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Books > Social sciences > Warfare & defence
Wars have a destructive impact on society. The violence in the
first case is domicide, in the second urbicide, in the third
genocide, and in the fourth, the book introduces a neologism,
sociocide, the killing of society. Through the lens of this
neologism, Keith Doubt provides persuasive evidence of the social,
political, and human consequences of today's wars in countries such
as Bosnia and Iraq. Sociocide: Reflections on Today's Wars
rigorously formulates, develops, and applies the notion of
sociocide as a Weberian ideal type to contemporary wars. Drawing
upon sociology, anthropology, philosophy, and literature, Doubt
analyzes war crimes, scapegoating, and torture and concludes by
examining capitalism in the face of the coronavirus pandemic as a
sociocidal force. Embedded in the humanistic tradition and informed
by empirical science, this book provides a clear conceptual account
of today's wars, one that is objective and moral, critical and
humanistic.
With the United States producing almost 90,000 AFVs during World
War II, American tanks made up the bulk of those deployed by the
western Allies, and were even supplied through the lend-lease
scheme to the Soviet army on the Eastern Front. American Tanks of
World War II explores the tanks, self-propelled guns, halftracks
and armoured cars deployed by American forces, from the Torch
landings in Algeria to the hard fighting in Normandy and the bitter
Ardennes offensive. Organised chronologically by type, the entries
include the M3 Stuart, the first American-crewed tank to engage the
enemy in tank combat in the war; the ubiquitous M4 Sherman, which
proved cheap and reliable and was built in great numbers and in
many variants; the M22 Locust light tank, designed to be
air-dropped in support of airborne units; and the M26 Pershing, a
heavy tank that arrived late in the war and was capable of beating
the best tanks Germany had to offer. There are also chapters on the
many motor gun carriages used by US forces, including the M8 HMC
and T12 halftrack, both designed to provide close support for
infantry. Illustrated with expert colour profile artworks for each
entry and completed with technical specifications, American Tanks
of World War II is a detailed reference guide for modellers and
enthusiasts with an interest in World War II AFV technology.
Dillon J. Carroll's Invisible Wounds examines the effects of
military service, particularly combat, on the psyches and emotional
well-being of Civil War soldiers-Black and white, North and South.
Soldiers faced harsh military discipline, arduous marches, poor
rations, debilitating diseases, and the terror of battle, all of
which took a severe psychological toll. While mental collapses
sometimes occurred during the war, the emotional damage soldiers
incurred more often became apparent in the postwar years, when it
manifested itself in disturbing and self-destructive behavior.
Carroll explores the dynamic between the families of mentally ill
veterans and the superintendents of insane asylums, as well as
between those superintendents and doctors in the nascent field of
neurology, who increasingly believed the central nervous system or
cultural and social factors caused mental illness. Invisible Wounds
is a sweeping reevaluation of the mental damage inflicted by the
nation's most tragic conflict.
During the American Civil War, thousands of citizens in the Deep
South remained loyal to the United States. Though often overlooked,
they possessed broad symbolic importance and occupied an outsized
place in the strategic thinking and public discourse of both the
Union and the Confederacy. In True Blue, Clayton J. Butler
investigates the lives of white Unionists in three Confederate
states, revealing who they were, why and how they took their
Unionist stand, and what happened to them as a result. He focuses
on three Union regiments recruited from among the white residents
of the Deep South-individuals who passed the highest bar of
Unionism by enlisting in the United States Army to fight with the
First Louisiana Cavalry, First Alabama Cavalry, and Thirteenth
Tennessee Union Cavalry. Northerners and southerners alike thought
a considerable amount about Deep South Unionism throughout the war,
often projecting their hopes and apprehensions onto these embattled
dissenters. For both, the significance of these Unionists hinged on
the role they would play in the postwar future. To northerners,
they represented the tangible nucleus of national loyalty within
the rebelling states on which to build Reconstruction policies. To
Confederates, they represented traitors to the political ideals of
their would-be nation and, as the war went on, to the white race,
making them at times a target for vicious reprisal. Unionists'
wartime allegiance proved a touchstone during the political chaos
and realignment of Reconstruction, a period when many of these
veterans played a key role both as elected officials and as a
pivotal voting bloc. In the end, white Unionists proved willing to
ally with African Americans during the war to save the Union but
unwilling to protect or advance Black civil rights afterward,
revealing the character of Unionism during the era as a whole.
This open access book compares the experiences of large-scale
military procurement in Canada and Australia. Focusing on the
recent frigate and jet-fighter programmes, it demonstrates how
delays suffered in delivering weapons systems and platforms in
these countries have been caused by misalignments between the
strategic requirements set out by the armed forces and government
defence policies. By bringing the insights of public management and
administration to those of defence studies, the book presents
policy options that will help improve the nature of future
large-project military procurement. It will appeal to scholars and
students of public administration, public management, and defence
studies, as well as practitioners and policymakers.
For years, the history of the anti-Nazi resistance in Germany was
hidden and distorted by Cold War politics. Providing a much-needed
corrective, Red Orchestra presents the dramatic story of a circle
of German citizens who opposed Hitler from the start, choosing to
stay in Germany to resist Nazism and help its victims. The book
shines a light on this critical movement which was made up of
academics, theatre people, and factory workers; Protestants,
Catholics and Jews; around 150 Germans all told and from all walks
of life. Drawing on archives, memoirs, and interviews with
survivors, award-winning scholar and journalist Anne Nelson
presents a compelling portrait of the men and women involved, and
the terrifying day-to-day decisions in their lives, from the Nazi
takeover in 1933 to their Gestapo arrest in 1942. Nelson traces the
story of the Red Orchestra (Rote Kapelle) resistance movement
within the context of German history, showing the stages of the
Nazi movement and regime from the 1920s to the end of the Second
World War. She also constructs the narrative around the life of
Greta Kuckhoff and other female figures whose role in the anti-Nazi
resistance fight is too-often unrecognised or under appreciated.
This revised edition includes: * A new introduction which explores
elements of the Red Orchestra’s experience that resonate with our
times, including: the impact of new media technologies; the dangers
of political polarization; and the way the judiciary can be shaped
to further the ends of autocracy. The introduction will also
address the long-standing misconception that the German Resistance
only took action when it was clear that Germany was losing the war.
* Historiographic updates throughout the book which take account of
recent literature and additional archival sources
Normandy 1944. Like most of his comrades Ken Tout was just 20 years
old. Not until many years later did he feel able to gather their
memoirs in three Hale books, "Tank!", "Tanks, Advance!" and "To
Hell with Tanks!". Now these adventures are condensed into this one
continuous narrative. Follow the ordinary young lads of the
Northamptonshire Yeomanry through the massive enemy defences on
Bourguebus Ridge, to the snows of the Ardennes, to the night
crossing of the River Rhine, and finally to Grote KerkI, where they
celebrated with liberated Dutch citizens. They were not
professional soldiers but young conscripts willing to 'do their
bit', knowing that their Shermans were outgunned by the enemy's
much heavier Tiger and Panther tanks. "By Tank: D Day to VE Days"
vividly recalls, in one complete volume, the whole experience of
battle with utter authenticity: the fear, confusion, boredom,
excitement and grief.
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