Early reactions to Leaving World War II Behind:
“This is a book of wide synthesis and trenchant commentary. Keep it near to hand for those all-too-frequent moments when you hear someone using World War II to justify yet another horrific military adventure.” --Nicholson Baker, author of Human Smoke: The Beginnings of World War II, The End of Civilization
“A mythic history surrounds ‘the Good War,’ but the truth is far more complicated than that told by Hollywood and in high school history books. Swanson demolishes the myths by amassing a huge number of facts, all carefully documented, and leaves us the true, if unpalatable but liberating, history of World War II.” --Kent D. Shifferd, Ph.D., author of From War To Peace: A Guide To The Next Hundred Years
“If you, like me, thought that WWII was the exceptional ‘good war,’ think again. In Leaving World War II Behind, David Swanson brilliantly cuts through the myths surrounding WWII, and in the process cuts through the fog of all wars. Reading this book, I started to dream. What if Swanson was a regular commentator on CNN, destroying the arguments of every Pentagon pundit, Raytheon lobbyist and warhawk politician? What if Swanson was hired by Hollywood to review all war films for their accuracy? What if he could oversee the history books taught in U.S. schools? We would have what the military-industrial complex most fears: a well-informed public. As we build the platform that Swanson and anti-war academics/activists deserve—and the world so needs—we can start by reading this superb book and encouraging everyone we know to read it.” --Medea Benjamin, author/cofounder CODEPINK for Peace
“In his latest book, David Swanson passionately debunks many of the common arguments used to justify the horrific violence of World War Two. By revealing the less-than-humanitarian decision-making leading up to the United States’ involvement with the fight against the Nazi government, he demonstrates the inherent tensions behind the myth of a ‘good war.’ No one hates war more than Swanson and no one alive has devoted themselves more fully to its abolition. This book is an expression of his deep moral commitment to peace.” --Scott J. Shapiro, Professor of Law and Philosophy at Yale Law School, Director of Yale's Center for Law and Philosophy, coauthor of The Internationalists: How a Radical Plan to Outlaw War Remade the World
“The proximate goal of David Swanson’s new book is to challenge the moral arguments for World War II, the war that supposedly justifies war. Its ultimate goal is to make the case for ending war once and for all. This is a brave, passionate, brilliant book, which should be read by anyone who gives a damn about humanity’s future.” --John Horgan, science journalist and author, The End of War.
“David Swanson’s Leaving World War II Behind, could have been easily entitled leaving revisionist history behind because he shatters all the self-congratulatory distortions that justified U.S. participation in the ‘good war’ of WWII. In systematically dismantling the moral and political reasoning of U.S. policy-makers leading up to, during, and after the great war, Swanson reveals how little has changed with the arguments and technics elites use to mask their real intentions and win over ordinary working class people, who fight the elites’ wars, to an agenda that does not have anything to do with them. In a rational society, Swanson’s latest would be incorporated into the school curriculum from middle-school on. But this is not a rational or a moral society. And this is why the existence of a David Swanson is such a wonder.” --Ajamu Baraka, contributing columnist for the Black Agenda Report and writer for Counterpunch.
"Brick by brick, David Swanson demolishes the wall of mythological history behind which we cower in manufactured ignorance and fear. As the wall comes down, we step out into a world where all is possible and nobody's children need ever again be sacrificed on the blood-drenched altar of war." --Nicolas Davies, author of Blood on Our Hands: The American Invasion and Destruction of Iraq
"David Swanson achieves two worthy goals. One, he proves that nearly everything we are told about World War II is false. The United States played a role in creating Nazi ideology and American businesses like IBM and Ford literally helped build Hitler's war machine. Two, the lies about WWII persist and have been used to justify every act of aggression committed by this country since that time. Leaving World War II Behind is a must read for everyone who works for peace and against the indoctrination that invariably leads to endless state violence and human suffering." --Margaret Kimberley, author of Prejudential: Black America and the Presidents
“David Swanson argues persuasively against justifications for World War II as ‘the good war.’ What if there were alternatives? And who did WWII really help? Leaving World War II Behind amply refutes war marketers' assurances that the U.S. only goes to war as a last resort because there are no alternatives. Swanson insists we must reckon with relentlessly racist beliefs and practices which actually fuel wars, trample human rights, and enable repressive elites to control resources. The book offers a momentous rallying cry to activists seeking equitable relations in a sustainable world. Use this book to generate a massive shift in public opinion, demanding we abolish war.”--Kathy Kelly, Co-Coordinator of Voices for Creative Nonviolence
“If war is ever to be abolished through rational argument, this is the book that will do it. Leaving behind World War II is essential to abolishing war and Leaving World War II Behind, the book, explains how. It is an inspiring and profound service in the ongoing effort to a safer and saner world.” --Mike Ferner, author of Inside the Red Zone: A Veteran For Peace Reports from Iraq
“When it comes to revealing the wretched corruption of war, David Swanson is in a league by himself. His uncompromising power of conviction is the sledgehammer needed to obliterate the myths and lies inherent in America’s murder machine. In fact, war is America’s favorite and most lucrative pastime and the one killing spree that remains sacrosanct in the hearts and minds of Americans, especially their historians, is World War II. Well, folks, don your helmets and slip on your Kevlar®, Swanson takes on the “good war” with the necessary grim, meat-hook of reality. The book is chock-full of incredible revelations, eye-opening historical facts that wipe out America’s house of cards. His argument why WWII did not have to happen is brilliant and bolsters the entire book. As I read Swanson’s new book, I was reminded of Rev. William Sloane Coffin when he posed the query, ‘If what we’re doing in Vietnam is right, what is there left to be called wrong?’ The power of Swanson’s book asks the same question of the so-called ‘good war.’ Leaving World War II Behind is worth every minute of your time. --Stephen Vittoria, documentary filmmaker and co-author with Mumia Abu-Jamal of Murder Incorporated: Empire, Genocide, and Manifest Destiny
"Though I have been an antiwar activist for many years, I admit I haven't always been able to deftly handle the ‘What about Hitler?’ argument, in part because I had never been taught the truth. Like Howard Zinn's, A People's History of the United States, David Swanson’s book reveals the ugly truth about WWII, and in doing so repudiates all possible arguments supporting the characterization of WWII as ‘just’.” --Leah Bolger, President of the Board of World BEYOND War
“In a well-constructed and compassionate book, David Swanson delivers something that’s sorely missing in the age of alternate facts and social media flame wars: He respects and trusts his readers. Leaving World War II Behind connects the dots across an incredible range of topics. In doing so, Swanson meticulously provides us with the documented evidence we need to begin questioning embedded myths and thus accessing our better selves.” --Mickey Z., author of Saving Private Power: The Hidden History of “The Good War”
"As David Swanson points out in this important book, World War II was the most destructive event in human history. And he also shows us that it was not necessary and that it has led to profound brokenness in the 75 years since it ended. Given the enormity of the evils wrought by that worst of all wars, people in the United States are remarkably uninformed about its true history. Thankfully, Swanson gives us a wide-ranging and clearly presented antidote for our ignorance." --Ted Grimsrud, Senior Professor of Peace Theology
