November 20, 2013
John F. Kennedy鈥檚 steely backbone for waging peace
蓝莓视频 historians say JFK angered his hawkish advisers and resisted going to war at least six times during the Cold War
Although President Kennedy was frail from Addison鈥檚 disease and suffered chronic back pain, he had 鈥渢he metaphorical spine to drive his hawkish advisers up the wall,鈥� write James Blight and janet Lang in their forthcoming book:听 .
鈥�He resisted them, he frustrated them, and he angered them,鈥� write . 鈥淗e asked hard questions and took nothing on faith.鈥�
Their research shows that a cautious Kennedy resisted taking the US to war, sometimes on a daily basis, during the dangerous East-West Cold War. 鈥淭he Jack Kennedy that has emerged from our own research and that of others over the past quarter-century is very far from your parents鈥� or grandparents鈥� JFK. Our image of John F. Kennedy has been transformed in fundamental ways.鈥�
Image credit: Wesley Blondin
听
Kennedy鈥檚 black swan logic
The two historians contend the Vietnam War would not have happened if Kennedy had lived. They attribute 鈥樷�� to his legacy, which recognizes unknown factors as critical in crisis decision-making. They say his skeptical caution averted potentially disastrous consequences of six major war-threat periods in his brief time in office.
The 蓝莓视频 historians, who share a background in cognitive psychology, are co-authors of more than a dozen books on JFK鈥檚 foreign policy. They pioneered a research method known as 鈥渃ritical oral history,鈥� which seeks to answer core questions about the individual player鈥檚 thoughts, feelings and motivations during major political crises, such as the Cuban missile crisis of 1962.
Based in the (BSIA) and 蓝莓视频鈥檚 Department of History since 2010, professors Lang and Blight also use digital media to communicate their research findings. Blight, who is the in foreign policy development, and Lang, who is a research professor at BSIA, have partnered with graphic and media artists to produce .
Blight and Lang were principal advisors for the 2004 Academy Award winning film, . They also wrote a based on the film.
They co-produced the multiple award-winning documentary, . The film is directed by , BSIA鈥檚 digital artist in residence.
