America's Dirty Wars: Irregular Warfare from 1776 to the War on Terror

by Russell Crandall

This book examines the long, complex experience of American involvement in irregular warfare. It begins with the American Revolution in 1776 and chronicles big and small irregular wars for the next two and a half centuries. What is readily apparent in dirty wars is that failure is painfully tangible while success is often amorphous. Successfully fighting these wars often entails striking a critical balance between military victory and politics. America’s status as a democracy only serves to make fighting - and, to a greater degree, winning - these irregular wars even harder. Rather than futilely insisting that Americans should not or cannot fight this kind of irregular war, Russell Crandall argues that we would be better served by considering how we can do so as cleanly and effectively as possible.

Genres: History

598 pages, Paperback

First published April 10, 2014

Reviews

[Andrei Brinzai · Rating 4 out of 5]

Irregular warfare is an inescapable part of US history. Crandall examines the period between 1776 and the War on Terror, providing a well-documented account of the policies and strategies applied by the US.