Terror and Consent: The Wars for the Twenty-first Century

Terror and Consent: The Wars for the Twenty-first Century

by PhilipBobbitt (Author)

Synopsis

The wars against terror have begun, but it will take some time before the nature and composition of these wars is widely understood. The objective of these wars is not the conquest of territory, or the silencing of any particular ideology, but rather to secure the necessary environment for states to operate according to principles of consent and make it impossible for our enemies to impose or induce states of terror. "Terror and Consent" argues that, like so many states and civilizations in the past that suffered defeat, we are fighting the last war, with weapons and concepts that were useful to us then but have now been superseded.Philip Bobbitt argues that we need to reforge links that previous societies have made between law and strategy; to realize how the evolution of modern states has now produced a globally networked terrorism that will change as fast as we can identify it; to combine humanitarian interests with strategies of intervention; and, above all, to rethink what 'victory' in such a war, if it is a war, might look like - no occupied capitals, no treaties, no victory parades, but the preservation, protection and defence of states of consent. This is one of the most challenging and wide-ranging books of any kind about our modern world.

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More Information

Format: Hardcover
Pages: 688
Edition: 1st Edition
Publisher: Allen Lane
Published: 29 May 2008

ISBN 10: 0713997842
ISBN 13: 9780713997842

Media Reviews
In this thrilling book, Philip Bobbitt bravely confronts the myths that confound our understanding of terrorism and provides a new way of understanding this phenomenon. He does us the favor of not only describing the traps we've fallen into, but also the ways of escape.
--Lawrence Wright, author of The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11
In this original, provocative, and deeply researched book, a superb scholar addresses some of the most basic and vital issues of our time. Philip Bobbitt's Terror and Consent deserves to be widely read, debated and absorbed.
-- Michael Beschloss, author of Presidential Courage

Philip Bobbitt has taken our understanding of terrorism -- and of how to defeat it -- to a deeper level. This brave book confronts us with the knowledge that the worst is yet to come, and it points the way for America and its allies to counter the new breed of shadowy, ultra-violent adversaries. More importantly, Terror and Consent wisely shows how governments can do this without sacrificing their legitimacy as guarantors of human rights. This is truly the book for our times.
--Steven Simon, Senior Fellow, Council on Foreign Relations and co-author of Age of Sacred Terror
Terror and Consent is the most profound analysis of the wars against terror. Bobbitt puts the threat in its proper historical and theoretical context, explains its relationship to globalization, international law and the domestic constitutional structure and offers tough-minded but humane prescriptions. No one understands the challenge of the terror threat in all its dimensions as well as Philip Bobbitt.
--Jack Goldsmith, Shattuck Professor of Law, HarvardLaw School and author of The Terror Presidency
Philip Bobbitt has long been one of the most thoughtful and wise commentators on the state of the modern world and the challenge that it faces. But in this book, he sets out with clarity and courage the first really comprehensive analysis of the struggle against terror and what we can do to win it. Above all, he understands that this war is new in every aspect of its nature -- how it has come about, the profound threat that it poses, how it has to be fought and the revolution in traditional thinking necessary to achieve victory. It may be written by an academic but it is actually required reading for political leaders.
--Tony Blair
[A] complex and provocative analysis of the West's ongoing struggle against terrorism. Terror and Consent merits wide circulation and serious consideration.
-- Publishers Weekly

A distinguished scholar proposes an entirely new way of understanding and combating modern terrorism. Bobbitt keeps his feet on the ground, boldly offering detailed real-world proposals to combat the problems he outlines.
-- Kirkus

Philip Bobbitt is perhaps the outstanding political philosopher of our time. Terror and Consent is simply indispensable for our understanding, yet it is as readable as it is profound.
--Henry Kissinger
Philip Bobbitt has long been one of the most thoughtful and wise commentators on the state of the modern world and the challenge that it faces. But in this book, he sets out with clarity and courage the first really comprehensive analysis of the struggle against terror and what we can do to win it. Above all, he understands that this war is new in every aspect of its nature -- how it has come about, the profound threat that it poses, how it has to be fought and the revolution in traditional thinking necessary to achieve victory. It may be written by an academic but it is actually required reading for political leaders.
--Tony Blair
In this thrilling book, Philip Bobbitt bravely confronts the myths that confound our understanding of terrorism and provides a new way of understanding this phenomenon. He does us the favor of not only describing the traps we've fallen into, but also the ways of escape.
--Lawrence Wright, author of The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11
In this original, provocative, and deeply researched book, a superb scholar addresses some of the most basic and vital issues of our time. Philip Bobbitt's Terror and Consent deserves to be widely read, debated and absorbed.
-- Michael Beschloss, author of Presidential Courage

