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Defense & Foreign Affairs Daily
July 16, 2007
Essential Reading: A Safari Ride of Opinions, Views As Varied As the Jungle
Seeing the Elephant: The US Role in Global Security. By Hans Binnendijk and Richard L. Kugler. Washington DC, 2006. National Defense University Press and Potomac Books, Inc. ISBN-13: 978-1-59797-099-0. Paperback, 317pp, tables, notes, index. $30.
Hans Binnendijk and Richard L. Kugler's compilation of over 60 post-Cold War published enquiries into the nature and quality of the United States' national security outlook is a reminder that analysts could always use help when faced with the multitude of opinions concerning US analytic strategy.
Their new book, Seeing the Elephant: The US Role in Global Security, begins with a preface stating that its intended audience is students within US war colleges and continues to detail the significance of "seeing the elephant" at an international level following a definition of the key phrase. The two definitions provided in the preface assert the value of "seeing the elephant" and serve the reader to understand exactly why such a book is valuable. The first definition describes a Buddhist tale which speaks of a group of blind men who each can touch one part of the elephant but could never comprehend the entire animal without reference to what another blind man can describe. While authors of the books in question are not blind, Binnendijk and Kugler appropriately assert that there cannot be a successful global strategy without understanding the entire spectrum of opinions as one whole.
The second definition of the phrase "seeing the elephant" describes how it was commonly used during the US Civil War when recounting the experience of a once-naïve soldier who just endured his first battle. The soldier "saw the elephant" through a first-hand experience of battle and subsequently had no need to rely on second-hand interpretations.
Binnendijk and Kugler attempted to use references works which they feel had defined late 20th and early 21st century strategic thinking.
What is the value of "seeing the elephant" in relation to the United States' rôle within a newly-volatile global sphere, something which Defense & Foreign Affairs has referred to as "the Age of Global Transformation"? This question steers the reader through the 317 pages of summaries and analysis of more than 60 seminal books by authors such as Samuel Huntington, Zbigniew Brzesinski, Thomas L. Friedman, and Henry Kissinger. Most of the publications which Binnendijk and Kulger included had already proven useful to the US strategic and diplomatic strategy. These summaries were separated into five chapters entitled:
1. A Neo-Kantian World of Progress
2. A Neo-Hobbesian World of Turmoil
3. A New Age of Empowerment
4. US National Security Goals and Constraints
5. US Defense Strategies
Each chapter contains summaries of 10 to 12 books and includes Binnendijk and Kulger's reasoning behind their categorization. The terms "neo-Kantian" and "neo-Hobbesian" are the basis for the analytical trajectory of the book as it provides a simple separation of each book into an optimistic (neo-Kantian) approach versus a pessimistic (neo-Hobbesian) philosophical outlook on global issues. For instance, Francis Fukuyama's The End of History and the Last Man, published in 1992, is portrayed as a neo-Kantian book which concluded that the "triumph of democracy over communism" would result in democracy's global spread in the coming decades. This positive outlook contrasted with the negative, neo-Hobbesian view of Robert Kaplan, who in 1994 published his book, The Coming Anarchy: Shattering the Dreams of the Post Cold War, which found that democracy was unattainable in much of the underdeveloped world and that promoting it was not likely to provide the final solution to global issues.
While the many summaries detailed, and highlight the main purpose and impact of each respective book, the heart of each chapter lies in the final discussion in which the authors always knitted together what may initially seem to be extraneous book analysis into a well considered holistic view of many differing opinions which helped shape global strategy in the years following the Cold War.
The final chapter is when the reader finally is able to supposedly "see the elephant" following the previous chapter discussions. This chapter, appropriately entitled "Seeing the Elephant", is entirely an analysis which provides Binnendijk and Kulger's overall interpretation as to what the confluence of strategic opinions means for the future of US global strategy, and how the US could benefit from taking a step back in order to understand all points of view.
Essentially, the authors outline five key challenges which the US faced in light of the analysis of the first three chapters, finding that while there was a need to continue globalization, there must be a balance between the US' attempt to regain its lost image as a rôle model while also maintaining a strong defense system. This defense system must understand the new issues of troubled regions, such as radical religious ideology, and must address these issues immediately, or the US would face a second day like September 11, 2001.
Binnendijk and Kulger called for a unity between military force, economic aid, coordinated diplomacy, and shared intelligence as a means to combat these global issues. Additionally, they highlighted a threat rising between nations with strong economies, such as India and the People's Republic of China, which may not possess political stability. The authors found that the US must maintain political cooperation with these nations in order to avoid and destroy global threats. The authors also offered their suggestions for future US national security and defense strategy, which appropriately would combine military, economic, and diplomatic strategies.
In its essence, the value of Binnendijk and Kulger's investigation is summarized when they state: "A central conclusion stemming from the intersection of neo-Kantian and neo-Hobbesian perspective is that no single opportunity, problem, danger or threat holds the key to the world's future. What matters is all of them together and how they interact in the coming years". These two authors remind their readers that one belief cannot comprise a whole solution, but rather, there must be a given regard to all beliefs in order to find an appropriate solution.
Seeing the Elephant: The US Role in Global Security offers an insightful and fresh method of deciphering a majority of the opinions which have shaped US global security strategy, but the extensive analyses and summarizations may perhaps be unnecessary to the well-read and already strategically-minded individual. Binnendijk and Kulger recognize this, however, and have compiled a wonderful book which offers their educated and experienced perspective as an appropriate reference for students and anyone within academia seeking a quick brush up on the writings of many US seminal authors on the subject of global security.
