JOSEF JOFFE

In the affairs of nations, too much hard power ends up breeding not submission but resistance. Likewise great soft power does not bend hearts; it twists minds in resentment and rage.

If you want to lead, you have to heed.

When Mr. Obama trum­peted the “au­dac­ity of hope,” he for­sook the first rule of state-craft: It is bet­ter (and cheaper) to man the lines than to re­turn. Be­ing there de­ters; pulling out sug­gests in­dif­fer­ence, if not an in­vi­ta­tion to ri­vals. “Lead­ing from be­hind” may work with graz­ing sheep. It does not in wolf coun­try.

Defying History and Theory: The United States as the 'Last Remaining Superpower,'

Anti-Americanism is as old as the Republic--a historical constant, which is only remotely related to specific American behavior. So what is new? Andrei Markovits has delivered the best answer yet, ranging across an astounding wealth of material from politics and culture. Uncouth Nation is a rare academic treat. Rigorous and analytical, the book is also a pleasure to read as it penetrates a critical issue of our time.

Europeans want America to be like Europe. But America will never be like Europe. She is the daughter of Europe but she left home when 18 years old and never came back.

It is not a winning game for Europeans to have a hostility to the United States.

America is different. It irks and domineers. But it does not conquer. It tries to call the shots and bend the rules, but it does not go to war for land and glory.

Germany today is a blocked society, incapable of reform.

Never before has the gap between American power and its legitimacy been so great.

America is different. It irks and domineers. But it does not conquer. It tries to call the shots and bend the rules, but it does not go to war for land and glory.

Germany today is a blocked society, incapable of reform.

Europe, mourning the loss of its century-old supremacy, either resorts to insulation (by quotas and “cultural exception” clauses) or seeks solace in the disparagement of American culture as vulgar, inauthentic, or stolen.

In the affairs of nations, too much hard power ends up breeding not submission but resistance. Likewise great soft power does not bend hearts; it twists minds in resentment and rage.

If you want to lead, you have to heed.

Europeans want America to be like Europe. But America will never be like Europe. She is the daughter of Europe but she left home when 18 years old and never came back.

It is not a winning game for Europeans to have a hostility to the United States.

Never before has the gap between American power and its legitimacy been so great.

During the war [WWII] Hitler was de Gaulle’s enemy across the Channel, Churchill the enemy next door.

When Mr. Obama trum­peted the “au­dac­ity of hope,” he for­sook the first rule of state-craft: It is bet­ter (and cheaper) to man the lines than to re­turn. Be­ing there de­ters; pulling out sug­gests in­dif­fer­ence, if not an in­vi­ta­tion to ri­vals. “Lead­ing from be­hind” may work with graz­ing sheep. It does not in wolf coun­try.

Defying History and Theory: The United States as the 'Last Remaining Superpower,'

Anti-Americanism is as old as the Republic--a historical constant, which is only remotely related to specific American behavior. So what is new? Andrei Markovits has delivered the best answer yet, ranging across an astounding wealth of material from politics and culture. Uncouth Nation is a rare academic treat. Rigorous and analytical, the book is also a pleasure to read as it penetrates a critical issue of our time.