Win, Place, or Lose?

What is the fundamental fact of our time in the field of relations among nations? Dr. Charles Malik of Lebanon, former President of the United Nations General Assembly, puts it this way: “I view the decisiveness of the present moment in history as consisting of the life-and-death struggle between International Communism, not only or even primarily as an economic system, but as a total outlook on life, and the rest of the world, especially the Western World, and in the Western World especially in the United States of America.” That’s a long sentence, but it makes sense.

In his comprehensive study of the period between World War II and the present, Hugh Seton-Watson grasps this central fact. His book Neither War Nor Peace (Praeger, $7.50) is a clear and rational analysis of the forces that have shaped these turbulent years. He offers no stirring solutions to the problems of the West. That is not his purpose. His purpose is to expose what has happened, why it happened and how it happened. And this he does admirably. His study ranges over the whole spectrum of of late developments in Asia, the Middle East, Europe, the United States, Latin America. To one who has kept fairly well abreast of the events of our time there will be little that is new. But it is all assembled here and it is relatively easy to read, even if the type is small. It is therefore a good reference book for those who want to catch up; and it has none of the fuzzy language that afflicts so many serious studies by experts.

JC

About the Author

Jameson G. Campaigne

What is the fundamental fact of our time in the field of relations among nations? Dr. Charles Malik of Lebanon, former President of the United Nations General Assembly, puts it this way: “I view the decisiveness of the present moment in history as consisting of the life-and-death struggle between International Communism, not only or even primarily as an economic system, but as a total outlook on life, and the rest of the world, especially the Western World, and in the Western World especially in the United States of America.” That’s a long sentence, but it makes sense.

In his comprehensive study of the period between World War II and the present, Hugh Seton-Watson grasps this central fact. His book Neither War Nor Peace (Praeger, $7.50) is a clear and rational analysis of the forces that have shaped these turbulent years. He offers no stirring solutions to the problems of the West. That is not his purpose. His purpose is to expose what has happened, why it happened and how it happened. And this he does admirably. His study ranges over the whole spectrum of of late developments in Asia, the Middle East, Europe, the United States, Latin America. To one who has kept fairly well abreast of the events of our time there will be little that is new. But it is all assembled here and it is relatively easy to read, even if the type is small. It is therefore a good reference book for those who want to catch up; and it has none of the fuzzy language that afflicts so many serious studies by experts.