The Accidental Guerrilla: Fighting Small Wars in the Midst of a Big One
by David Kilcullen
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Book Summary Information
Author: David KilcullenEdition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2009-03-16
ISBN: 0195368347
Number of pages: 384
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Book Reviews of The Accidental Guerrilla: Fighting Small Wars in the Midst of a Big One
Book Review: "Turning an elephant into a mouse..."
Summary: 5 Stars
It's so interesting that the vast majority of books that have been written, pertaining to what may be labelled as a successful counterinsurgencies have been written by operators and countries who have not been very successful conducting counterinsurgencies or counterterrorism strategies. The current strategic and subsequent operational and tactical approach the USA has taken in Iraq and is taking in Afghanistan lacks serious and genuine strategic insight and foresight to the existing problems our nation is actually facing. Our Super-power mentality is hindering how we go about successfully conducting counterinsurgencies/counter-terrioris. It is my observation and assessment of having thoroughly inspected this book, this manual explains our limits and our actual abilities for understanding present day insurgencies, and how we might actually conduct an appropriate counter-insurgency/counter-terrorism strategy. The book certainly comes at a much needed time in our nation's existence.
Objectively written with strong pragmatic experience and academic expertise, David Kilcullen has done his home-work, applied his experience wisely and approach writing this book with detailed research and analysis. He truly does understand both sides of the struggle--fully. He sees the perspective of the insurgencies and the counterinsurgencies, yet arrives at viable alternative conclusions that do not necessarily exist within the tradition insurgency/counter-insurgency boxes.
He does a superior job in explicating what is needed, what is not need, and what are the limits to a super-power's influence and abilities over the type of Fourth Generation Warfare effecting the world, and its key operative: 'The Accidental Guerrilla.'
This book clarifies correctly, what balances are demanded in diplomacy, political reform, military force, social order and the essential considerations for the diverse peoples engaged in insurgencies, counterinsurgencies and terrorism/counter-terrorism. In order for the top-heavy, super-state (i.e., the USA) to establish any semblence of harmonious survival in this new global struggle with nonstate fundamentalists and nonstate warriors threatening the gates of the existing operational-state-empire, we really better understand the problems this book so adeptly defines and attempts to break down into their simplest expressions for resolve.
This has been one of the most insightfully brilliant and common-sensically forethoughtful books I have ever read on insurgency/counterinsurgency since I began studying these events in 1967.
Let's see if the ole traditional military leadership 'sticks-in-the-mudd' own enough humility between all of them for at least one to read it and heed it, and wisely pass it on to someone in the capacity to put these lessons into a functional strategy. We certainly need it badly and quickly.
Rev. A. Bodhi Chenevey, RM, DD
Hikaze Learning Corner
Wooster, Ohio
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