AMERICA'S INADVERTENT EMPIRE

Like Jim Garrison (see above), these two policy experts recognize that the United States has risen to such unprecedented levels on all fronts that no other nation or even alliance of nations can counterbalance its power. But unlike Garrison, who wants the U.S. to create a global society, Odom (former head of the National Security Agency) and Dujarric (a fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations) envision "strong prospects for sustaining the American empire for a very long time." The tone is cautiously pragmatic, calling for the preservation of Liberal (with a capital L) institutions that will propagate American values and urging political leaders not to overreact to terrorism, which they deem "a tactic, not an enemy." (Mar.)