Timothy Lomperis persuasively argues the ironic point that the lessons of American involvement in Vietnam are not to be found in any analysis of the war by itself. Rather, he proposes a comparison of the Vietnam experience with seven other cases of Western intervention in communist insurgencies during the Cold War era: China, Indochina, Greece, the Philippines, Malaya, Cambodia, and Laos. Lomperis maintains that popular insurgencies are manifestations of crises in political legitimacy, which occur as a result of the societal stresses caused by modernization. Therefore, he argues, any intervention in a 'people’s war' will succeed or fail depending on how it affects this crisis. The unifying theme in the cases Lomperis discusses is the power of land reform and electoral democracy to cement political legitimacy and therefore deflect revolutionary movements. Applying this theory to the ongoing Sendero Luminoso insurgency in Peru, Lomperis makes a qualified prediction of that conflict’s outcome. He concludes that a global trend toward democratization has produced a new era of 'people’s rule.' In his third work on the Vietnam War (after The War Everyone Lost?And Won, LJ 1/84, and Reading the Wind, Duke Univ., 1986), Lomperis, a former army intelligence officer in Vietnam and currently an instructor in political science at West Point, places the war within the broader context of Communist insurgency against Western-supported regimes throughout the Cold War. Lomperis examines and compares the Chinese liberation struggle; civil wars in Greece, Cambodia, and Laos; rebellion in the Philippines; and the carnage in Peru so that the sophisticated reader can see the similarities and differences among these conflicts and the pivotal roles played by insurgents, local governments, and foreign powers. Each insurrection is well documented with conclusions buttressed by Lomperis's obvious expertise in his field. Marred only by a tendency to lapse into technical jargon, his work belongs in academic libraries, but only public libraries with strong Vietnam collections should consider adding a scholarly work such as this.?John R. Vallely, Siena Coll. Lib., Loudonville, N.Y. Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. “An impressive examination of insurgencies as manifestations of crises in political legitimacy stemming from the societal stresses caused by modernization. . . . . A highly insightful look at the Vietnam War in comparison to seven other cases of Western direct and indirect intervention against Cold War communist insurgencies: China, Indochina, Greece, the Philippines, Malaya, Cambodia, and Laos.” — Parameters “Recommended reading. . . . An uncommon collection of ideas about contemporary revolution that ought to be taken into account in designing further research.” — American Political Science Review “By focusing on the centrally important but greatly neglected issue of legitimacy, Timothy Lomperis has thrown new light on the dynamics of insurgency and has made a major contribution to our understanding of the reasons for the successes and failures of communist peasant movements. This study is social science at its best, combining penetrating theoretical analysis, exhaustive empirical research, and relevant implications for policy.” ― Samuel P. Huntington, Harvard University “A deeply insightful, completely absorbing, and much-needed comparative study of revolutions, based on real cases and drawing some highly important lessons for the future.” ― Paul M. Kattenburg, University of South Carolina “A deeply insightful, completely absorbing, and much-needed comparative study of revolutions, based on real cases and drawing some highly important lessons for the future.” — Paul M. Kattenburg, University of South Carolina Timothy Lomperis persuasively argues the ironic point that the lessons of American involvement in Vietnam are not to be found in any analysis of the war by itself. Rather, he proposes a comparison of the Vietnam experience with seven other cases of Western intervention in communist insurgencies during the Cold War era: China, Indochina, Greece, the Philippines, Malaya, Cambodia, and Laos. Timothy J. Lomperis is professor and chair of the department of political science at Saint Louis University. Used Book in Good Condition