurgency was David Galula, who died in 1967. Galula was a French officer who studied insurgency while serving in a variety of posts in China, Communist-threatened Greece, and in Hong Kong during the French Indochina War. Galula's ideas have emerged as key elements of American counterinsurgency doctrine. His 'Counterinsurgency Warfare: Theory and Practice' (Praeger, 1964) was one of the first texts used by Army officers in 2005 to come to grips with problems confronting them in Iraq. Far more impressive and readable, but less well known is Galula's 'Pacification in Algeria', written, at RAND's invitation, following his participation in a conference on counterinsurgency in 1962 on similar problems confronting the United States in Vietnam… The similarities between France's mistakes in Algeria and American performance in Iraq are striking… Galula's 'Pacification in Algeria' is an exciting story of the difficulties faced by a small-unit commander striving to succeed in a nebulous counterinsurgency environment. It is a story small-unit leaders in Iraq today will find quite familiar."

— Journal of Military History, October 2007

"The reader interested in the performing arts could not ask for a more approachable comprehensive examination of the industry or set of recommendations. McCarthy et al., have done a fine job of examining the available information. They have drawn from it a reasonable view of what is happening in the industry, a vision of what they expect the future to bring, and present a fine set of recommendations that are useful for both researchers and policy makers. This is a book that should be recommended to anyone interested in understanding the performing arts industry and in what more should be done to ensure its health well into the 21st century."

— Journal of Cultural Economics

The authors have done an excellent job of collecting information from responders to four of the most recent incidents of domestic terrorism (Oklahoma City, the World Trade Center (2001), the Pentagon, and the Anthrax letters). Lessons learned in the rescue and recovery efforts are diligently enumerated. For those who must not only think about the unthinkable but also prepare for it, this is a helpful text.

— Security Management

"The results of the study—commissioned by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)—will help shape research and development on a number of fronts. RAND will work with NIOSH and its new National Personal Protective Technology Laboratory to incorporate this and other information into a 'road map' for future R&D."

— Advanced Rescue Technology

"This excellent casebook describes the varied analytical techniques and substantive applications that typify how 'statistical think' has been applied at RAND since its statistics group was established in 1976. This collection of 10 case studies is organized into three sections, each reflecting the three major tasks in empirical research: collecting data, detecting effects, and understanding relationships. Each case study has seven main sections: (1) an introduction to the policy problem, the research questions, the statistical questions, and a summary of data and methods; (2) the study design, data collection, data sources, and data elements; (3) the dataset creation, including the file construction and variable derivation, descriptive statistics, and results of any exploratory data analysis undertaken; (4) the statistical methods and model as applicable; (5) the results of the analysis, including model validation and sensitivity analysis; (6) a discussion of the results, how they were used, their limitations, and their implications in terms of policy; and (7) exercises, including datasets obtainable on the editor's website.

"The statistical techniques discussed range form modern to classical methodology, including imputation, the bootstrap, and empirical Bayes methods, Students from various fields will find this book extremely useful in their development as applied researchers, This casebook is also a must-read for empirical researchers and policy makers."

— Martin T. Wells, Cornell University

"The text provides a succinct overview of progress made by eight universities in implementing TNE [Teachers for a New Era] design principles. These include 'respect for an evidence base', 'engagement of Arts and Sciences faculty', and 'recognition of teaching as an academically taught, clinical-practice profession'… Readers will enjoy honest reporting and the hope that the text gives for the improvement of teaching and learning. Summing Up: Recommended. Graduate students through practitioners."

— CHOICE, March 2007

"Christopher Paul and James J. Kim, both with the RAND Corporation, trace the lineage of the military-press relationship over the past several decades in 'Reporters On The Battlefield: The Embedded Press System in Historical Context', with a particular focus on the embedded press in Iraq and how information was disseminated by both sides in wartime… This research, compelling and concise, offers an informative read on the sometimes tumultuous military-press relations and how those tensions have been eased with the embedded press system. And with hostilities in Iraq and elsewhere seemingly far from over, both parties still have plenty of opportunities to learn from firsthand experience."

— NationalJournal.com

"Throughout, Paul and Kim (both researchers at the nonprofit RAND Corporation) assess the very different goals of reporters and the military as one of the sources of the tension between the two. They make numerous suggestions for future use of embedded reporters and other approaches such as press pools to facilitate press coverage without limiting military actions. Though brief, this is a highly useful synthesis of a relationship that is widely debated but little understood. Essential. All collections; all levels."

— CHOICE, July 2005

"The rise of the Revolutionary Guards (Pasdaran) in Iran's political system in recent years has been much commented on but seldom analysed thoroughly. This welcome study puts the Pasdaran's role as a political and economic actor, and the consequences for the political system as well as for the institution itself, in context, and draws the relevant policy conclusions therefrom."

— Shahram Chubin, Geneva Centre for Security Policy

"This is an excellent study, the most thorough and objective of its kind I've seen on the Revolutionary Guards. It is well organized, highly nuanced, and very readable — an elusive combination. The use of Persian-language sources enriches the paper immensely, setting it apart from similar studies on Iran"

— Karim Sadjadpour, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

"…A straight-on, analytical, thoroughly serious study on the politically hot issue of school vouchers and charter schools in America today… Rhetoric Versus Reality covers almost every aspect of this critical issue in a dispassionate, fact-filled and thorough manner. This is a highly recommended reading for parents, educators, and lawmakers wanting to learn more about these complex and heavily debated options for America's school systems.

— Internet Bookwatch/Midwest Book Review

"It is vital for the United States to comprehend the influence of the PLA upon China's policy making. Swaine's monograph contributes to such comprehension…by providing a diagram of the PRC's national and security policy making. I enthusiastically recommend it."

