WAR WATCH WEDNESDAYS, December 22, 2021
Kathy Beckwith. A Mighty Case Against War: What America Missed in U.S. History Class and What We (All) Can Do Now. 2015. 300.
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About the book
Beckwith relates a history of America’s wars that includes “What America Missed in U.S. History Class.” She details why war sells, the fallacies of common justifications for war, true costs of war, and sensible alternatives. A Mighty Case Against War proposes that this culturally supported, deeply entrenched system of governmental violence is simply too costly, destructive, counterproductive, and inhumane to leave unchallenged. An easily readable book, this is a resource for youth and adult education, peacebuilding activists, and all who have wondered if a world beyond war is possible.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1 : Two Young Men and a Question:
“More than an end to war, we want …?” 1
Chapter 2: A Gallop Through America’s Wars 7
2.1 The Revolutionary War 9
2.2 The War of 1812 17
2.3 The Indian Wars 24
2.4 The Mexican-American War 36
2.5 The Civil War 41
2.6 The Spanish-American War 49
2.7 The Philippine-American War 58
2.8 The Tampico/Veracruz, México, Military Action 64
2.9 World War I 67
2.10 World War II 75
2.11 The Korean War 101
2.12 The Vietnam War 106
2.13 The Gulf War 117
2.14 Acts of Military Violence Outside of War 139
2.15 Recent US Wars 141
Evaluation of War Template 144
2.16 The “Secret” Wars 145
2.17 Reflecting on Our Patterns of War 150
Chapter 3: Opening Our Eyes and Our Hearts 155
Chapter 4: Sales Pitches and Rah-Rah Cheers for War 165
Chapter 5: “War Is Inevitable. Why Fight It?” Plus Other Common Non-Sense and Un-Common Sense 185
Chapter 6: Extra! Extra! Hear All About It! Nonviolence Raging Success! 207
Chapter 7: If Not War, Then What? 225
Endnotes 251
Suggested Reading/Viewing 283
Book Club – Reading Group Discussion Questions 291
How to buy the print version
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How to buy as an ebook
An Amazon Kindle edition is available from Amazon's book page.
An ePub version is available e.g. from Smashwords or Apple Books.
Please see Kathy Beckwith's TEDx Talk!
It's time to abandon war. There are alternatives. | Kathy Beckwith | TEDxMcMinnville
TEDx Talks Published on February 26, 2019
Is using war as a means of resolving conflict an outdated premise? Is it time for us to move on from the battlefield? And if so, are there alternatives that actually work? Mediator Kathy Beckwith shares her big idea - there are plenty of alternatives to war, if only we choose to use em. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community.
What others say
A Mighty Case Against War is exceptionally well researched and covers an astounding amount of history. Kathy Beckwith has produced an extremely good survey and analysis of America's wars. I am very impressed with her scholarship. Kathy offers hope in her conclusion that the habit of war can be broken. I taught American history in college for more than 25 years. After it was published I used Ronald Wells "The Wars of America, Christian Views." Now I would either add, or replace it with A Mighty Case Against War. - Dr. Ralph Beebe, Professor of History Emeritus, George Fox University, Newberg, Oregon.
"Kathy Beckwith's book lives up to its title. I probably can't imagine exactly how wonderful a world we'd have if everyone learned this book in history class, but I'd sure love to find out. I write about this same topic and nonetheless learned a great deal of new information here and found it to be brilliantly presented. The author's goal is clearly not to get us to believe something but to prod us into thinking. She provides multiple points of view on wars. Understanding what each side saw helps us grasp what Beckwith points out next: the alternative paths not taken that could have avoided each particular war. If we learn to anticipate war propaganda to come, if we are ready to reject it in real time, this book will have served its purpose, and more books like it will not be needed; war will have gone from 'inevitable' to archaic, humanity from endangered to resilient." --David Swanson, author of War Is A Lie
"With clear, thoughtful prose and careful research, this book offers a systematic investigation into American wars and various nonviolent alternatives. The author shows U.S. military actions with new perspectives. The heart of the book is “a gallop” through America’s 15 wars, not counting the “secret” wars. It is here that the author’s training as a mediator shows, for she carefully considers the views of both sides before considering possible alternatives to war. Particularly interesting are her discussions of nonviolent alternatives to World War II and the American Revolution. The book concludes with a series of chapters that address various justifications for war that are commonly invoked. The author writes in an accessible way about these complex issues, making this book ideal for high school students interested in a view of U.S. history not presented in the textbooks, as well as any reader concerned about the role of the U.S. military in conflicts around the world." – Daemion Lee, review for Skipping Stones magazine
About the author
Kathy Beckwith is a mediation trainer from Dayton, Oregon, working with schools (K-12) and community mediation programs. She is a mediator in parent/teen, victim/offender, and neighborhood mediation, and volunteers as a school mediation coach. Kathy became concerned about America’s strong reliance on war as a means of resolving international conflict. That concern led to research and study, and finally to this book. She discovered that she had, indeed, missed some things in U.S. History class.
Kathy is also the author of the picture book Playing War; a young adult novel.