The Sling and the Stone: On War in the 21st Century (Zenith Military Classics) - Hardcover

Hammes USMC, Colonel Thomas X.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0760320594 ISBN 13: 9780760320594

Publisher: Zenith Press, 2004

Synopsis

Ongoing events in Iraq show how difficult it is for the world's only remaining superpower to impose its will upon other peoples. From Vietnam, French and US, to Afghanistan, Russian and US, to Israel and the Palestinians, to Somalia and Kosovo, recent history is replete with powerful military forces being tied up by seemingly weaker opponents. This is Fourth Generation War (4GW), and Colonel Thomas Hammes, United States Marine Corps, tells you all about it. The author explains asymetrical warfare (4GW) as the means by which Davids can defeat Goliaths.Answers to the "hows" of this along with recommendations for prescriptive actions are found in Thomas Hammes insightful book on the strengths and weaknesses of coventional military power. Hammes, a full colonel on active duty in the Marine Corps is an expert at asymetrical warfare, perhaps better known as fourth generation warfare (4GW). This is the means by which Davids can defeat Goliaths.Colonel Hammes is well placed to write this study. As a career-Marine he has trained 4GW warriors in some places and fought against them in others. He has also made a lifelong study of military history which helps him illuminate the previous three generations of armed conflict and define and detail the newest, fourth generation of war.- An insider's look at the military dilemma now facing U.S. forces worldwide- Gives historical examples to support the ideas behind the transformation of warfare in the 21st century- A handbook to understanding asymetrical warfare"Colonel Hammes cuts to the quick in defining the conundrum of dealing with twenty-first century warfare, the competing concepts of its nature and its management. His is a controversial analysis which is bound to raise the hackles of today's techno warriors ."-Bernard Trainor, Lieutenant General, USMC (Ret.), NBC News military analyst, co-author of The Generals"Based in history and current events, Tom Hammes explains the nasty, long-term, broad-spectrum wars we have fought

About this title

About the Author:

A graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy and a career Marine, Thomas Hammes has spent most of his twenty-eight years serving in infantry and intelligence assignments. Colonel Hammes is considered by many in the defense community as the foremost expert in insurgent warfare. He has written numerous articles on defense issues and has appeared on PBS News Hour and other cable and network broadcasts. He is a senior military fellow at the National Defense University. He lives with his family in northern Virginia.

Review:

Military Review, March/April 2007
“Can a two-and-one-half-year-old book be reviewed as a classic? It can, and should, if it says the kinds of smart, prescient things that Hammes had to say in 2004. The Sling and the Stone was written to appeal to a vast and diverse audience. It provides numerous jewels of information for the general reader as well as senior military leaders, military operational planners and supporters, interagency personnel, and U.S. political leaders who are looking for a provocative read to aid them in making informed decisions in support of U.S. national security. Since its first publication, this visionary book has ignited others in public and private life to read, research, write, and advocate for the United States to change its defense posture in order to meet the challenge posed by the advent of 4GW. Many of Hammes’ ideas have now been adopted by the military and are currently in practice in Iraq and Afghanistan. Other ideas are being studied extensively within the Washington Beltway. U.S. homeland security and counterinsurgency doctrines have also been strongly influenced and shaped by this book. Hammes has truly been a catalyst for change ... Hammes’s book is truly an enlightening must-read for Military Review’s readers, particularly those attending career military schools. It should remain so for many years to come.”

Parameters: U.S. Army War College Quarterly, Autumn 2005“This is a stimulating – nay, provocative – book that should cause military readers and all associated with the security of the United States to question their fundamental assumptions. It is also a gutsy book because the author, a serving officer, asserts in effect that the Secretary of Defense, his team in the Pentagon, and the Joint Chiefs of Staff are wrong in the way they are fighting the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. He further contends that the United States stands a good chance of losing its wars in the future unless the forces confront the realities of warfare in this century.”

About this edition

• Publisher: Zenith Press
• Publication date: 2004
• ISBN 10: 0760320594
• ISBN 13: 9780760320594
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 336