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Historical Perspective of War in Iraq

In order to understand the Iraq war in terms of administrative politics, it is helpful to take a broad historical perspective with a view towards how political and foreign policy decisions have been made in the past. Graham Allison's work, Essence of Decision: Explaining the Cuban Missile Crisis, provides a beneficial parallel that can be applied to current events in the Middle East. It is the purpose of this paper to discuss the war in Iraq through the lenses of Allison's work and other research concerning the war in Iraq.

Because of its example as a seminal historical event, the tense days in October of 1962 are often studied for clues about foreign policy and governmental decision-making. The U.S. and the Soviet Union were on the brink of nuclear war, a war that would have meant death for millions of Americans and Soviets (Allison, 1999, p.1). As in any political situation, decisions are made according to various modes of thought and hypotheses about the best outcome. Allison's work provides a helpful way to understand the involvement of the United States in the war in Iraq.

Allison says that when people are puzzled about events in foreign affairs, it is typical that a "particular government action or set of actions" is the source on inquiry (Allison, 1999, p.2). Most analysts explain the government's behavior in terms of some form of what Allison terms the Rational Actor Model. With a combination of detective work and clear, logical thought, it is possible to unravel the various causes and possibilities for choice in foreign affairs (Allison, 1999, p.13). Most thought about contemporary policy proceeds in this manner, as it is widely agreed-upon conceptual model for explaining international events by going over the aims and predictions of nations and governments. Kennedy had certain goals and objectives in averting international war, and Bush has goals and objectives in the war in Iraq.

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Historical Perspective of War in Iraq. (1969, December 31). In LotsofEssays.com. Retrieved 17:53, March 28, 2024, from https://www.lotsofessays.com/viewpaper/1696052.html