Understanding how leaders make foreign policy and national security decisions is of paramount importance for the policy community and academia. This book explores how leaders such as Trump, Obama, Netanyahu and others make decisions using the Applied Decision Analysis (ADA) method. The chapters gathered here analyse the decisions made by key political figures around the world, past and present, in order to shed light on how these decisions are made and what policy implications they have for their own and other nations. Several chapters also focus on military decision making, including around pivotal times in history including the second world war and the evolution of nuclear warfare.

In this narrative overview, Embser-Herbert explores the history of the policy of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," (DADT) the federal law restricting the military service of gays, lesbians, and bisexuals. She traces the policy from its origins in the early 1990s through its evolution and implementation into law in the United States military and evaluates the impact of post-9/11 events on the military, the policy, and the ongoing debate surrounding the existence of the policy itself as lawmakers consider its repeal. Her three-part history of DADT begins with a brief look at earlier policies that preceded it, a discussion of events in 1992-1993 that resulted in the passage and implementation of the new law, and an examination of the law's impact on the military. She also compares the policy to that of other nations, such as Canada, Australia, and Great Britain, that eliminated similar restrictions as they sought ways to avoid a potential manpower shortage in their armed forces. The War on Terror has returned DADT to the public spotlight. Embser-Herbert examines U.S. experiences in Iraq and Afghanistan and what they can teach about gays and lesbians in the military. She concludes Part I with an analysis of whether the law might be repealed or overturned. Part II of the handbook provides summaries of key legal decisions, and Part III contains key documents, such as the language of the law itself and excerpts from current military regulations and training manuals. The book also includes a chronology of events, glossary of terms, and an annotated bibliography.

The small village in Pomerania in northern Germany provided a peaceful haven for the childhood years of author Ingeborg E. Ryals. But in 1939 the beginning of World War II irrevocably changed her idyllic life.

In this memoir Ryals shares her first hand experiences as the war began to affect every aspect of her life. At the age of fifteen, she had to dig trenches behind the front lines and spent many days hiding in fear of the Soviet Army as it invaded and pillaged her village. Diphtheria and typhoid epidemics swept the country. She survived a bout of diphtheria but lingered near death for days on end with typhoid fever. There was little food to sustain them. At the age of eighteen, she was shipped to a labor camp operated by the Russian military on an island in the Baltic Sea. Ryals also recounts her escape and her eventual marriage to an American.

With photos included, "The Tears of War" narrates a very real story of the tragedy of war. It shows Ryals' perseverance and her ability to overcome obstacles in an effort to survive.

Noted Middle East military expert Anthony H. Cordesman details the complex trends that come into play in determining the military balance in a region that has become so critical to world peace. This ready resource provides a wealth of information on military expenditures and major arms systems, as well as qualitative trends, by country and by zone. However, as Cordesman stresses, because the "greater Middle East" is more a matter of rhetoric than military reality, mere data summarizing trends in 23 different countries is no substitute for a substantive explanation. Using tables, graphs, and charts, this study explores every aspect of the regional military balance with attention to sub-regional balances, internal civil conflicts, and low level border tensions. The Middle East is certainly one of the most militarized areas in the world, and changes in technology, access to weapons of mass destruction, and political instability contribute to a situation that has long been in constant flux. Some of the regional flashpoints covered in this study include the Maghreb (North Africa); the Arab-Israeli conflict (dominated by Israel versus Syria); and the Gulf (divided into those states that view Iran as the primary threat and those who lived in fear of Iraq). Internal conflicts, such as those in Mauritania, Algeria, Libya, Egypt, Sudan, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and Yemen, increasingly dominate regional tensions. In addition, border conflicts within the region and with neighboring countries could further aggravate the delicate balance.