— Airpower Journal

"This report offers a complete examination of the workings of the National Transportation Safety Board in the 30-year history of the agency. Adopting a multidisciplinary approach, RAND used a variety of quantitative and qualitative research techniques to assess the NTSB's operations and processes. This research outlines a set of recommendations aimed at strengthening the party process of accident investigation, expanding the statement of causation, modernizing the agency's investigative procedures, streamlining its internal process, managing its resources and staffing more effectively, developing training opportunities, and improving its research and development facilities."

— SciTech Book News

"The [authors] set about systematically reviewing the efforts that have been undertaken by international organizations and/or various government agencies to re-establish (or in some cases actually establish) national health systems in post-conflict countries. The post-conflict states surveyed in this book range from the post-Second World War examples of Japan and Germany, through to case studies of present-day Afghanistan and Iraq. The contributors scrutinize the various programs and policies in each of the countries surveyed, prior to summarizing the relative success and/or failures of each case, and arriving at a number of generalized conclusions or 'lessons learned'…'Securing Health' is unquestionably of interest to policymakers in the health-development field, and quite possibly should be considered required reading for every bureaucrat and/or government agency contemplating post-conflict reconstruction work"

— Journal of Intervention and Statebuilding, March 2008

"…the authors make their recommendations for how the government should restructure paper-flow with e-mail not only in the postal service, but in other government agencies. This is an interesting report on a relatively unexplored topic."

— Today's Librarian

"The authors put together a convincing argument for the use of e-mail in government…the use of e-mail will only become more pervasive and will afford governments the opportunity to provide better services and save costs."

— Government Finance Review

"The report addresses a very timely and important topic. The information regarding the use of electronic mail as a communication method between government and citizens is useful and well researched. The case studies give specific examples of instances in which electronic mail could be a very useful or a somewhat cumbersome communication tool. Overall, [this book] is a worthwhile, important and useful publication with relevance for a wide range of users."

— Pergamon, Journal of Government Information

"Noting that terrorist groups have increased their effectiveness through exchanges with other groups, the authors provide suggestions for disrupting these channels of communication and preventing the uptake of new technologies and strategies by some of the world's most dangerous organisations"

— Survival, August-September 2008

"The authors examine the partnerships that various terrorist groups have formed, especially with regard to mutually supportive technologies… The authors conclude that if legitimate governments are going to be successful against these organizations and their technological capabilities, they must take positive action to improve current threat assessments, create innovative ways to counter such groups, and make the possible use of these technologies too expensive in terms of cost-benefit for the terrorist groups."

— Parameters, US Army Ware College Quarterly, Winter 2007-08

"Snakes in the Eagle's Nest should be mandatory reading for anyone involved in air base defense because it highlights a potential weakness in our reliance on airpower to achieve our national objectives."

— Airpower Journal

"A product of the RAND Corporation's long-running Project Air Force, this useful book is aimed primarily at defense planners, whose task, it is argued, has become more difficult since the Cold War's end. The editors and other contributors attempt to ease the plight of their intended audience by, essentially, bounding the range of strategic uncertainty with which it is confronted… For faculty, advanced undergraduates and graduate students, and researchers and practitioners."

— CHOICE Magazine

"Overall, the book is useful, not only for Air Force strategic planning but for presenting global possibilities in an uncertain future."

— Military Review

"Anyone who…was…preparing to lie back and enjoy a world where history has almost ended should study the list of 'wild cards' drawn up by the RAND Corporation…in a study…on possible future sources of conflict."

— The Economist

"Covers nearly everything: nine tenets about global trends in the next 25 years, three alternative future worlds, wild cards, regional analyses, and specific scenarios of functional challenges…This excellent study touches nearly all the bases."

— Future Survey

"In Sources of Conflict in the 21st Century, Khalilzad and Lesser examine current political trends and potential sources of conflict in three regions (Asia, the Greater Middle East, and Europe and the former Soviet Union) through the year 2025. Individual chapters provide detailed discussion of regional trends and their implications for strategy and planning. In addition, the authors describe three possible alternative future 'worlds', each with its own meaning for strategic planning. These possible futures include a projection of today's mixed political climate; a more benign world in which the great powers are at peace and are actively cooperative; and a world beset with economic, demographic, and political turmoil. Sources of Conflict in the 21st Century provides a thorough analysis and a careful future forecasting of the world political climate that defense planners will need to prepare accordingly for the challenges of the 21st century. Recommended reading for students of political science, international studies, and military science."

— Midwest Book Review

"It provides an excellent overview of global trends and three regional analyses (Asia, Europe, and the Middle East) that easily outperform any old, cloudy crystal ball…Sources of Conflict in the 21st Century is a richly detailed study that provides assessments of three potential alternative worlds - base case world, benign world, and malign world."

— Marine Corps Gazette

"… This book is recommended to those wishing to be informed about space weapons. I am not aware of any other book that is as comprehensive. Whether you are for or against space weapons this book provides the material upon which to base your arguments. If you are interested in the military use of space or in national security policy, this is a book for you."

— Physics and Society

"A scholarly series of essays on current political, military and economic trends that enables U.S. policymakers to map out a grand strategy for the new era."

— Airforce Magazine, Canada

"All of the chapters are significant. Perhaps the questions of greatest immediate interest presented here are those on the expansion of the European Union and the future of NATO."

— Perspectives on Political Science

"A work of general utility for the student of strategic affairs… Although the purpose of the book is to help Air Force decision-makers 'understand the strategic background' to their decisions, it is a work of general utility for the student of strategic affairs."

— Foreign Affairs

"Represent[s] the most sophisticated U.S. defence planning…Rather than focusing on the 'rogue states'…The RAND team advocate concentration on 'generic threats' and planning based on a grand strategy…As an appropriate metaphor for such planning, the authors point to investment portfolios, in the management of which diversification is, for instance, important, as is the ability to take advance of arising opportunities whilst hedging against the unforeseen…As tools for such sophisticated planning, the RAND team advocate quite complex computer modelling, which is described in great detail."

