An End to Evil: How to Win the War on Terror

Abstract

David Frum and Richard PerleNew York: Random House, 2003. 284pp, $37.95 cloth (ISBN 1-4000-6194-6)If you think that Donald Rumsfeld is too subtle and soft-spoken, this is book for you. David Frum, a Canadian former speech writer for President Bush who helped coin phrase the Axis of Evil, and Richard Perle, a leading hawk during Cold War and a strong advocate of overthrow of Saddam Hussein, mount a vigorous a defence of Bush war on terror and extend line of reasoning to areas in which administration has so far lacked courage of its instincts. Supporters of president will find book right on target; critics will see it as triumph of ideology over objective appraisal. It is hard to imagine anyone being persuaded by it. Furthermore, in end authors do not deliver on sub-title, How to Win War on Terror.Frum and Perle do a fine job of laying out administration's case. They argue that only way to combat terrorism is to wage war on it, not treat it as a criminal enterprise to be met by legal instruments, as Clinton supposedly did. Terrorism itself (not specifically defined) is enemy of civilization and US cannot give a free pass to groups like Hamas that claim to be acting in a just cause. The US has enormous power and must not shrink from using it to coerce countries like Iran and Syria that sponsor terrorists and yet claim clean hands. Saudi Arabia is a particular problem since regime seeks benefits of being an American ally while spreading Wahhabi extremism throughout Muslim world. The US must make clear that these activities will not be tolerated and back up its threats with full panoply of political, economic, and--as a last resort--military instruments. The Saudi royal family, for example, should be reminded that oil-rich eastern region is heavily populated with Shiites who might be quite happy to secede. The Europeans of course can be counted on to oppose any strong actions. They are not powerful enough to do much on their own, resent American influence and idealism, and have no stomach for confronting a dangerous world. But as American policy succeeds in Iraq and elsewhere, supporters of a free society in Third World will take heart and tyrants will pull back, leading to greater successes and support for American policy.This book is avowedly one of advocacy, not disinterested analysis. There is nothing wrong with this, but best books of this type engage most sophisticated alternatives. Frum and Perle do not. With exception of whether US should seek a compromise in dispute between Israelis and Palestinians, they do not bother telling reader why anyone might disagree with them. This makes book misleading for people who are not well informed and disappointing for those who are, and both groups are left in dark as to how authors would engage in a more serious dialogue. To take just one example, issue of how US and other countries should balance protection of civil liberties and need to vigorously pursue terrorists is a crucial and vexing one. …