"In 2016, the United States was stunned by evidence of Russian meddling in the US presidential elections. But it   shouldn't have been. Subversion--domestic interference to undermine or manipulate a rival--is as old as statecraft   itself. The basic idea would have been familiar to Sun Tzu, Thucydides, Elizabeth I, or Bismarck. Russia's operation   was just the latest episode, and there will be more to come. It came as a surprise in 2016 because the sole   superpower had fallen asleep at the wheel. But what's really new? Have we entered a new age of vulnerability? To   answer these questions, and to protect ourselves against future subversion, we need a clear-eyed understanding of   what it is and how it works. In A Measure Short of War, Jill Kastner and William C. Wohlforth provide just that, taking   the reader on a compelling ride through the history of subversion, exploring two thousand years of mischief and   manipulation to illustrate subversion's allure, its operational possibilities, and the means for fighting back against it.   With vivid examples from the ancient world, the great-power rivalries of the 19th century, epic Cold War struggles, and   more, A Measure Short of War shows how prior technological revolutions opened up new avenues for subversion, and   how some democracies have been fatally weakened by foreign subverters while others have artfully defended   themselves--and their democratic principles."--Publisher's website.

By Jill Kastner and William Curti Wohlforth