— NOD and Conversion

"Strategic Appraisal 1997 offers a good benchmark of the state of the art of current thinking with regard to long-range defense issues in an era of great change."

— Naval War College Review

The Changing Role of Information in Warfare is part of RAND's Strategic Appraisal series, and it primarily addresses the effects of information technology on American military planning and operations. The fifteen chapters provide a useful review of the dangers and opportunities that information technology presents to U.S. military forces. While originally intended for the Air force, the work should interest a wider professional audience, especially because it includes a broad spectrum of views, ranging from techno-optimists to info-war pessimists.

— Naval War College Review

"The editors shrewdly chose the title of this work to be information in warfare, not information warfare. This volume in RAND's annual Strategic Appraisal series is one of the better efforts…Francis Fukuyama and Abram Shulsky, for example, offer a trenchant and skeptical analysis of the lessons the military can and should learn from business organizations wrestling with the information revolution…Taken together, the articles remind us—some by insight, others by their very lack of it—of just how hard it is to figure out what the information revolution does to international security."

— Foreign Affairs

"This seminal work of impressive scholarship is especially pertinent considering continued American involvement with armed conflicts around the globe…[The Changing Role of Information in Warfare] focuses on the long-term implications of the information revolution and provides a great deal for serious consideration as we emerge into the next century still trailing unresolved world-wide social, cultural, economic, and political disparities from this one."

— Midwest Book Review

"Brings together work by 20 experts in information technnology and defense policy to tackle issues of the U.S.' vulnerability due to its heavy reliance on advanced information systems. Examines vulnerability to information attacks on vital domestic systems as transportation, communications, finance, and utilities, and shows how the same techniques that can be used to disrupt and manipulate civilian targets can be used to degrade performance of U.S. military forces."

— Reference & Research Book News

"The 15 essays in this collection deal with real and perceived impacts on US national security resulting from continuing changes in the capabilities of advanced information technologies and their use by friendly and hostile forces…This text is highly recommended for the target audience of senior national security decision makers. It is also recommended to information technology professionals interested in the fundamental changes to national defense realities brought about by today's computer and information systems and their ever-more-capable successors. This collection also seems to have some value for military and national policy historians."

— Computing Reviews

"The authors focus on the military capability of seven Islamic states, and the political stance they have taken, and might follow in the future. The forces of Algeria, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Libya, Morocco and Syria are detailed, showing their expected tables of equipment. However, as has been shown in recent times, generous allowance must be made for over-estimates and unserviceable items of equipment when preparing any tables of battle. The printed tables, however, which also list the capabilities of the different weapon systems, will be of value and can be expected to be based on the latest available information… It is the reports prepared by the RAND corporation that directed attention to what could be the threat to the soft underbelly of Europe—NATO—from these states which lie along the southern shores of the Mediterranean."

— African Armed Forces

"This book is a useful collection of essays reminiscent of the Brookings Institution's series on U.S. foreign policy that analyzed various problem areas and offered policy alternatives… In its own words, the book 'deals with the major strategic issues confronting the United States in the post-Cold War era, with an emphasis on the future role of aerospace power'. It discusses both the question of U.S. grand strategy for the new era and the trends in various regions of the world and the challenges they could pose to the military forces of the United States—especially the Air Force."

— James A. Huston, Lynchburg College

"Strategic Information Warfare illuminates a challenging and often obscure method for examining policy options. Any student of government or industrial decision making would be well advised to buy this book. Grade: 92%"

— Technology and Society

"Information warfare remains a nebulous subject, but his monograph offers one of the most interesting and revealing ways of thinking about it, at least in an unclassified venue. A short but comprehensive discussion of the central issues in information warfare, particularly defense against attacks on the myriad information systems that keep American society running, is followed by an ingenious 'day after' exercise that illustrates and amplifies these problems. In three parts--'the day of' an information attack, 'the day after', and finally 'the day before'—participants can work their way through the decisionmaking problems of information warfare. The exercise, which has been tested with many government and private groups, is a brilliant device for exploring a problem bound to become more salient."

— Foreign Affairs

"An excellent overview of the subject. Highly recommended for a variety of subject areas, particularly political science and computer science."

— Academic Library Book Review

"The great value of such exercises lies in raising the consciousness of decision-makers about problems likely to emerge, but which have not yet received their devoted attention."

— Comparative Strategy

"This book terrified me… because the authors are right. Strategic information warfare is possible and probable. I applaud that this research was done. I am thrilled that this is an unclassified, easily obtained book rather than something that remains within the closed networks of the military-industrial vaults."

— Computing Reviews

"…Expertly written in its detail and assured in its conclusions."

— NationalJournal.com

"This book is very useful in that it provides an appreciation for the doctrine [of anticipatory attack], its recent antecedents, its components, the legal issues, the value or lack thereof in diplomatic and military strategy, and finally, its utility. I found this work to be very useful and very readable."

— Air Power History, Summer 2008

" 'Striking First' analyzes preventive and preemptive attacks, which the authors combine under the term anticipatory attack, in US national security policy. The authors offer much cogent analysis on the causes, consequences, and future of preventive and preemptive military action. Scholars and, to a greater degree, policymakers, will benefit from a careful reading of this book."

— Journal of Strategic Studies, June 2007

"Preventive attacks on the sweeping scale and with the oversized ambitions of the Iraq war will not soon be undertaken again, at least not by the United States. But preventive and preemptive military action, or what the authors of this useful book term 'anticipatory attack', remain important policy instruments… [The author's] recommendations for the U.S. defense posture are sensible, and they wisely warn that anticipatory attack can only be an occasional policy tool, not a cornerstone of grand strategy… The case studies are well done, and they are interesting in their own right. U.S. forces will eventually withdraw from Iraq, but the United States will undoubtedly employ military force preventively in the future. For concerned citizens who want to know more about the logic and challenges of preventive attack, this is a good place to start."

