| Title | : | Why Nations Fight |
|---|---|---|
| Author | : | Richard Ned Lebow |
| Release | : | 2010-09-02 |
| Kind | : | ebook |
| Genre | : | Politics & Current Events, Books |
| Size | : | 2271680 |
| Four generic motives have historically led states to initiate war: fear, interest, standing, and revenge. Using an original data set, Richard Ned Lebow examines the distribution of wars across three and a half centuries and argues that, contrary to conventional wisdom, only a minority of these were motivated by security or material interest. Instead, the majority are the result of a quest for standing, and for revenge - an attempt to get even with states who had previously made successful territorial grabs. Lebow maintains that today none of these motives are effectively served by war - it is increasingly counterproductive - and that there is growing recognition of this political reality. His analysis allows for more fine-grained and persuasive forecasts about the future of war as well as highlighting areas of uncertainty. |
