In Irons: U.S. Military Might in the New Century

Washington, DC: National Defense University, 1995. Trade paperback. Very good. 24 cm. xiii, [5], 280, [2] pages. Wraps. Illustrations. Tables. Figures. Footnotes. Index. This was published in cooperation with The Center for Naval Analyses. Harlan Kenneth Ullman (born March 15, 1941[citation needed]), is Chairman of the Killowen Group that advises leaders of government and business; Chairman of CNIGuard Ltd and CNIGuard Inc, engaged in protection of critical infrastructure; Senior Advisor of the Atlantic Council in Washington, DC. A former naval officer, he has commanded destroyers as well as Swift Boats in Vietnam in over 150 combat patrols and actions. Ullman was the principal author of the doctrine of "shock and awe" and was a product of the National Defense University of the United States. This concept is technically known as "rapid dominance" and is a military doctrine based on the use of "overwhelming decisive force," and "spectacular displays of power" to "paralyze" an adversary's perception of the battlefield and destroy his will to fight. The author states that unless the United States takes powerful remedial action, or is very lucky, before the end of the 20th century the erosion in American military power will lead to profound decline, decay, or worse. Engrossing and balanced view. The haunting possibility that U.S. military power might be lapsing into strategic decline is the driving concern of this study. What disturbs the author most is the possibility that this decline may be the result of inattention and neglect, rather than a deliberate--if unfortunate, in his judgment--strategic contraction of U.S. power. This, his first task is to convince the reader that the current reduction is, in fact, critically and historically different from other postwar decreases. This task is complicated because, on balance, most agree that the U.S. Armed Forces are today unchallenged by any credible opponent anywhere in the world. But there is cause for concern, as the author ably demonstrates, before going on to suggest specific remedies.