Gangs, Pseudo-militaries, and Other Modern Mercenaries: New Dynamics in Uncomfortable Wars

International and Security Affairs Series

by Max Manwaring, John T. Fishel (Afterword), Edwin G. Corr (Foreword)

As the first decade of the twenty-first century has made brutally clear, the very definitions of war and the enemy have changed almost beyond recognition. Threats to security are now as likely to come from armed propagandists, popular militias, or mercenary organizations as they are from conventional armies backed by nation-states. In this timely book, national security expert Max G. Manwaring explores a little-understood actor on the stage of irregular warfare—the gang.

Since the end of the Cold War, some one hundred insurgencies or irregular wars have erupted throughout the world. Gangs have figured prominently in more than half of those conflicts, yet these and other nonstate actors have received little focused attention from scholars or analysts. This book fills that void.

Employing a case study approach, and believing that shadows from the past often portend the future, Manwaring begins with a careful consideration of the writings of V. I. Lenin. He then scrutinizes the Piqueteros in Argentina, gangs in Colombia, private armies in Mexico, Hugo Chavez’s use of popular militias in Venezuela, and the looming threat of Al Qaeda in Western Europe.

As conventional warfare is increasingly eclipsed by these irregular and “uncomfortable” wars, Manwaring boldly diagnoses the problem and recommends solutions that policymakers should heed.

258 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2010

Reviews

[Dennis Murphy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Max Manwaring's Gangs, Pseudo-Militaries, and Other Modern Mercenaries: New Dynamics in Uncomfortable Wars reminds me a lot of an earlier version of Sean McFate. The book takes a lot of cues from Lenin's approach to warfare, and then applies it mostly to Latin America and War on Terror case studies. Some parts of this text remain highly relevant, while others have started to show its age. Well worth a look for students of irregular war. Maybe a couple other groups too.

[Vanessa Neumann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Max Manwaring is the guru of asymmetric warfare. He teaches it to the US military and I had the privilege of learning under him, too. (My company is called Asymmetrica.) My work with him in Guatemala is in my book, "Blood Profits: How American Consumers Unwittingly Fund Terrorists." You will never look at gang or political violence the same way again.