A soldier of revolution
The wars of the French Revolution are justifiably dominated by the masterful figure of Napoleon. His rapid rise to power, initially as general, then as First Consul and ultimately as Emperor has created the popular perception of the epoch. But by the time Napoleon began his meteoric rise to power the revolution itself was well established. The author of this book Moreau de Jonnes was a true child of the revolutionary period. Taken from his studies as a future lawyer in 1791 he never again returned to his intended profession. He was drafted into the National Guard during the doomed attempt at constitutional monarchy and thereafter into the Marine Artillery where he began an experience of continual war for the next 15 years. We follow de Jonnes to the siege of Toulon, to engagements against the Royal Navy at sea, to Quiberon Bay, the Irish Rebellion and finally to service in the Caribbean. This is an unusual and rare first hand account of the early years that formed the First Empire and is not to be missed by any student of the period.

It is often said that a woman must do a job twice as well as a man in order to get half the credit. This is particularly true of women in law enforcement. Women have been involved in various forms of policing for the last 100 years, but it wasn't until the Equal Employment Act of 1970 that women could move from the job of meter maids to patrol and detective work. Yet less than 1% of all top-level cops are women, and there remain significant obstacles in the career paths of women in the force. This book looks at the history of women police officers and provides first-hand accounts of women at every level, including those who drop out. It addresses discrimination, competition, lack of mentoring, differential treatment and sexual harrassment, examining what issues play into the decision to stick it out or leave that many policewomen face. It also considers the family issues these women return home to at the end of the day. It is often said that a woman must do a job twice as well as a man in order to get half the credit. This is particularly true of women in law enforcement. Women have been involved in various forms of policing for the last 100 years, but it wasn't until the Equal Employment Act of 1970 that women could move from the job of meter maids to patrol and detective work. Yet less than 1% of all top-level cops are women, and there remain significant obstacles in the career paths of women in the force. This book looks at the history of women police officers and provides first-hand accounts of women at every level, including those who drop out. It addresses discrimination, competition, lack of mentoring, differential treatment, and sexual harrassment. It looks at what plays into the decision to stick it out or leave that many policewomen face. It also considers the family issues these women return home to at the end of the day. Unlike other treatments of the subject, Alt and Wells show how women have changed police work into a more community-oriented model of policing, reduced police violence, served as a strong force to promote a more effective response to domestic violence within police departments, and helped with community-police relations. With a combination of first-hand accounts, careful research, and lively analysis, the authors are able to convey the actual experiences of women who have made their careers behind the shield.

Beat your plowshares into swords, and your pruninghooks into spears: let the weak say I am strong.-Joel 3:10

Beating Plowshares into Swords inaugurates an extraordinarily ambitious effort by Paul Koistinen to compose a comprehensive and wide-ranging study on the economics of American warfare from the colonial period to the present. When completed, this multi-volume project will stand as the definitive work on a complex subject that until now has been superficially treated or completely ignored.

Koistinen focuses not upon battlefields and battles but upon the means used to make and sustain the armies and navies that have fought in such horrific arenas. Drawing upon a vast array of sources in a number of diverse fields, he analyzes how America has mobilized itself for the conduct of war. He argues that to fully understand that process we must closely examine the complex interrelations among economic, political, and military institutions within the context of relentless modernization and technological innovation.

In this first volume, Koistinen describes how an undeveloped "preindustrial" economy forced Americans to fight defensive wars of attrition like the Revolution and the War of 1812. By the time of the Mexican War, however, a gradually maturing economy allowed the U.S. to use a much more offensive-minded strategy to achieve its goals. The book concludes with an exhaustive examination of the Civil War, a conflict that both anticipated and differed from the total wars of the industrialized era. Koistinen demonstrates that the North relied upon its enormous economic might to overwhelm the Confederacy through a strategy of annihilation, while the South bungled its own strategy of attrition by failing to mobilize effectively a much less-developed economy.

With this and subsequent volumes, Koistinen's sweeping synthesis provides a panoramic view that enlarges and in significant ways alters our vision of the turbulent relationship between war and society in America.

When author Frank Strobel returned from Vietnam, he felt as if he had used up a great deal of his personal "life force" during that year. He worked very hard that year-physically, mentally, and emotionally-and experienced almost every feeling known to man at a very high intensity. "The Devil's Disciple: Different Sides of War" presents a compilation of his experiences in Vietnam, exploring this intensity and recalling the speed with which events moved during his time there. Strobel's missions during wartime were not for the faint of heart

His experiences helped him to understand that war has an impact beyond just the fighting involved. There are people, young and old, affected by war. They lived in the villages that he visited as part of his tour of duty. In some of his experiences, he talks about the children he met in the villages of Vietnam and their love for American bubble gum. Using hand signals and an occasional interpreter, he was able to communicate with some of the children and older people in the villages, learning about them and about their lives.

