A Citizen’s Guide to War: American Military Actions in the 21st Century

In clear, direct, and accessible language, this concise guide provides for a broad non-specialist audience an overview of the diverse array of future military operations that are likely to become questions in American politics. Author Sebastian Gorka’s goal is to help the reader make informed decisions about supporting or opposing future military actions. The public debate in America on potential military actions is rarely well-informed or the product of a clear understanding of what is and is not possible through the use of force. Often the choice is between gut-level militarism or gut-level pacifism and isolationism, neither varying with the specific circumstances.

After having read the book, readers will be in a position to understand:

• How the nature of conflict has evolved in the post-Cold War and post-9/11 world
• Why classic conceptualizations of ＂Big War＂ are fundamentally misleading and encourage us to build capabilities that do not match the actual threat environment
• What new methods of attack--such as cyberwarfare--mean to the safety of America and Americans
• How much wars cost and how much we should really invest in national defense and national security
• Where and how we can expect future military conflicts to occur.

Sebastian. L. Gorka is Major General Horner Chair of Military Theory at Marine Corps University. He was previously Associate Dean of Congressional Affairs and Relations to the Special Operations Community and Associate Professor of War and Conflict Studies at National Defense University.