OUR LATEST LONGEST WAR: LOSING HEARTS AND MINDS IN AFGHANISTAN
Book ID/图书代码： 13560017C00010
English Summary/英文概要： The first rule of warfare is to know one’s enemy. The second is to know thyself. More than fifteen years and three quarters of a trillion dollars after the US invasion of Afghanistan, it’s clear that the United States followed neither rule well. America’s goals in Afghanistan were lofty to begin with: dismantle al-Qaeda, remove the Taliban from power, remake the country into a democracy. But not only did the mission come completely unmoored from reality, the United States wasted billions of dollars, and thousands of lives were lost. Our Latest Longest War is a chronicle of how, why, and in what ways the war in Afghanistan failed. Edited by historian and Marine lieutenant colonel Aaron B. O’Connell, the essays collected here represent nine different perspectives on the war all from veterans of the conflict, both American and Afghan. Together, they paint a picture of a war in which problems of culture and ideology derailed nearly every field of endeavor. The authors also draw troubling parallels to the Vietnam War, arguing that deep-running ideological currents in American life explain why the US Government has repeatedly used armed nation-building to try to transform failing states into modern, liberal democracies. In Afghanistan, as in Vietnam, this created a dramatic mismatch of means and ends that neither money, technology, nor the force of arms could overcome. The war in Afghanistan has been the longest in US history. We lost the war, and somehow we continue to lose it every day. These are difficult topics for any American or Afghan to consider, especially for those who fought in the war or lost friends or family in it. This sobering history written by the very people who have been fighting the war is impossible to ignore.
Chinese Summary/中文概要： 兵法有云，知己知彼方能百战百胜。在美国入侵阿富汗的15年多时间和耗费了7.5万亿美元之后，很明显，美国没有很好地遵守这两个规则。美国在阿富汗的目标从一开始就是很高傲的：解散基地组织，让塔利班下台，将这个国家重塑为一个民主国家。但是，这次任务不仅完全脱离了现实，美国还浪费了数十亿美元的军费，造成数千军士丧生。《我们最近漫长的战争》是一部关于关于阿富汗战争如何、为何以及以何种方式失败的编年史。由历史学家、海军中校亚伦·b·奥康奈尔编辑，文中收集了代表了对这场战争的九种不同的观点，均来自美国和阿富汗战争的退伍老兵。这些老兵一起向我们描绘了一幅战争的画面，文化问题和不可弥合的城乡差距，使几乎各个领域的所有努力都付诸于泡影。几位作者还将这场旷日持久的现代战争，与越南战争进行了令人不安的类比，认为美国生活中根深蒂固的意识形态潮流，解释了为什么美国政府一再使用武力推动国家建设，试图将弱国转变为现代自由民主国家的缘由。在阿富汗的经历，与上世纪的越南如出一辙，这终究导致了方法和目标的不相违背，无论是财力，技术还是武力都无法应对的。
阿富汗战争是美国历史上最为漫长的战争，在很多方面也是一场最令人困惑不解的战争。鲜有参战斗的人认为这是一场义举之战。对于任何美国人或阿富汗人来说，这些都是很难考虑的话题，尤其是那些在战争中失去朋友或家人的人。这段发人深省的历史，正是由参与战争的人所书写的，是不容忽视的。 (Sandy)
Awards/获奖情况："Our Latest Longest War" is a unique collection of essays, written by those who actuallyimplemented Afghanistanpolicy in the field, notbythe senior government officialshalfway around the world in Washington. The complexity and difficulty of counterinsurgency warfare are made clear in this superbly edited book. A must read for government and militaryleaders temptedto framedecisions as overlysimplistic binary choices, and for those who are called upon to serve at the tip of the spear and face realities not understood and acknowledged at the strategic level. --Karl W. Eikenberry "ambassador and Lieutenant General, retired, US Army, Oksenberg-Rohlen Distinguished Fellow, Stanford ""
Our Latest Longest War is a unique collection of essays, written by those who actuallyimplemented Afghanistanpolicy in the field, notbythe senior government officialshalfway around the world in Washington. The complexity and difficulty of counterinsurgency warfare are made clear in this superbly edited book. A must read for government and militaryleaders temptedto framedecisions as overlysimplistic binary choices, and for those who are called upon to serve at the tip of the spear and face realities not understood and acknowledged at the strategic level. --Karl W. Eikenberry "ambassador and Lieutenant General, retired, US Army, Oksenberg-Rohlen Distinguished Fellow, Stanford ""
A measured and clear-eyed look at the deep rooted challenges embedded in the ongoing effort to achieve a stable and successful outcome in Afghanistan many of which are of our own making through inattention to the history and culture of this complex nation.As NATO Commander with overall strategic command of the operation, I watched four successive ISAF Commanders loyal subordinates and brilliant Generals all try and fail to overcome the inherent contradictions in our approach.This collection of well sourced essays illuminates our collective failures, despite the best of intentions. --Admiral James Stavridis "USN (Ret), Supreme Allied Commander at NATO 2009 2013 ""
Nothing has ever been easy in the shadow of the Hindu Kush, and the essays in Our Latest Longest War convey that accurately, thoughtfully, and unblinkingly. Thissuperb collection of essays by scholars and practitionersilluminates the innumerable challenges and harsh realities with which those of us engaged in Afghanistan contended in our collective endeavor to ensure that the country was never again a sanctuary for Al Qaeda or other transnational extremists as it was when the 9/11 attacks were planned there. --General David Petraeus, US Army (Ret), Commander, "US Central Command 2008-10, Intnl Security Assistance Force & US Forces in Afghanistan 2010-11 ""
"Nothing has ever been easy in the shadow of the Hindu Kush, and the essays in Our Latest Longest War convey that accurately, thoughtfully, and unblinkingly. This superb collection of essays by scholars and practitioners illuminates the innumerable challenges and harsh realities with which those of us engaged in Afghanistan contended in our collective endeavor to ensure that the country was never again a sanctuary for Al Qaeda or other transnational extremists--as it was when the 9/11 attacks were planned there."--General David Petraeus, US Army (Ret), Commander, "US Central Command 2008-10, Intnl Security Assistance Force & US Forces in Afghanistan 2010-11 "
About the Author/作者介绍： Aaron B. O’Connell is lieutenant colonel in the Marine Corps Reserve and the author of Underdogs: The Making of the Modern Marine Corps. Most recently, he was associate professor of history at the US Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland.
Format:HARDCOVER
Rights Status/版权销售情况：Simplified Chinese/简体中文：AVAILABLE
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