The early 1980s brought dramatic changes in East-West relations. The decade began with the death of Yugoslavia's Tito, the birth of Poland's Solidarity trade union, and the U.S. election of Ronald Reagan as president. These key developments, together with the growing financial insolvency of the Soviet bloc and shifts in power in the Kremlin culminating in the election of Mikhail Gorbachev as general secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union in 1985 signalled the end of an era. Since then, U.S. relations with Europe have charted a new course, influenced especially by the dissolution of the Warsaw Pact, the expansion of NATO, and the growing strength of the European Union. This volume analyzes U.S. relations with Britain, France, Germany, Spain, Russia, Poland, and Ukraine, and examines the new role for NATO in the post-Cold War world and the evolving dynamics in the U.S.-EU partnership. Through their assessment of mutual perceptions, evolving interests, and clashing agendas, the contributors offer a fresh and thoughtful exploration of the relationship between the United States and the major European states.

Corporate greed took hold of America during the days of the dot-com era. Lying, backstabbing, and betrayal became routine in the workplace. It all played out under the guise of doing business. Nothing mattered, as long as it meant a bigger bonus, stock options or a hefty pay raise. As the insanity on Wall Street took hold, money became expected. Corporate executives felt entitled. Money was no longer something to be earned from hard work. This was the beginning of the downfall for America. I wrote this novel just after the burst of the dot-com bubble, as a commentary to the insanity and self-indulgency that gripped Wall Street and American businesses during a time when no investment could fail and billionaires were created overnight. I wanted to explore the immoral side of the dot-com greed that spread across America, but I also wanted to temper it around a story of overcoming life's hardships. "Inside Traitors" is this story. It is a contemporary novel about betrayal and the insatiable desire for money, but it is woven around a story of overcoming inner torment, grief and life's adversities.