July 16, 2007
Essential Reading: A Safari Ride of Opinions, Views As Varied As the Jungle
Seeing the Elephant: The US Role in Global Security. By Hans Binnendijk and Richard L. Kugler. Washington DC, 2006. National Defense University Press and Potomac Books, Inc. ISBN-13: 978-1-59797-099-0. Paperback, 317pp, tables, notes, index. $30.
Hans Binnendijk and Richard L. Kugler's compilation of over 60 post-Cold War published enquiries into the nature and quality of the United States' national security outlook is a reminder that analysts could always use help when faced with the multitude of opinions concerning US analytic strategy.
Their new book, Seeing the Elephant: The US Role in Global Security, begins with a preface stating that its intended audience is students within US war colleges and continues to detail the significance of "seeing the elephant" at an international level following a definition of the key phrase. The two definitions provided in the preface assert the value of "seeing the elephant" and serve the reader to understand exactly why such a book is valuable. The first definition describes a Buddhist tale which speaks of a group of blind men who each can touch one part of the elephant but could never comprehend the entire animal without reference to what another blind man can describe. While authors of the books in question are not blind, Binnendijk and Kugler appropriately assert that there cannot be a successful global strategy without understanding the entire spectrum of opinions as one whole.
The second definition of the phrase "seeing the elephant" describes how it was commonly used during the US Civil War when recounting the experience of a once-naïve soldier who just endured his first battle. The soldier "saw the elephant" through a first-hand experience of battle and subsequently had no need to rely on second-hand interpretations.
Binnendijk and Kugler attempted to use references works which they feel had defined late 20th and early 21st century strategic thinking.
What is the value of "seeing the elephant" in relation to the United States' rôle within a newly-volatile global sphere, something which Defense & Foreign Affairs has referred to as "the Age of Global Transformation"? This question steers the reader through the 317 pages of summaries and analysis of more than 60 seminal books by authors such as Samuel Huntington, Zbigniew Brzesinski, Thomas L. Friedman, and Henry Kissinger. Most of the publications which Binnendijk and Kulger included had already proven useful to the US strategic and diplomatic strategy. These summaries were separated into five chapters entitled:
1. A Neo-Kantian World of Progress
2. A Neo-Hobbesian World of Turmoil
3. A New Age of Empowerment
4. US National Security Goals and Constraints
5. US Defense Strategies
Each chapter contains summaries of 10 to 12 books and includes Binnendijk and Kulger's reasoning behind their categorization. The terms "neo-Kantian" and "neo-Hobbesian" are the basis for the analytical trajectory of the book as it provides a simple separation of each book into an optimistic (neo-Kantian) approach versus a pessimistic (neo-Hobbesian) philosophical outlook on global issues. For instance, Francis Fukuyama's The End of History and the Last Man, published in 1992, is portrayed as a neo-Kantian book which concluded that the "triumph of democracy over communism" would result in democracy's global spread in the coming decades. This positive outlook contrasted with the negative, neo-Hobbesian view of Robert Kaplan, who in 1994 published his book, The Coming Anarchy: Shattering the Dreams of the Post Cold War, which found that democracy was unattainable in much of the underdeveloped world and that promoting it was not likely to provide the final solution to global issues.
While the many summaries detailed, and highlight the main purpose and impact of each respective book, the heart of each chapter lies in the final discussion in which the authors always knitted together what may initially seem to be extraneous book analysis into a well considered holistic view of many differing opinions which helped shape global strategy in the years following the Cold War.
The final chapter is when the reader finally is able to supposedly "see the elephant" following the previous chapter discussions. This chapter, appropriately entitled "Seeing the Elephant", is entirely an analysis which provides Binnendijk and Kulger's overall interpretation as to what the confluence of strategic opinions means for the future of US global strategy, and how the US could benefit from taking a step back in order to understand all points of view.
Essentially, the authors outline five key challenges which the US faced in light of the analysis of the first three chapters, finding that while there was a need to continue globalization, there must be a balance between the US' attempt to regain its lost image as a rôle model while also maintaining a strong defense system. This defense system must understand the new issues of troubled regions, such as radical religious ideology, and must address these issues immediately, or the US would face a second day like September 11, 2001.
Binnendijk and Kulger called for a unity between military force, economic aid, coordinated diplomacy, and shared intelligence as a means to combat these global issues. Additionally, they highlighted a threat rising between nations with strong economies, such as India and the People's Republic of China, which may not possess political stability. The authors found that the US must maintain political cooperation with these nations in order to avoid and destroy global threats. The authors also offered their suggestions for future US national security and defense strategy, which appropriately would combine military, economic, and diplomatic strategies.
In its essence, the value of Binnendijk and Kulger's investigation is summarized when they state: "A central conclusion stemming from the intersection of neo-Kantian and neo-Hobbesian perspective is that no single opportunity, problem, danger or threat holds the key to the world's future. What matters is all of them together and how they interact in the coming years". These two authors remind their readers that one belief cannot comprise a whole solution, but rather, there must be a given regard to all beliefs in order to find an appropriate solution.
Seeing the Elephant: The US Role in Global Security offers an insightful and fresh method of deciphering a majority of the opinions which have shaped US global security strategy, but the extensive analyses and summarizations may perhaps be unnecessary to the well-read and already strategically-minded individual. Binnendijk and Kulger recognize this, however, and have compiled a wonderful book which offers their educated and experienced perspective as an appropriate reference for students and anyone within academia seeking a quick brush up on the writings of many US seminal authors on the subject of global security.
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