History and War ...

At Rebunk, Tom Bruscino argues that American history departments have been neglecting military history. As he points out, his is an argument which parallels that of KC Johnson here at Cliopatria about the neglect of political history. Tim Burke has made the case that in smaller departments at liberal arts colleges, the selection of faculty may not allow for a specialist in military or American political history. In large departments with graduate programs at major state universities, however, it is hard to see how the lack of authorities in diplomatic, military, or political history can be justified. The alienation of historians in these fields was one of the factors that led to the founding of The Historical Society. In more recent years, the American Historical Association and the Organization of American Historians have given increased attention to these traditional fields on their convention programs, but many major departments have yet to recover a balanced attention to them.

At Chapati Mystery, Sepoy has some reflections on Charlie Wilson's War that ought not be missed.