— Political Science Quarterly, Winter 2007-08

"'Striking First' offers a fine survey of the theoretical literature on preventive war and pre-emption, the factors that increase 'preventive motivations' for war, the issues that policymakers need to consider when contemplating preventive war, and what amounts to a lively legal debate about the potential circumstances when 'attacking in self-defense' might be justifiable under international law… Mueller and his colleagues have succeeded in providing a concise and balanced overview of theory, practice and limits of preventive war and pre-emption."

— Survival, Winter 2007–2008

"Our friends at RAND Corporation continue their production of quality and insightful works related to the future of defense planning with 'Striking First: Preemptive and Preventative Attack in U.S. National Security Policy' by Karl P. Mueller, et al. The authors examine the controversial doctrine outlined in the 2002 National Security Strategy that addressed circumstances where America might strike first against its enemies. Of particular interest is the authors' treatment of preemptive attacks against possible threats from terrorists or rogue states. Not only do the authors examine the costs, benefits, and risks associated with first strikes, they also analyze the legal and moral considerations that must be taken into account. They conclude with a warning to policymakers and military planners that this strategy may have unintended results, the greatest of which is encouraging an enemy to initiate his own preemptive strike."

— Parameters, the US Army War College Quarterly, Spring 2007

"…A slim yet densely packed and insightful analysis of swarming as a military tactic, with a keen eye to its use in history… Swarming on the Battlefield is excellent, fascinating reading for historical recreationists, as well as students and non-specialist general readers with a keen interest in military science."

— Internet Bookwatch

"Kaye attempts to empirically assess the impact of unofficial or ‘track two'; diplomatic efforts on security perceptions and policy in the Middle East and South Asia. She offers a framework for understanding these efforts and improving them in the future."

— Survival, October/November 2008

"For those interested in the question of why countries in the Mideast and South Asia just can't seem to get along, this book not only discusses the problem but also offers a solution: ‘Track Two' Diplomacy … Policymakers, regional specialists, and academics are the primary targets of this work though it does provide some useful insights for military officers and others …This book provides some valuable conceptual underpinnings as well as specific case studies that might prove useful to many. Though its orientation is one of international policy, its concepts could easily be extrapolated to domestic, and even interpersonal, conflicts. Though it readily acknowledges the need for much more work, it certainly helps answer some keep questions about conflict resolution."

— Air Power History, Fall 2008

"Kaye has written a thorough, thoughtful analysis of track two diplomacy in the two most difficult areas to practice this craft: South Asia and the Middle East. She includes descriptions and comments on a number of such efforts in both regions, which will be invaluable to both scholar and professional negotiators. Her discussion of the roles for track two talks--socializing elites, making others' ideas one's own, and turning ideas into policies — would be useful in any negotiation course… Her suggestion that each region may learn from the tribulation of the other is arguably thoughtful. Her suggestions for improvement — expand the types of participants, create institutional support and mentors, and localize the dialogues — deserve further study. Summing Up: Recommended."

— CHOICE, May 2008

"Incoming President George W. Bush has been handed a potent weapon to deal with a host of thorny policy and defense issues that confront his new administration."

— Stars and Stripes

"This book will be very useful to environmental scientists, process engineers, and research scientists involved in R&D activities in private companies…All of the chapters present their information in a clear and very readable format and provide a comprehensive and current overview of environmental technology research."

— JOM

"Those interested in protecting the homeland would be wise to read 'Terrorism and Development', a new RAND study by Kim Cragin and Peter Chalk that offers insight on the power of social and economic development to stifle terrorism. The authors are careful not to extrapolate too much from their findings, stating plainly that 'social and economic development do not eliminate terrorism'. But they do provide striking evidence that social and economic development programs can weaken support for terrorist activities and discourage terrorist recruits."

— NationalJournal.com

"This work is strongly recommended. It explores issues beyond usual health implications and offers substantive if not specific recommendations to the findings presented…should find an audience among legislators, health policy-makers, and students exploring the connectivity among business interests, law enforcement, and social and public policy."

— Journal of Government Information

"Will inform the debate on civil justice system reform … an essential addition to all academic, corporate, attorney general, public defender and community law library collections."

— Reviewer's Bookwatch

"This report looks at inexpensive ways terrorists, non-state actors, and rogue states can threaten U.S. forces and civilians using common industrial compounds… [It] also recommends that first-responders incorporate such a scenario in their disaster drills. This report will stimulate your thoughts and could lead you to discovering new ways of dealing with this threat from a medical perspective."

— Navy Medicine

"It's a short book, but it offers solid information and can provide helpful information as the United States takes the next steps in the war on terrorism."

— NationalJournal.com

"… The book's seven chapters provide a helpful introduction to the topic of outside support for insurgent groups… This brief study is a useful primer on the subject of how insurgencies garner support from a growing range of backers. It will assist those analysts who are interested in understanding the diffuse manner in which insurgencies are capable of surviving and sometimes thriving."

— Comparative Strategy

"A short study…on an important subject. Insurgency does not normally survive without some kind of external support… Here the authors make an important point: external support comes not only from states but increasingly from nonstate actors, particularly diasporas and substate organizations. These groups are initially less dangerous than states, but they are also less amenable to disruption or coercion, which augurs ill for the perpetuation of a peaceful status quo in many parts of the world."

