The Wages of Appeasement: Ancient Athens, Munich, and Obama's America

by Bruce S. Thornton

Overview

Wages of Appeasement explores the reasons why a powerful state gives in to aggressors. It tells the story of three historical examples of appeasement: the greek city-states of the fourth century b.c., which lost their freedom to Philip II of Macedon; England in the twenties and thirties, and the failure to stop Germany's aggression that led to World War II; and America's current war against Islamic jihad and the 30-year failure to counter Iran's attacks on the U.S. The inherent weaknesses of democracies and their bad habit of pursuing short-term interests at the expense of long-term security play a role in appeasement. But more important are the bad ideas people indulge, from idealized views of human nature to utopian notions like pacifism or disarmament. But especially important is the notion that diplomatic engagement and international institutions like the u.n. can resolve conflict and deter an aggressor––the delusion currently driving the Obama foreign policy in the middle east. Wages of Appeasement combines narrative history and cultural analysis to show how ideas can have dangerous and deadly consequences.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781594035500
Publisher:	Encounter Books
Publication date:	03/15/2011
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	352
File size:	391 KB

About the Author

Bruce S. Thornton is a past national fellow at the Hoover Institution and professor of Classics and Humanities at the California State University. He is the author of eight previous books and numerous essays on western culture and its roots.

Table of Contents

Introduction: The Temptation of Hector XI

Chapter 1 Athens and Philip II 1

Chapter 2 England and Germany 65

Chapter 3 America and Jihad 147

Conclusion: The Hamlet of Nations 271

Notes 285

Index 317