A review by jakedinero
World Order by Henry Kissinger
4.0
Imagine if your Grandpa was really, really smart, and he was able to explain every important historical trend of his life through a slightly subjective perspective but then he goes onto detail how the internet is ruining this generation. This is Kissinger.
Without a doubt one of the world's top foreign policy experts, Kissinger is able to somehow explain most of modern political dynamics in a little under 400 pages. From the origins of the seperation between church and state in Europe, to the deeply tribal dynamics of Afghanistan, small but important political nuances are covered practically in this book. There are two things that I think merit discussion.
First is the western focus of this book. Although this is an english book, written by a German Jewish immigrant, from the perspective of American foreign policy there is NOT a deep enough understanding of non-western value systems and political ideology. The two main examples of such are the reductionist view of Islam and the lack of discussion around Confucian principles affecting asian political dynamics (particulary china).
Much of Kissingers criticism of the middle east revolves around a "key" islamic principle of dar-al-islam (land of the faithful) and dar-al-hard (land of the outsiders) , with jihad being the motivation for followers of islam to convert the outsiders. There are two things that make me seriously doubt Kissingers understanding of the muslim faith here. The first is that these principles seem to be only relevant to fundamentalist islamic groups (and maybe Iran). Outside of disputes between Islamic sects and the conflict with Israel, state actors have rarely exercised religious crusades over the last few decades. Secondly, his main criticism of this religious political framework is that it denies legitimacy to our western idea of "states" which makes them unable to work within westphalian principles of diplomacy. I think a simple history of russian and US involvement in the region tells us that regardless if it fits their religious principles, pragmatism forces these actors to recognize our legitimacy and that should be the only thing that matters.
Secondly, I don't think Kissinger spends nearly enough time discussing the history of China and or how the frame their foreign policy. Much of this sentiment derives purely from the fact that the first few chapters were some of the most rigorous historical and political overviews I have ever read.
Overall, a fantastic book and Kissinger is clearly a thinker whose ideas will reverberate for centuries. I wish he was a bit more scientific (as he is about the west) around the rest of the world and didnt talk about the internet but I sincerely enjoyed this book.
Without a doubt one of the world's top foreign policy experts, Kissinger is able to somehow explain most of modern political dynamics in a little under 400 pages. From the origins of the seperation between church and state in Europe, to the deeply tribal dynamics of Afghanistan, small but important political nuances are covered practically in this book. There are two things that I think merit discussion.
First is the western focus of this book. Although this is an english book, written by a German Jewish immigrant, from the perspective of American foreign policy there is NOT a deep enough understanding of non-western value systems and political ideology. The two main examples of such are the reductionist view of Islam and the lack of discussion around Confucian principles affecting asian political dynamics (particulary china).
Much of Kissingers criticism of the middle east revolves around a "key" islamic principle of dar-al-islam (land of the faithful) and dar-al-hard (land of the outsiders) , with jihad being the motivation for followers of islam to convert the outsiders. There are two things that make me seriously doubt Kissingers understanding of the muslim faith here. The first is that these principles seem to be only relevant to fundamentalist islamic groups (and maybe Iran). Outside of disputes between Islamic sects and the conflict with Israel, state actors have rarely exercised religious crusades over the last few decades. Secondly, his main criticism of this religious political framework is that it denies legitimacy to our western idea of "states" which makes them unable to work within westphalian principles of diplomacy. I think a simple history of russian and US involvement in the region tells us that regardless if it fits their religious principles, pragmatism forces these actors to recognize our legitimacy and that should be the only thing that matters.
Secondly, I don't think Kissinger spends nearly enough time discussing the history of China and or how the frame their foreign policy. Much of this sentiment derives purely from the fact that the first few chapters were some of the most rigorous historical and political overviews I have ever read.
Overall, a fantastic book and Kissinger is clearly a thinker whose ideas will reverberate for centuries. I wish he was a bit more scientific (as he is about the west) around the rest of the world and didnt talk about the internet but I sincerely enjoyed this book.