— Foreign Affairs

"Daniel Byman, Peter Chalk, Bruce Hoffman, William Rosenau, and David Brannan effectively collaborate to produce a cold, hard, meticulous look at state support, incitement, and sponsorship of insurgencies from the Cold War era through modern globalization… An incredibly timely book given the world situation today and the American commitment to eradicate rogue, state-supported international terrorism, and written at a college level with heavy research and annotation, Trends in Outside Support for Insurgent Movements is a fascinating, albeit disturbing, look at political machinations around the world."

— Internet Book Watch

"Lorell's solid study of the perils and pitfalls of U.S.-Japanese cooperation on an advanced fighter aircraft has been expanded to a full-length book. His message is straightforward: For success in cooperative ventures, both sides need to perceive technological, economic, and political payoffs."

— Comparative Strategy

"Through extensive use of interviews, government documentation, and numerous other commentaries, Lorell painstakingly examines the gradual evolution of the aircraft as well as the increasing intervention by the United States to influence aircraft design…An excellent study of the use of gaiatsu (foreign pressure) by the United States to influence Japanese defense policies… . This study will undoubtedly have considerable appeal to specialists in areas of defense planning and development. It will also be interesting to those who wish to more fully understand the difficulties of collaboration between two countries."

— Perspectives on Political Science

"Mark Lorell does an admirable job of using primary source material, interviews, and periodicals to accurately portray events and their relevance. The book contains a good overview, and each chapter focuses on a particular aspect of the program. Lorell leads the reader through the maze of commissions and agreements that defines the program. The final chapter is an excellent summation of the lessons learned… Troubled Partnership should be on the reading list for every policy maker and action officer."

— Air Chronicles

"A rich and detailed chronicle of the FS-X programme … Lorell's conclusion that the whole technology-transfer contest surrounding the FS-X was a 'draw' is an important one … leading him to argue vociferously that the United States should remain integrally involved in the Japanese fighter programme through its development and production. This policy recommendation, and indeed Lorell's entire get of historical lessons, is even more timely in light of Japan's upcoming decision to indigenise or co-develop a replacement for its P-3C maritime patrol aircraft."

— Survival

"Karoly and Panis, researchers for the RAND Corporation, discuss major factors that will shape the future of work over the next decade and their implications for the size, composition, skills, and compensation of the workforce and for conditions in the workplace. Recommended. Faculty, upper-division undergraduate and graduate students, and practitioners."

— CHOICE Magazine, October 2004

"The uncertainty of Turkish foreign policy in the 1990s and the first three years of the 21st century is even more uncertain after the 2003 U.S.- and British-led war against Iraq, especially in the five areas the authors emphasize: Europe, Greece and the Balkans, Eurasia, the Middle East and the Mediterranean, and the U.S.… Despite Larrabee and Lesser's failure to predict that Turkey would not participate and would only lukewarmly support the U.S.-led war against Iraq and the resultant dramatic changes in the geopolitics of the regions they analyze, this remains the best overview of the Turkey's foreign policy in the regions discussed. Highly recommended. Public libraries and upper-division undergraduate collections."

— CHOICE Magazine

"The future of U.S.-Turkish relations remains in doubt after the difficult negotiations between the Turkish government and the United States over air base usage during the war with Iraq. This event marked a turning point in a pivotal geo-political alliance with a country that, to most Americans, remains largely unknown. F. Stephen Larrabee and Ian Lesser, senior political analysts at RAND, shed light on this increasingly influential country in their book, 'Turkish Foreign Policy In An Age Of Uncertainty', which describes the challenges and opportunities facing Turkey during this time of extraordinary change. Special emphasis is given to strategic and security matters, including those sparked by the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, and the subsequent international response. The book concludes with some predictions for the country's future and their implications for Turkey's western allies."

— NationalJournal.com

"In a competent and compact survey of contemporary Turkish foreign policy that gives due emphasis to its multilateral dimensions, both domestic and foreign, Larrabee and Lesser treat separately Turkish foreign relations with the European Union, Greece and the Balkans, Eurasia, the Middle East, and the United States while managing to interrelate these separate subjects. They have taken recent studies (including their own) and effectively updated accounts of several aspects of Turkish foreign policy, including the slow and by no means assured Turkish effort to join the EU, the tentatively better relations with Greece, and the still unresolved issue of Cyprus, the on-balance slight Turkish advances into Central Asia since the end of the Cold War, Turkish-Israeli ties, the serious Turkish concern about the Kurds in Turkey and beyond, and Turkey's complex relations with the United States."

— Foreign Affairs

"This is the second book in a series that looks to provide an understanding of the international community's attempts to save failed and failing states… Taking an objective look at the UN's ability to supervise the rebuilding of a nation, the RAND Corporation employs a case study approach looking at eight countries — the Congo, Namibia, El Salvador, Cambodia, Mozambique, Sierra Leone, East Timor, and Iraq — as well as the situation in Eastern Slavonia with the breakup of the former Yugoslavia… Given the amount of information required for such an analysis, the study does a commendable job of presenting its findings in a clear and easy-to-follow manner. The authors' examples are well chosen, and we see the successes and failures — to varying degrees — of the assimilation of democracy in these nations. This subject will be of interest to anyone looking to study what is required for successful nation building and to those looking for a more balanced picture of the UN's role in today's world."

— Strategic Studies Quarterly, Summer 2008

"This book is an attempt to learn the lessons of more than 40 years of nation-building by the UN. Together with its companion volume exploring the relevant American experience sine the occupation of Germany and Japan after the Second World War (America's Role in Nation-Building: From Germany to Iraq, James Dobbins et al.), it provides one of the most comprehensive reviews of nation-building missions since 1945…

"Ad hoc pre-mission planning, the problems of mobilizing financial and military resources, and slow deployment of personnel in the field emerge as perennial problems plaguing most of the missions discussed. Hopefully, the peacebuilding commission proposed last year by the High Level Panel established by the UN Secretary General might help to address some of these issues. Similarly, the case-studies highlight that in the absence of security, the successes of democratic institution-building and economic development have been very limited, as witnessed in both Cambodia and Sierra Leone, a lesson that the authors also highlight with respect to Iraq. Insights like these, and the historical perspective that the study offers, make it a welcome addition to the growing body of literature on nation-building."

