The global village myth : distance, war and the limits of power / Patrick Porter.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Porter, Patrick, 1976- author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

International relations.

Security, International.

United States--Foreign relations--20th century.

United States.

United States--Foreign relations--21st century.

Diplomatic relations.

Physical Description:

ix, 243 pages ; 23 cm

Place of Publication:

Washington, DC : Georgetown University Press, [2015]

Summary:

Porter challenges the powerful ideology of "Globalism" that is widely subscribed to by the US national security community. Globalism entails visions of a perilous shrunken world in which security interests are interconnected almost without limit, exposing even powerful states to instant war. Globalism does not just describe the world, but prescribes expansive strategies to deal with it, portraying a fragile globe that the superpower must continually tame into order. Porter argues that this vision of the world has resulted in the US undertaking too many unnecessary military adventures and dangerous strategic overstretch. Distance and geography should be some of the factors that help the US separate the important from the unimportant in international relations. The US should also recognize that, despite the latest technologies, projecting power over great distances still incurs frictions and costs that set real limits on American power. Reviving an appreciation of distance and geography would lead to a more sensible and sustainable grand strategy.

Contents:

Introduction : strife in the village

So near, so far : physical and strategic distance

Wars for the world : the rise of globalism: 1941, 1950, 2001

Lost in space : Al Qaeda and the limits of netwar

Access denied : technology, terrain and the barriers to conquest

Wide of the mark : drones, cyber and the tyrannies of distance

Conclusion : the geopolitics of hubris.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9781626161924

1626161925

9781626161931

1626161933

9781626161948

1626161941

OCLC:

885026309