This book describes the evolving CBRN risk landscape and highlights advances in the "core" CBRN technologies, including when combined with (improvised) explosive devices (CBRNe threats). It analyses how associated technologies create new safety and security risks, challenging certain assumptions that underlie current control regimes. The book also shows how technologies can be enablers for more effective strategies to mitigate these risks. 21st-century safety and security risks emanating from chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear materials - whether resulting from natural events, accidents or malevolent use - are increasingly shaped by technologies that enable their development, production or use in ways that differ from the past. Artificial intelligence, the use of cyberspace, the revolution in the life sciences, new manufacturing methods, new platforms and equipment for agent delivery, hypersonic weapons systems, information tools utilised in hybrid warfare - these and other technologies are reshaping the global security environment and CBRN landscape. They are leading to a growing potential for highly targeted violence, and they can lead to greater instability and vulnerability worldwide. At the same time, technology offers solutions to manage CBRN risks. Examples are faster detection, more accurate characterisation of the nature and origin of CBRN agents, new forensic investigation methods, or new medical treatments for victims of CBRN incidents. New educational concepts help to foster a culture of responsibility in science and technology and strengthen governance. New training methods help develop practical skills to manage CBRN risks more effectively. The book concludes that there is a growing need for a holistic framework towards CBRN risk mitigation. Traditional arms control mechanisms such as global, regional or bilateral treaties and export controls are still needed, as they provide a necessary legal and institutional framework. But laws and technology denial alone will not suffice, and institutional mechanisms can at times be weak. Given the pace of technological progress and the diffusion of critical knowledge, tools and materials, policymakers must accept that CBRN risks cannot be eliminated altogether. Instead, society has to learn to manage these risks and develop resilience against them. This requires a "softer", broadly based multi-stakeholder approach involving governments, industry, the research and development communities, educators, and civil society. Furthermore, educating policymakers that cutting-edge technologies may seriously affect global strategic stability could create incentives for developing a more creative and contemporary arms control strategy that fosters cooperation rather than incremental polarisation.

After his graduation in 1941 from Canoga Park High School, Harry Carter wanted a career in aviation. He was accepted into the United States Navy as an aviation cadet and upon completion of flight training, became a commissioned officer in the US Navy thus beginning his thirty-one-year career as a naval aviator and a commanding officer of three warships and service in a diplomatic post as the Naval Attache to Pakistan.

Full of vivid historical details and anecdotes, The Life and Loves of a Untied States Naval Aviator charts Carter's professional and personal journey in the air and on the sea and in foreign lands. Carter shares his experiences of flying out of England and the Azores during World War II and hurricane hunting in the Caribbean. He takes you through his wartime days as a surface line officer operating off the coast of Korea and Vietnam in destroyers, a carrier, and a fleet oiler.

Carter, never one to turn down a pretty girl, met his match when, while attending a Navy program at the University of Southern California, he met and married the love of his life, Ellie. Carter returned to sea in command of the destroyer Durant and continued to have a career full of foreign intrigue and adventure-minus the ladies---until his retirement in 1973. Through four wars, several countries, and a lot of romance, Carter lived life to the fullest.

The Life and Loves of a United States Naval Aviator combines history, humor, and reflection to reveal one man's extraordinary life.

It all seemed so picture-perfect. It was a typical fall evening in Woonsocket, Rhode Island, in 1965 when John Gouin, a twelve-year-old boy with big dreams came home from football practice and sat down at the dinner table with his mother. But when the front door slammed loudly shut, John and his mother anticipated the worst. His father was a man lost within his own anger.

In his compelling memoir "An Unforgettable Salute," Gouin chronicles his lifelong battle to please his alcoholic father, his attempts to stop the physical abuse, and his journey to psychological healing that eventually culminated in a heartwarming final exchange with his gravely ill father. After describing a childhood during which he was physically beaten and emotionally scarred, Gouin details his dream of playing in the NFL, which lasted until a devastating injury ended his football career. After struggling to find his calling, Gouin eventually joined the army, where he learned self-discipline and the leadership skills that later guided him to achieve professional success as a podiatric surgeon.

"An Unforgettable Salute" is the true story of one man who rose from the silent side of abuse to achieve healing, happiness, success, and most of all, peace.