— International Affairs July 2005; reviewed by Dominick Zaum, University of Oxford, UK

"There is much to learn from these books (companion volumes The UN's Role in Nation-Building and America's Role in Nation-Building). Their methodical structure, rigorous analysis, presentation of data and rational conclusions are compelling and highly readable."

—The UN Chronicle, January 2006

"Since the end of the Cold War, the UN has increasingly been called on to dispatch multinational forces to enforce the peace and rebuild political order. Building on an earlier RAND study of U.S.-led peacekeeping efforts, this book is one of the first to systematically examine these operations… The authors show that UN forces are chronically undermanned and underfunded (U.S. nation-building missions, in contract, tend to be launched with more ambitious mandates in more difficult circumstances) but encouragingly conclude that the UN's low-profile, small-footprint approach to nation building has succeeded more often than it has failed and is remarkably cost-effective--offering a promising framework for peacekeeping in the future."

— Foreign Affairs, May/June 2005

"On balance this is a straightforward summary of complex developments and situations … with many concise summaries of trends and comparisons. Highly recommended. All levels."

— CHOICE, January 2006

"[Jenkins] is not a Pollyanna, but he believes that 'controlling' (even if not eradicating) terrorism is possible and offers concrete ideas. One intriguing though is that much of the Islamic World is also threatened and that we should use the dynamic of a shared enemy to better advantage… The [book] is relatively short and worth reading by those concerned with 'strengthening ourselves'."

— Air Power History, Spring 2008

"Among the many books that purport to point the way forward for America in the wake of 9-11, this one stands out, chiefly for its clarity and sensibility. Author Brian Michael Jenkins' counterterrorism credentials are legendary and he has a gift for expressing truly significant and subtle insights on terrorism with simple clarity. It is often difficult to deny the common sense of his commentary. Unconquerable Nation is sensibly structured, opening with an examination of how Americans prevailed over challenges like the Civil War and the Great Depression. Jenkins plainly states his convictions, the most fundamental of which are that America's courage is the ultimate source of its security, and that whatever we do, we must preserve American values. He also does not shy away from declaring where he agrees and disagrees with current official policy… Jenkins has written an assessment of the global war on terror that is an indispensable addition to any security bookshelf. With so much riding on our war against terrorism and against extremism in Iraq, reading this book is a must."

— Security Management, November 2007

"Brian Jenkins began RAND's terrorism research program in 1972 after serving in the Vietnam War in the Special Forces, and he is now senior advisor to the president of RAND. In 'Unconquerable Nation: Knowing Our Enemy, Strengthening Ourselves', he has synthesized his shorter writings on terrorism from the past six years into a single volume that assesses the current situation, delves into the need for a deeper understanding of the terrorists and their motivations, prescribes a new set of strategic principles to guide our efforts in the Long War, and addresses how the Nation can strengthen itself… His careful explication[s], combined with a willingness to take on some of the shibboleths of the past 5 years ('fighting them there instead of here', the color-coded alert system) and a level-headed reminder to keep the terrorist threat in perspective, make for thought-provoking reading."

— Joint Force Quarterly, 1st Quarter 2007

"Using as inspiration Chinese strategist Sun Tzu's words, 'Being unconquerable lies with yourself', terrorism expert Brian Jenkins lays out a strategy for dealing with the modern terrorist threat, one unlike any the US has seen in its history. Jenkins provides an assessment of the current situation and of the enemy we face. He then outlines the strategic principles for defeating our terrorist enemies and the strategies that we can use to strengthen ourselves while avoiding irrational fear."

— Journal of Counterterrorism and Homeland Security International, Fall 2007

"Long before international terrorism became a salient issue for Americans, many years before 9/11 bred a legion of supposed 'experts' on terrorism, Brian Michael Jenkins was pioneering serious study of the subject. His work at the RAND Corporation beginning four decades ago is a foundation of modern scholarship on terrorism. Jenkins is one of only a few students of terrorism whose expertise is sufficiently profound and longstanding to be able to put the subject into the broad, historically conscious context that is required to understand it but is all too often missing from current commentary on the topic. Unconquerable Nation distills much of Jenkins's painstakingly acquired wisdom about terrorism and applies it to today's challenge of countering the global jihadist movement. Anyone looking for a concise guide to understanding jihadists (Jenkins's preferred term for the type of Islamist terrorists exemplified by the members of Al Qaeda), formulating policy responses to the terrorist danger they pose, and assessing counterterrorist policies already in place would do no better than to read this book.

"The two halves of the book's subtitle indicate the two main portions of its content. Much of the first half of the book is devoted to explaining the jihadists' motivations and objectives and their leaders' strategies…. he second half of the book, on how to respond to the jihadist challenge, outlines a comprehensive strategy that recognizes the need to use all available policy tools but also the inability of any single tool to do the job itself…

"As he writes in the final paragraph of his book, 'our most effective defense against terrorism… will come from our own virtue, our courage, our continued dedication to the ideals of a free society'. That last thought is the basis for what is, in the end, an optimistic message of this book, as expressed in its title: that America's values will keep it unconquerable. We should hope that Jenkins is right, but the damaging attitudes and misdirections that have prevailed over the last five years and that he accurately describes should temper our optimism."

