Drift: The Unmooring of American Military Power

Last fall I read Rachel Maddow's book Drift: The Unmooring of American Military Power, about US military operations since Vietnam. This is not a topic I know much about or have ever shown particular interest in. I read it because of how much I like the perspective on contemporary politics that she offers on her show.

I loved this book! It was informative and kind of mind boggling. She describes the policy shifts over the years that have expanded executive power and moved the country toward privatization (without, I think, using the term "neoliberal", thankfully). Drift is chronological, from one war or military action over the other, and for someone of my generation it was fascinating to review events that I lived through. I remember the Gulf War and Bosnia. I had opinions about that at the time. But the truth is,  I wasn't paying that much attention. So it awakened an awareness of my own lived past. And gave me perspective on events that are happening right now.

Drift has a clearly articulated argument about the way American wars have drifted out of a central place in our political or social discourses. This argument is laid out through really quite incredible writing. Her sentences are very well crafted, and this strain of history is told with a sense of humor, employing colorful examples and surprising detail. In addition, in spite of the grim and disturbing subject matter, Maddow conveys a sense of the absurd, a kind of agog delight in the audacity of political actors and the often strange unfolding events. Because of this, in addition to being informative, it was also very much an enjoyable read