Overcoming the Bush Legacy in Iraq and Afghanistan (Hardcover)

"The military venture on which George W. Bush embarked within months of his 2001 inauguration has eclipsed all other efforts during his presidency. What started as a military response to al Qaeda's attacks in New York and Washington on September 11, 2001, with the goal of neutralizing al Qaeda and its Taliban hosts in Afghanistan, quickly fused with the neoconservative agenda to reshape and dominate the Middle East. Al Qaeda's terrorism was answered with American military power, which has destroyed or blighted the lives of millions in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Pakistan." "Having kept a keen rye on the region for more than three decades, former BBC correspondent Deepak Tripathi systematically identifies in Overcoming the Bush Legacy in Iraq and Afghanistan the administration's naive calculations, strategic and operational blunders, disregard for history and for other cultures, and even downright prejudices that have brought so much harm to so many. Bush's "war on terror" has provoked resentment and violent opposition, opened up sectarian divisions, and created Hobbesian conditions of all-against-all war. The long-term price tag for America has been estimated at a colossal $3 trillion, but as Tripathi seeks to demonstrate, the total cost, in human and economic terms, will be incalculable." "Overall, Tripathi asserts that American exceptionalism and unilateralism are relics of a bygone political era. The limitations of twenty-firstcentury military technology have been laid bare, and the legacy of the administration's foreign policy will take years to overcome. The Obama administration must now undertake slow and painstaking diplomacy to repair ties with adversaries, to listen more to allies, and to seek new ones. Overcoming the Bush Legacy in Iraq and Afghanistan is not only a cogent and honest appraisal of the Bush administration, but also a stark reminder of the consequences we all face."--BOOK JACKET. The military adventure that George W. Bush embarked on within months of his inauguration in 2001 was to eclipse everything else in his presidency. His name will forever be synonymous with the "war on terror." What started as a military response to al Qaeda's attacks in New York and Washington on 9/11, with the goal of neutralizing al Qaeda and its Taliban hosts in Afghanistan, quickly fused with the neo-conservative agenda to dominate and reshape the Middle East. Al Qaeda's terrorism was answered by the terror of American military power, which has destroyed or blighted the lives of millions in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Pakistan.
Deepak Tripathi, a former BBC correspondent who has kept a keen eye on the region for more than three decades, identifies systematically the naive calculations, strategic and operational blunders, disregard for history and for other cultures, and even downright prejudice that have brought so much harm to so many. The legacy of Bush's foreign policy will take years to overcome, Tripathi argues. His war on terror provoked resentment and violent opposition, opened up sectarian divisions, and created Hobbesian conditions of war of all against all. The long-term price tag for America has been estimated at a colossal $3 trillion, but as Tripathi seeks to demonstrate, the overall cost, in human and economic terms, will be incalculable.