Drift: Rachel Maddow

My latest book from the library is Drift: The Unmooring of American Military Power by Rachel Maddow.

Here's the beginning of the review of the book at NPR ...

In past wars, the U.S. practically dismantled its military after the troops came home. But today, says MSNBC News anchor and writer Rachel Maddow, we find ourselves in a state of almost permanent war.

In her new book Drift: The Unmooring of American Military Power, Maddow invokes Thomas Jefferson, pointing out that one of Jefferson's main concerns was the danger of having a large military.

"That was a really animating thing going on for the Founding Fathers. I mean, they were very upset about what was going on with the British Empire and the British king, and there's a reason that the 'quartering soldiers' thing, which seems so random, is foundational in our founding documents," she says.

Her book argues that the U.S. military has grown bloated partially because the nation is insulated from the wars its soldiers fight ....

I'm up to the part in the book about when Ronald Reagan was president and launching the invasion of Grenada in 1983. For some reason I don't remember anything about the politics of the time, so it's really interesting to read all this stuff ... I had no idea that Reagan was such a proto-Trump, with his love of the military (and his lying). If you're interested in contemporary history, you'll probably find the book worth a read.