timely Warning
Swomley, John M. Jr.
timely Warning On the Brink, by Jerome Davis and General Hugh B. Hester. Lyle Stuart. 192 pp. $2.95. Reviewed by John M. Swomley, Jr. A timely warning to move away from the "brink of war" and...
...A timely warning to move away from the "brink of war" and end the cold war is the essential message of On the Brink...
...The problem of Communist expansionism and the complexities of Russian-American relations are passed over too lightly, presumably because the authors feel the American people need a picture other than the one usually presented in the press...
...One of the chief values of the book is its accumulation of little known facts on the role of the United States in world affairs...
...The authors rightly conclude that "if we genuinely wish to build peace, we must try to understand the Communists, not to hate them...
...My major criticism of the book is its superficial treatment of two important problems...
...Our papers have blown up the evils of Russia out of all proportion...
...They lose no opportunity to depict Soviet evils 'pressed down, running over.'" My own feeling is that the book would have been strengthened if the problems inherent in both Russian and American power blocs had been recognized more clearly and related to the compromises and adjustments both must make...
...On the Brink is easy and fast reading, an unusually helpful contribution to an understanding of the world in which we live and an earnest plea for world peace...
...On the other hand, at some crucial points there is a disturbing failure to document statements...
...The whole question of American militarism and American military power is dealt with in the shortest chapter—only four pages long...
...The authors range widely over the field of international relations, suggesting solutions to the Arab-Israeli conflict in the Middle East, commenting on the significance of Sputnik, and urging that American economic aid be channeled through the United Nations...
Vol. 24 • November 1960 • No. 11
