The Imperial Republic (el. knyga) (skaityta knyga) | knygos.lt

Aprašymas

The Imperial Republic based as it is on Raymond Aron'srealist philosophy, is involved only indirectly or by implicationin the disputes about moralism, revisionism,and even imperialism. Its main aim is to account forthe diplomacy of the United States as it was in a specialtime period. Like all diplomacy, it can be explained onlywithin the system of inter-state relations to which theprotagonist belongs.United States diplomacy during the twenty- eight yearperiod of 1945-73 is examined from strategic, political,and moral stand points were in diplomats openly declaredtheir aim, and did they achieve it? Does the result justifyaccusations either of incompetence or of imperialism? Doesnot the reaction within the United States to a policy whichhad been a striking success now induce second thoughtsabout both the policy and its results? The imperial republicis trying to throw off its burden; once a missionary, it haslost the sense of mission; it is still capitalist, but its spoiledchildren no longer believe in money; it was puritan, but itscities abound in sex shops; it regards itself as scientific,yet mystical and nudist sects are common.The reader is not asked to endorse Aron's paradoxicalinterpretations, but to try to discover the reasons for anydisagreement he may feel regarding differences in politicaljudgment. People who have acquired the habit of thinkingof the contemporary world in Manichaean terms-interms of the reduction of whole populations to slavery bymonsters, or in terms of capitalism, imperialism, or revisionism-may be out raged by a book that is not concernedwith grounds for outrage and in which there are neithervillains nor heroes; but rather with mixed messages bydecentpolicymakers. At the time of its initial publicationThe Times Literary Supplement called The ImperialRepublic "an important book"no other author does somuch." It remains so!