Most of the authors of the newly published "The Age of Terror" took part in a panel discussion about Sept. 11 and its impact on the United States and the world. The co-editors of the book, Strobe Talbott and Nayan Chanda, are pictured at each end of the table. Between them are (left to right) John Gaddis, Abbas Amanat, Charles Hill, Paul Kennedy and Paul Bracken.

Book's authors share perspectives
on Sept. 11 and its aftermath

With the apparent slowing of hostilities in Afghanistan, the Yale authors of "The Age of Terror" assembled on Jan. 23 in a crowded Luce Hall auditorium to discuss the meaning of Sept. 11 and reflect on their contributions to the new book. In their first opportunity to convene as a group since the book's publication on Jan. 2, Abbas Amanat, Paul Bracken, John Gaddis, Charles Hill and Paul Kennedy spent two hours re-examining and commenting on the evolution of their theses with two months of additional hindsight. The panel, moderated by the book's editors Strobe Talbott and Nayan Chanda from Yale's Center for the Study of Globalization, focused on how the events in Afghanistan and those on Sept. 11 continue to shape American foreign and military policy. The panelists debated the implications of the U.S. military actions beyond the deposition of a foreign regime, U.S. foreign policy, and how the rest of the world views America as a consequence of the war. In addition to comparing the development of President George W. Bush to that of Shakespeare's Prince Hal, Gaddis, the Robert A. Lovett Professor of Military and Naval History, posited that the world might be witnessing a reversal in the decline of the nation state. Hill, a distinguished fellow in Yale's International Security Studies program, also cited the decline of the nation state and spoke about the rise of the non-state players, such as al-Qaeda. He cautioned policy-makers to be concerned about the large number of people who have fallen out of the international community. Citing the decline of middle class values in the Middle East, the conflict with Israel and the persistence of repressive regimes, Amanat warned the audience that Western powers should expect continuing resentment from the Middle East. Amanat, a professor of history and chair of the Council on Middle East Studies, also commented that the military intervention in Afghanistan is not the great victory that many pundits are declaring. Kennedy, the J. Richardson Dilworth Professor of History, is more impressed with the military's result, and spoke about the effectiveness of the U.S. military in Afghanistan. Kennedy went on to question whether the United States -- a country without an equal rival, he said -- would be able to return to business as usual in the United Nations Security Council. He also noted that America's increasing hegemony would also bring an increased vulnerability to "asymmetric threats," i.e. surprise attacks and other non-traditional tactics. Bracken, a professor at the School of Management and professor of political science, also addressed the scale of the military victory, calling it a "revolution in performance." According to Bracken, the efficiency of the military's use of information technology has changed the way wars will be fought and has taken "the handcuffs off" future presidents. Bracken also noted that the proliferation of permanent American military bases in the Middle East region would be watched closely by the Chinese government. Following the panel discussion, the authors answered questions from the audience and then adjourned to a reception to sign copies of their book, which U.S. News and World Report called "the best single discussion of what America should do in the world now," since the events of Sept. 11. "The Age of Terror: America and the World After September 11" was published by Basic Books in conjunction with the Yale Center for the Study of Globalization. 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