In "The Devil's Disciple," Strobel shares his personal experiences during one of the most challenging wars the United States has fought.

This book investigates the expanding involvement of China in security cooperation in Africa. Drawing on leading and emerging scholars in the field, the volume uses a combination of analytical insights and case studies to unpack the complexity of security challenges confronting China and the continent. It interrogates how security considerations impact upon the growing economic and social links China has developed with African states.

Up the Indus to Ghuznee and Kabul
William Taylor, the author of this book, was a trooper in H.M 4th Light Dragoons in India as the campaign began to place Shah Shuja on the throne of Afghanistan. The Afghan people rejected the choice of the Imperial interlopers and preferred their own choice, Dost Mohammed. So the stage was set for the First Afghan War and one of Britain's most catastrophic military disasters. Taylor takes on the campaign of the Indus from the horse soldiers perspective. It was a hot, dusty affair of battle, sniping from hidden tribesmen, the storming of citadels and the knife in the dark within a harsh and uncompromising land. A must for all those interested in warfare in Afghanistan and the British Army on campaign during the Victorian era.

Military coup d'etat is an immoral and illegal means to ascend to power. In Africa, the West directly or indirectly sponsors coups. France and the U.S. use this modus vivendi to establish territorial control and economical supremacy in Africa. As such, their actions contribute to the destabilization of Africa, and threaten international peace and world security. Indeed, ambiguity and unreasonableness are evident on this matter; while the West presses Africa with good governance, democracy, and respect of law, it also sabotages the establishment of such principles and values through support of coups and rebellions. Worst, the replacement of a legitimate and democratic regime with a military is a license to massive violations of human rights. Undeniably, a military regime is likely to foster international terrorism.

Just out of school, Martain and his brother Mike head to an Army post in Columbia, South Carolina. They are resolved to serve their country and help defeat the enemy in Vietnam.

On a plane to training camp, the young Martain is served a cocktail by a flight attendant. In camp, he's stripped down and examined during a physical. And in Vietnam, he hears people speaking in short energetic bursts in a language he's never heard. His life has completely changed, and now he has to deal with it.

Martain serves three tours of duty in Vietnam, and while fighting in the wilderness, he usually doesn't know if he'll live to see the next day. He witnesses and engages in horrific battles where bravery determines the outcome. By the end of his final tour of duty, fear and danger no longer mean anything.

After serving in Vietnam, Martain joins the Reserves, and he participates in the 1989 invasion of Panama. As a result of his experiences, he suffers from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Join him as he relives his ordeals and helps everyone understand what so many veterans must deal with after the war ends in The Battle Rages.

The Spratly Islands have represented a potential political and military flashpoint in the South China Sea for years, involving as they do various claims by China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Taiwan. This edited volume examines the issues involved in light of confidence- building measures that new high-resolution satellite imagery can offer to this, and other, regions.

Baker, Wiencek, and their contributors assess the potential role for cooperative monitoring in mitigating the risk of conflict arising from multinational disputes over the Spratly Islands. They analyze how this new generation of civilian and commercial observation satellites can be used to reduce the changes of armed conflict breaking out by providing transparency that will detect and identify politically significant activities occurring at disputed islands and reefs among the Spratlys. Of particular interest to policy makers, scholars, and other researchers involved with military issues in Asia and international security concerns.

It is one thing to study history and it's quite another to have lived it. John J. (Pat) Ryan, a retired USAF lieutenant colonel has done just that. Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1920, he grew up during the Great Depression. When Japan bombed Pearl Harbor, Pat applied for and was accepted into the U.S. Army Aviation Cadet program. To fly had been his lifelong dream and WWII gave him his chance to make it come true. He was one of the blessed ones that survived combat in WWII, the Korean War, the Viet Nam War, and the Berlin Airlift.

His story starts at a time when aircraft and autos were scarce, family radios and television were non-existent, movies were silent and in black and white. During the Great Depression many families had to learn to do more with less to survive. For some people, WWII created jobs in both civilian and military areas. The fortunate ones were those who survived and didn't lose too many family members and friends. Pat was one of the lucky ones.

It was in Japan on loan to the CIA where he met his wife-to-be, Mae, during the Korean War. She had been in the OSS in Italy in WWII and at the post-war Nuremberg War Crimes Trials. They had started to write a book of their lives but Mae was stricken with terminal cancer and passed away only five days after she gave final approval to her publisher. The book is entitled "A Woman Ahead of Her Time. The Last Mission" completes the dream Ryan shared with his wife, and it brings home the lessons of war and humanity, of responsibility and faith, of family and love.

Come fly as his co-pilot through a life of adventures, struggles, victories and defeats as he tries to live his life as truly, honestly and fully as any man can.