— Reviewed by Paul R. Pillar, The Journal of Strategic Studies, February 2007

"Unconquerable Nation combines into one volume some of homeland security's best writing, scholarship, history, critical thinking, pragmatism, personal opinion, and political acumen. The book draws its title – and its central analytical premise – from one of Sun Tzu's less well-known aphorisms: "Being unconquerable lies with yourself…

"Jenkins reviews some of the common misperceptions about the enemy, and then focuses on their words. One intriguing feature of the chapter is an analysis of the jihadist ideology and three generations of jihadist leaders…

"Another section especially worth reading is a hypothetical briefing given to Osama bin Laden about how al Qaeda and the jihad are doing, five years after the attack on American soil…

"Jenkins' final principle for redirecting homeland security efforts is to preserve American values. One often hears that the Constitution is not a suicide pact…The sentiment Jenkins expresses is essential to homeland security."

— Homeland Security Affairs, The Journal of the Naval PostGraduate School Center for Homeland Defense and Security, February 2007

"Brian Jenkins is one of the greatest experts on terrorism in the world and has been studying the subject for more than 40 years, that is ever since he came to RAND as a specialist in insurrections and guerrilla warfare. His slim book is in some respects a summa of his experience, but above all it is a cry of pain at how the United States has undertaken its 'War on Terror' and a clear and brief description of what should be done… [This] is a book to read, one that allows you to make an important step forward in your understanding of the terrorist phenomenon and the best strategies for containing and combating it."

— International Spectator, Jan.-Mar. 2007

"I was not prepared to like this book but instead found it to be a comprehensive, well-written, interesting book detailing what the United States is facing in its war on terror. The book begins with a clear analysis of the situation we are in and the dangers we are facing. He then outlines a practical and principled approach to dealing with the situation, while managing to maintain a rational balance of political criticism for both parties and their handling of the struggle. It is a hard-hitting, thought-provoking read that even high school students should read."

— 2007 Guide to University Press Books Selected for Public and Secondary School Libraries, (Review by Janet W. Hilbun, PhD, AASL)

"Jenkins offers a number of interesting thoughts on terrorism, including terrorist motivation, successful anti- and counterterrorism tactics and specific analysis of jihadi terrorism… Particularly well suited to advanced graduate students and faculty. A number of the author's points will serve to spur further research and challenge terrorism experts to reconsider long-held views. Recommended. Graduate students through practitioners."

— CHOICE, February 2007

"How do we win the conflict against radical Islamic terrorist groups and their supporters? Who are these groups, what is their ideology and operational code? What are the metrics to measure the effectiveness of our response? These are some of the questions that Brian Michael Jenkins attempts to answer in his important book, 'Unconquerable Nation'.

"Mr. Jenkins is one of America's veteran experts on counterterrorism, having established the country's first major terrorism studies program at the RAND think tank in 1972…

"The book's main contribution is Mr. Jenkins' formulation of a counterterrorism strategy to destroy what he terms the 'jihadist enterprise'. This enterprise is not a single organization (e.g., al Qaeda) but a worldwide 'marketplace' of jihadists in which these groupings either spontaneously, or under the direction of al Qaeda's operatives, organize to achieve what they conceive to be their path of 'glory'. Thus, different measures are required to respond to each segment of the jihadi marketplace…

"To strengthen the American homeland's defense against terrorism, Mr. Jenkins recommends a two-pronged strategy. The capabilities of local police forces need to be enhanced to monitor potential terrorists, since they are ideally positioned to identify suspicious activities in their own communities. The second component is a realistic assessment of the terrorist adversary's actual attack capabilities and intentions to attack the U.S. homeland.

"Mr. Jenkins' sound advice is well articulated in this compelling book and enhances our understanding of what constitutes effective counterterrorism strategy."

— Washington Times, Reviewed November 21, 2006, by Joshua Sinai

"Brian Michael Jenkins from RAND, one of the foremost terrorism experts in the world who has been studying the subject since the 1970s, released a new book this week, entitled 'Unconquerable Nation: Knowing Our Enemy, Strengthening Ourselves…' It's the first full-length book that Jenkins has written since 9/11, and well worth the wait; it's one of the best analyses of how we've waged the war on terror over these last five years, and offers solid recommendations about the course we need to follow in the coming years.

"Jenkins takes the title of the book from Sun Tzu: 'Being unconquerable lies with yourself'. His overarching point in the book that America's ability to prevail in the war on terror depends on a ethos of clear resolve and patient discipline, not fear and hasty reactive gestures…

"…The book contains an excellent bibliography, taken from Jenkins' own library and broken into a number of categories. Overall, an excellent book – highly recommended."

— Christian Beckner on Homeland Security Watch, August 18, 2006

"[Brian Michael] Jenkins foretells that we must thrive on our liberties, values, and resolve, as airline travel is yet again targeted by our enemies. We will not succumb to terror, but rather will outlast our terrorist foes. However, he advises that the US public must learn how to help in homeland security and how to be proactive in preparedness and response to likely future attacks against the US…"

"Brian's writing, while personable, is clear and concise; his book will appeal to the counter-terrorism expert and the novice alike. He skillfully uses simple anecdotes to underscore his hypotheses. Brian offers his judgments and opinions, while avoiding partisanship and divisiveness. He is critical of some executive branch decisions, supportive of others, and offers his roadmap forward based on our current circumstances."

"'Being unconquerable lies within yourself', (quote by Sun Tzu) not only applies aptly to our great nation but also to Brian Jenkins himself as our nation's stalwart terrorism expert and sage. This book, written by one of the foremost authors in the genre of terrorism, is a 'must have' for your terrorism book shelf."

— Terrorism Research Center, review by Jennifer Hardwick

"Well-illustrated and with valuable maps, 'Ungoverned Territories' offers readers a geographic look at the areas studied in detail in the text. This book is meant for military professionals of all stripes, counter-terrorism experts, senior government officials, researchers, and serious students of modern armed conflict. All will find it useful."

