Pentagon's New Map Story aired: Thursday, May 13, 2004
Back in the 1990s, a young Pentagon analyst started telling people that the U.S. government did not understand how the world works, who America's real enemies are, and what kind of army would be needed to confront them.
Thomas Barnett says he got a chilly reception back then. After the 9/11 attacks, his ideas began to get more traction in briefing rooms around the Pentagon. In fact, as he tells it, the 9/11 attacks could be viewed as a kind of gift to the United States: horribly costly, but ultimately, a valuable lesson.
Thomas Barnett's theory is now out in a book called "The Pentagon's New Pap," and he joins Here and Now to discuss the book.