Philip Bobbitt has taken our understanding of terrorism -- and of how to defeat it -- to a deeper level. This brave book confronts us with the knowledge that the worst is yet to come, and it pointsthe way for America and its allies to counter the new breed of shadowy, ultra-violent adversaries. More importantly, Terror and Consent wisely shows how governments can do this without sacrificing their legitimacy as guarantors of human rights. This is truly the book for our times.
--Steven Simon, Senior Fellow, Council on Foreign Relations and co-author of Age of Sacred Terror
Terror and Consent is the most profound analysis of the wars against terror. Bobbitt puts the threat in its proper historical and theoretical context, explains its relationship to globalization, international law and the domestic constitutional structure and offers tough-minded but humane prescriptions. No one understands the challenge of the terror threat in all its dimensions as well as Philip Bobbitt.
--Jack Goldsmith, Shattuck Professor of Law, Harvard Law School and author of The Terror Presidency
[A] complex and provocative analysis of the West's ongoing struggle against terrorism. Terror and Consent merits wide circulation and serious consideration.
-- Publishers Weekly
A distinguished scholar proposes an entirely new way of understanding and combating modern terrorism. Bobbitt keeps his feet on the ground, boldly offering detailed real-world proposals to combat the problems he outlines.
-- Kirkus

Bobbitt aims for the big picture and succeeds . . . Not just another book about terrorism, this is a complete theory of constitutional evolution and a sophisticated set of far-reaching policy prescriptions. -- Booklist

Brilliant . . . This is quite simply the most profound book to have been written on the subject of American foreign policy since the attacks of 9/11--indeed, since the end of the cold war . . . It should be read, marked and inwardly digested by all three of the remaining candidates to succeed George W. Bush as president of the United States.
--Niall Ferguson, The New York Times Book Review

Philip Bobbitt is perhaps the outstanding political philosopher of our time. Terror and Consent is simply indispensable for our understanding, yet it is as readable as it is profound.
--Henry Kissinger
Philip Bobbitt has long been one of the most thoughtful and wise commentators on the state of the modern world and the challenge that it faces. But in this book, he sets out with clarity and courage the first really comprehensive analysis of the struggle against terror and what we can do to win it. Above all, he understands that this war is new in every aspect of its nature -- how it has come about, the profound threat that it poses, how it has to be fought and the revolution in traditional thinking necessary to achieve victory. It may be written by an academic but it is actually required reading for political leaders.
--Tony Blair
In this thrilling book, Philip Bobbitt bravely confronts the myths that confound our understanding of terrorism and provides a new way of understanding this phenomenon. He does us the favor of not only describing the traps we've fallen into, but also the ways of escape.
--Lawrence Wright, author of The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11
Powerful . . . Brilliant . . . There is so much to think about in this book that thedisagreements it inspires are part of its value. --Edward Rothstein, The New York Times

Brilliant, provocative and critically important . . . Terror and Consent should be mandatory reading for all residents of the United States. --Ian Graham, New York Sun

In this original, provocative, and deeply researched book, a superb scholar addresses some of the most basic and vital issues of our time. Philip Bobbitt's Terror and Consent deserves to be widely read, debated and absorbed.
-- Michael Beschloss, author of Presidential Courage

Philip Bobbitt has taken our understanding of terrorism -- and of how to defeat it -- to a deeper level. This brave book confronts us with the knowledge that the worst is yet to come, and it points the way for America and its allies to counter the new breed of shadowy, ultra-violent adversaries. More importantly, Terror and Consent wisely shows how governments can do this without sacrificing their legitimacy as guarantors of human rights. This is truly the book for our times.
--Steven Simon, Senior Fellow, Council on Foreign Relations and co-author of Age of Sacred Terror
Terror and Consent is the most profound analysis of the wars against terror. Bobbitt puts the threat in its proper historical and theoretical context, explains its relationship to globalization, international law and the domestic constitutional structure and offers tough-minded but humane prescriptions. No one understands the challenge of the terror threat in all its dimensions as well as Philip Bobbitt.
--Jack Goldsmith, Shattuck Professor of Law, Harvard Law School and author of The Terror Presidency
Magisterial . . . 'important'barely begins to characterize this book.
--Craig Seligman, Bloomberg News
Bobbitt may well be a prophet . . . Terror and Consent is the product not only of immense erudition but also of broad practical experience.
--Ben Martin, The Advocate (Baton Rouge)

[A] complex and provocative analysis of the West's ongoing struggle against terrorism. Terror and Consent merits wide circulation and serious consideration.
-- Publishers Weekly
A distinguished scholar proposes an entirely new way of understanding and combating modern terrorism. Bobbitt keeps his feet on the ground, boldly offering detailed real-world proposals to combat the problems he outlines.
-- Kirkus

Bobbitt aims for the big picture and succeeds . . . Not just another book about terrorism, this is a complete theory of constitutional evolution and a sophisticated set of far-reaching policy prescriptions. -- Booklist
Author Bio
Philip Bobbitt has served as a senior adviser at the White House, the Senate and the State Department in both Democratic and Republican administrations, and has held senior posts at the National Security Council, including Director for Intelligence Programs and Senior Director for Strategic Planning. He is currently Professor of Law and Director of the Center for National Security, Columbia University; and Senior Fellow, the Strauss Center for Law and International Security, the University of Texas. He has been Anderson Senior Research Fellow at Nuffield College, Oxford, where he was a member of the Oxford Modern History Faculty, and Marsh Christian Senior Fellow of War Studies at King's College, London. He is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and has written books on nuclear strategy, social choice and constitutional law, as well as the celebrated The Shield of Achilles (Allen Lane/Penguin 2002). He lives in Austin, New York and London.