What we owe Iraq : war and the ethics of nation building / Noah Feldman.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Feldman, Noah, 1970-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Postwar reconstruction--Iraq.

Postwar reconstruction.

Iraq War, 2003-2011--Peace.

Iraq War, 2003-2011.

Newly independent states--Case studies.

Newly independent states.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (165 p.)

Edition:

With a New afterword by the author

Place of Publication:

Princeton : Princeton University Press, c2004.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

What do we owe Iraq? America is up to its neck in nation building--but the public debate, focused on getting the troops home, devotes little attention to why we are building a new Iraqi nation, what success would look like, or what principles should guide us. What We Owe Iraq sets out to shift the terms of the debate, acknowledging that we are nation building to protect ourselves while demanding that we put the interests of the people being governed--whether in Iraq, Afghanistan, Kosovo, or elsewhere--ahead of our own when we exercise power over them. Noah Feldman argues that to prevent nation building from turning into a paternalistic, colonialist charade, we urgently need a new, humbler approach. Nation builders should focus on providing security, without arrogantly claiming any special expertise in how successful nation-states should be made. Drawing on his personal experiences in Iraq as a constitutional adviser, Feldman offers enduring insights into the power dynamics between the American occupiers and the Iraqis, and tackles issues such as Iraqi elections, the prospect of successful democratization, and the way home. Elections do not end the occupier's responsibility. Unless asked to leave, we must resist the temptation of a military pullout before a legitimately elected government can maintain order and govern effectively. But elections that create a legitimate democracy are also the only way a nation builder can put itself out of business and--eventually--send its troops home. Feldman's new afterword brings the Iraq story up-to-date since the book's original publication in 2004, and asks whether the United States has acted ethically in pushing the political process in Iraq while failing to control the security situation; it also revisits the question of when, and how, to withdraw.

Contents:

Frontmatter

Contents

Introduction

Chapter 1. Nation Building: Objectives

Chapter 2. Trusteeship, Paternalism, and Self-Interest

Chapter 3. The Magic of Elections and the Way Home

Conclusion

Acknowledgments

Notes

Index

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references (p. [135]-148) and index.

ISBN:

9786612129490

9781400826223

1400826225

9781282129498

128212949X

OCLC:

355628322