A Nation of Sheep

Fülszöveg

Written by the co-author of the novel, The Ugly American, this non-fiction work, first published in 1960, reinforces many of the same ideas offered in its famous predecessor. In A Nation of Sheep, Lederer, a foreign service and Navy veteran begins by outlining several recent U.S. foreign policy blunders, including years-long wrong-headedness in China, Laos and Korea. Lederer traces troubles to an inability to do basic things like understand the language of countries the U.S. was trying to influence or help. Lederer also outlines the problems brought on by the growing pervasiveness of government secrecy; a gullible and disinterested press; and (the source of the book's title), a complacent and apathetic U.S. citizenry. Brief, clearly written and refreshingly straight-forward, this book serves as a reminder that when it comes to U.S. foreign policy blunders, there's little that's new under the sun. It's been going on in this fashion, according to Lederer, anyway, at least since the days of FDR.