Us versus Them, Second Edition: The United States, Radical Islam, and the Rise of the Green Threat

by Douglas Little

Acclaimed historian of U.S.–Middle East foreign relations Douglas Little examines&8239;how American presidents, policy makers, and diplomats dealt with the rise of Islamic extremism in the modern era. Focusing on White House decision-making from George H. W. Bush to Barack Obama, Little traces the transformation of the Cold War–era "Red Threat" into the "Green Threat" of radical Islam. Analyzing key episodes from the 1991 Persian Gulf War and Bill Clinton's mishandling of the Oslo peace process through the 9/11 attacks, George W. Bush's decision to invade Iraq, and the showdown with ISIS, Little shows how the threat posed by Islamic "others" shaped the Middle Eastern policies of both Democratic and Republican presidents. This second edition includes a new afterword that carries the story through the Trump administration and into the Biden presidency, focusing particularly on Afghanistan, a major trouble spot in the Muslim world that will command global attention for many years to come.

498 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 2, 2022

About the author

Douglas Little is an American historian specializing in American diplomatic history, twentieth century America, and United States relations with the Middle East. Currently, his research focuses on the U.S. response to radical Islam between the 1967 Six-Day War and the 1979 Iranian Revolution. He teaches at Clark University in Worcester, Massachusetts, where he was also the Dean of the College.
His published books include American Orientalism: The United States and the Middle East since 1945, and Malevolent Neutrality: The United States, Great Britain and the origins of the Spanish Civil War.