In this capstone book, Lebow, a political scientist, builds on his earlier work, compiling data on all wars and interventions since 1945. He finds that war is not an effective means of advancing security, maximizing wealth, or gaining status. States that have started wars in the last 80 years tend to either lose them or fail to achieve their political goals. The puzzle for Lebow is why leaders still choose to resort to military force. In case after case, the book finds that leaders consistently