World War IV: The Long Struggle Against Islamofascism
by Norman Podhoretz
Published by Vintage Books
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Reviewed by Diane Snyder
Since the title of this non-fiction book is World War IV, you have to wonder what happened to World War III and how you missed it.
Well, the author, Norman Podhoretz, past editor of “Commentary Magazine,” postulates that World War III began in 1947 and ended in 1989. That period is better known as “the cold war.” World War IV became “our moment and our mission” on September 11, 2001 with the terrorist attack on New York City and is still in progress. However, as he points out, earlier terrorist acts led us up to that place and time.
In his book, he has brought together many opinions, excerpts from articles and speeches that address our involvement in current military actions. In the chapter entitled “The Mainstream Media,” the author asserts that as progress grows in Iraq, the media coverage and support goes down. In other chapters, he lists three schools of thought–or “devotees of the Vietnam syndrome”–that have a collective interest in our failure in Iraq: the Isolationists, the Liberal Internationalists and the Realists.
Originally written and issued in 2007, World War IV has been reprinted with a 2008 postscript that is very timely. The author has assumed that Obama has gained the Democratic nomination for president and proceeds to discuss the differences between Obama and McCain on their views and strategies dealing with the Iraq war and, what he calls,” Islamofascism.” He does not address domestic issues but keeps a good focus on Iraq/Islamofascism, some of our foreign policies and relationships with other foreign governments, at the same time putting them into an historical perspective.
World War IV is very readable and not difficult to comprehend. The author provides a good historical background and a broad perspective on many of the foreign policy issues. Whether or not you agree with the author’s views and analysis (he states that he is neoconservative), this book is still very informative and useful in gaining more insight into some of the arguments surrounding the war in Iraq and some of our other foreign involvements.
Armchair Interviews says: A very timely read.