When Reason Fails: Portraits of Armies at War: America, Britain, Israel, and the Future Studies in Military History and International Affairs

A nation's fighting forces are often believed to embody a country's qualities of determination, resourcefulness, and courage. This study examines the influences of these qualities from the viewpoint of the American Army in Vietnam, the British Army in Northern Ireland, and the Israeli Army throughout its struggle in the Middle East.

It is a provocative look at corporate military character--operations, personalities, organizations, administrative policies, training, social factors, technology, strategy, and tactics--all elements that are woven tightly together to explain why national armies perform in the manner that they do. Goodspeed uses these historical case studies as the basis of his analysis, then explores the social, technical, and organizational issues that future armies will likely face.

He assesses the future of modern warfare in technical terms in the context of mass, mobility, firepower, and communications. The Duke of Wellington once scoffed, "Tell the history of a battle? One might as well describe the history of a ball." This book takes the Iron Duke's advice to heart and seeks to explain modern military victory and defeat in terms of corporate military character, a complex and fragile mosaic, one in which national temperament is only a minor feature.

In so doing, it takes on a subject long veiled in myth and invention. The social, political, and technical blueprints for the conduct of wars in the 21st century are already well established. Goodspeed illustrates these patterns by showing how armies have coped in the most influential campaigns of modern times and in this light assesses the key factors driving change for future wars.