"To discover to the world something which deeply concerns it, and of which it was previously ignorant; to prove to it that it had been mistaken on some vital point of temporal or spiritual interest, is as important a service as a human being can render to his fellow creatures..."
John Stuart Mill, "On Liberty"
The "it" book of this week takes us inside the decisions, made by the Best and the Brightest, in the 1960s and 70s, to escalate the war in Vietnam. Gordon Goldstein in his book Lessons in Disaster: McGeorge Bundy and the Path to War in Vietnam, just out in paperback, examines McGeorge Bundy and his role in increasing Americas troop levels in Vietnam. BothFrank Rich in the N.Y. Times and George Stephanopoulos, among others, have told us that not only is this a book every America should read now, but that it is one being read by every member of the Obama war team.
Last November I had the chance to talk to Gordon Goldstein about all of this. His ideas are even more important now as the modern day Best and Brightest consider escalating the war in Afghanistan. I will be talking with Gordon again in the next few weeks to update the story and the frightening parallels.