Blunder: Britain's War in Iraq

by Patrick Porter

This book is the first "post Chilcot" history of Britain's decision to go to war in Iraq in March 2003. Deploying the large number of primary documents and retrospective testimonies of participants, Blunder reconstructs the assumptions underlying decisions, the policy 'world' that participants inhabited 2001-2003, and the way decisions were made. Contrary to much of the existing literature, this book puts ideas in the centre of the story. As the book argues, Britain's war in Iraq was caused by bad ideas that were dogmatically held. Three ideas in particular formed the war's intellectual foundations: the notion of the undeterrable, fanatical rogue state; the vision that the West's path to security is to break and remake states; and the conceit that by paying the "blood price", Britain could secure influence in Washington DC. Beyond fixations with "dodgy dossiers", the flaws of individual leaders or intelligence failure, Iraq was a real ideological crusade, made by people who were true believers. These issues matter, because although the Iraq war happened fifteen years ago, it is still with us. As well as its severe consequences for regional and international security, the ideas that powered the war persist in western security debate. If all wars are fought twice, first on the battlefield and the second time in memory, this book enters the battle over what Iraq means now, and what we should learn.

Genres: History, British Literature, Politics

288 pages, Hardcover

First published November 8, 2018

Reviews

[Ietrio · Rating 1 out of 5]

Reading this I could not stop thinking of the stereotypical blonde bimbo. While that cliche was made to put women down, Porter perfectly fits the bill. Sure, the newspaper headlines are there. And the names are spelled well, although that was probably the merit of some underling. And none of the issues is going beyond "and you know what he told me afterwards?". Nothing about an Hague International Masquerade, or why such an inane government (British) has access to Weapons of Mass Destruction? All the reader gets is the monstrosity of euphemism, as Blunder meaning countless dead and maimed. And a bill left to the tax payer, a bill so big that Porter Gang's leeching, generous wages, living and travel expenses, and the big pension start looking like peanuts.

[Mike Mazarr · Rating 5 out of 5]

A brilliant discussion of Britain's road to war. Concise but elegant and full of great insight. Porter doesn't traffic in conspiracies but rather explains how Britain's commitment to the Iraq war issued from bad or exaggerated ideas, starting with liberal interventionist commitments to ideas like overturning rogue regimes. Engaging, insightful, essential to understand future foreign policy choices.