A review by rifledoc1
Imperial Grunts by Robert D. Kaplan

4.0

Robert Kaplan rightly acknowledges the Unites States’ ongoing implicit imperial role in the world, and using that perspective, he does an outstanding job explaining how the U.S. maintains that role in the post 9-11 era. “Imperial Grunts” attempts to take a broad, holistic look at how the U.S. has fought the Global War on Terrorism, not just in Iraq and Afghanistan, but in the many other places where the U.S. military has, and in some cases is still operating today. I especially appreciated the background information Kaplan provides for each of the countries he writes about, to include how geography, culture, and historical events eventually brought about U.S. military intervention in each country, and how those same factors work to influence operations and mission accomplishment in those countries. Although I do not agree with Mr. Kaplan’s assessment of a continued heavy evangelical Christian influence on the average service member, he does a very good job portraying the essence of the U.S. military of today. The book is very Army Special Forces and Marine Corps centric. That is not a bad thing, but it left me hoping for a sequel that also covers the Navy and Air Force and their contributions the Global War on Terrorism and the maintenance of modern national interests and global leadership. (Audiobook read)