— Air Power History, Summer 2008

"By using a framework applied to eight cases around the world, the authors illustrate conditions that spawn ungoverned territories. They help us to better understand what makes certain areas more useful to terrorists and insurgents than others. Specifically, they highlight several types that affect U.S. security interests and propose strategies for dealing with them… 'Ungoverned Territories' should prove most useful to U.S. policymakers and graduate students."

— Proceedings, U.S. Naval Institute, May 2008

"Ungoverned territories are 'areas in which a state faces significant challenges in establishing control'. [This] book covers eight such areas: the Pakistani-Afghan border, Arabian Peninsula, Sulawesi-Mindanao arc, East African corridor, West Africa, North Caucasus, the Colombia-Venezuela border, and the Guatemala-Chiapas border. In most of these territories, fundamentalist Muslims want to establish a caliphate. A secondary issue is drugs. If left unchecked, the combination of militant religious extremism and drugs will destroy our way of life… The areas [the book] examines affect the U.S. in general and they are, or will be, battlefields for the U.S. military in the future… Clearly, 'Ungoverned Territories' is a worthwhile read for planners and those trying to figure out where the next conflict will be fought."

— Military Review, January-February 2008

"Ungoverned Territories: Understanding and Reducing Terrorism Risk by Angel Rabasa, et al. is based on a study of failed or failing states and ungoverned areas that serve as incubation sites for any number of terrorist organizations… The book stands alone as one of the few works in years to not only identify the myriad of challenges arising from these areas, but for actually presenting strategies based on a solid analytical framework capable of countering such threats. The book is a strong contender for the libraries of any reader concerned with America's role in the war on international terrorism."

— Parameters, US Army Ware College Quarterly, Winter 2007-08

"A strong Japan can help the U.S. economy. But the White House also sees a strong Japan—tied with South Korea—as a way to contain China. An outline of the idea is in The United States and Asia, a just-released RAND study that has become a must-read in D.C."

— Time Magazine

"This comprehensive report … recommends that the United States support a policy of universal access and that serious consideration be given to putting such a policy into place. Recommended for libraries serving informed decisionmakers."

— Library Journal

"A readable, informative, and thought-provoking report. Recommended. Upper-division undergraduate through professional."

— CHOICE

"Should be on the desk of all communications policymakers. Grade: A."

— Book Reviews on the Internet

"This is a seminal study on a topic that is critically important to societies now contextualized by concepts such as information age, information society, information economy, and global village… This book, replete with good and relevant statistical data, is a required purchase for any library or anyone with an interest in communications policy studies, the information economy, or the sociology of the information society."

— Journal of Government Information

"I commend the team of RAND researchers… they did an outstanding job and made a great contribution to understand the issues."

— Larry Irving, Assistant Secretary of Communications and Information, U.S. Department of Commerce

"Extremely useful… for addressing the social impact of these technologies."

— Frank Fukuyama, author of The End of History and Trust

"A comprehensive treatment of issues pertaining to electronic mail. I am particularly grateful for the work done on the economics of e-mail and the case studies … I urge you to read the report."

— Michael Nelson, White House Office of Science and Technology Policy

"An excellent piece… I was struck by the consumer orientation of this report and was really gladdened by it. So much of what I read is industry-driven and really not consumer-driven."

— Kathryn Brown, National Telecommunications Information Agency

"The RAND study is thorough and far-reaching, worthwhile reading for anyone who wonders what good might come out of all these new telecommunications tools."

— Howard Rheingold, San Francisco, Examiner

"There is a firm consensus that the largely American invasion and occupation of Iraq has fuelled rather than quelled Islamist terrorism worldwide, and that flawed US counter-insurgency efforts, at best only partially and tenuously ameliorated by the 'surge', have intensified this perverse effect. The RAND Corporation's capstone counter-insurgency study acknowledges as much … RAND has done a characteristically thorough job, providing historical analyses, charts and graphs, policy prescriptions and resource-allocation recommendations. It has also tackled the assignment with admirable candour and bluntness … RAND suggests that an excessively militarised approach to counter-insurgency has led to the overstretch of US ground forces and that enhancing counter-insurgency capabilities does not call for the expansion of those forces. Accordingly, the study sensibly concludes that better civil, informational, analytic, management and training — in a word, 'soft power' — capabilities are needed"

— Library Journal

"In addition to the biographical facts, chapters analyze Lebed's thoughts on foreign relations, security issues, domestic social questions, the proper role of the military, and his likely agenda should he reach elective office. … of interest to specialized collections"

— Library Journal

"The Winnefeld and Morris analysis of demographic, agricultural, climatic and environmental challenges amply underlines the potential for inter-state and intra-state conflict over the coming decades… this work by Winnefeld and Morris is an ambitious attempt to develop an analytic framework within which to examine the relationship between environmental insecurity and the potential for conflict, and to identify policy responses… The study by RAND will lend impetus to search for a more broadly-focused but constructive approach to policy development among the parties directly involved in the search for a comprehensive Middle East peace. Among national security advisers, and among the foreign policy community further afield, it may lend new urgency to the development of complementary strategies dealing with the management of population growth, the environment and the social consequences of continuing ecological degradation in the region."

— Pacific Research

“This RAND-initiated study looks at the role of women and the various challenges they may expect to face during a post-conflict nation-building process, with empirical reference to the recent and ongoing experience of Afghanistan. Adopting a three-dimensional approach, it examines every significant aspect of gender equity, from the spheres of economic and political participation to the planning and implementation of gender-specific programmes in health and education. It also usefully documents the incremental steps by which these milestones have been achieved. This is an analytically rigorous and well-researched study, which, despite its dense academic style, deserves a broad readership and will appeal to those with a genuine regard for gender issues in post-conflict environments.…Despite the difficult case of Afghanistan, the underlying thread of this study argues the need for gender policies from the very outset, permeating every aspect of society.”

— Journal of Peace Research