Holy War: Cowboys, Indians, and 9/11s

by Mark Cronlund Anderson

Overview

Noam Chomsky and George W. Bush seldom agree, but they both argued that 9/11 stood alone in American history. Although the use of airplanes as weapons of mass destruction was new, Mark Anderson maintains that the response to the attack was not: it was, in fact, as old as the Republic itself.



Beginning with the Mexican-American War and ending with the invasion of Iraq, Holy War probes presidential speeches, news reports, editorial cartoons, television programs, and films to uncover how the United States reverts back to its creation mythology of "fighting Indians" to justify centuries of American imperialism.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780889774148
Publisher:	University of Regina Press
Publication date:	04/30/2016
Pages:	340
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 9.10(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Mark Cronlund Anderson is an award-winning author of five books, including Seeing Red and Pancho Villa's Revolution by Headlines.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements vii

Chapter 1 Introduction: "A Mission from God" 1

Chapter 2 Polk's War: "Blessings of Heaven" 29

Chapter 3 Jesus Custer: "The Bulliest Day since Christ Was Born" 63

Chapter 4 The Mexican Revolution; "A Chaos of the Land" 93

Chapter 5 Augusto Sandino: "Fly in the Ointment" 121

Chapter 6 Rambo's Vietnam: "You Just Don't Turn It Off" 149

Chapter 7 Ronald Reagan's Nicaragua: "This Shining City" 175

Chapter 8 Conclusion: "Wake-Up Call from God" 199

Notes 227

References 267

Visual Resources 282

Index 283

Editorial Reviews

07/04/2016
This provocative psychohistorical reflection on post-9/11 America posits that U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are merely the latest in a lengthy history of military engagements with which the perpetually traumatized nation regenerates itself through acts of violence that replicate frontier tropes. By exploring landmark moments in the U.S war against Mexico, the Marines' occupation of Nicaragua, the invasion of Vietnam, and the Reagan presidency, the book shows the European civilizer/savage narrative repeatedly recreated with different names and faces. Anderson, whose 2007 Cowboy Imperialism and Hollywood Film mines similar territory, meticulously illustrates how the interplay of mass media, government manipulation, and a complacent community of mainstream historians perpetuates the frontier myth of America as innocent victim, slow to anger, and reluctantly compelled to battle to defend its divine mission. Delivered with a confident, authoritative voice, the text can drift from heavily academic to downright colloquial, an unfortunate tonal inconsistency that may undermine some of its excellent arguments. But Anderson's persuasive contentions that the U.S. is always in need of an enemy (like some say God requires Satan) and trauma demands repetition is well supported by documentation explaining why peace is an exceptional state for the world's most powerful country. (June)

Publishers Weekly

"A tour de force. Boyd Cothran, author of Remembering the Modoc War "Original and innovative."

David McNab

"A tour de force." Boyd Cothran, author of Remembering the Modoc War

"Original and innovative." David McNab, author of No Place for Fairness and Walking a Tightrope

From the Publisher