Eisenhower took office at a time of wars both cold and hot. One of his first actions was a complete rethinking of foreign policy. Our next president could learn from Ike’s example. By J. William DeMarco.

A visit with Robert Conquest, gentle knight and wicked poet. By Christopher Hitchens.

What our country’s nineteenth century experience teaches us about China today

In 1911, China rejected feudalism to enter the modern era. A new Hoover exhibit on a century of change. By Hsiao-ting Lin and Lisa Nguyen.

Have drones killed the traditional American way of war, defined by annihilation and attrition?

A skilled miner is useless without a seam of ore. Russia’s President Vladimir Putin, czar in all but name, has a genius for mining the ore of Russian nationalism, but the crucial factor is that the ore was there, waiting to be exploited. A ruler perfectly fitted to Russian tradition, Putin is the right man at the right time to dig up Russia’s baleful obsessions, messianic delusions, and aggressive impulses.

Foreign policy doctrines are as American as apple pie, and as old as the Republic. Start with George Washington’s Farewell Address: The “great rule” in dealing with other nations was to extend “our commercial relations” and “to have with them as little political connection as possible.” So stay out of Europe, and keep Europe away from us.

Nations, identities, and influence

The case for force