"The conflict in Nicaragua is one of the leastunderstood struggles of the Cold War. . . . This account clarifies the central issue and dispelsmany lingering myths." --Zbigniew Breinski,National Security Advisor during the Carter administration

The issue of Nicaragua arouses political passions, those that we see expressed almost daily in the newspapers of Europe, Latin America, and the United States. Few issues are more divisive within the politics of certain countries, and the evolution of the Nicaraguan drama threatens to drive a wedge between countries that are friends, allies, and par

Text and photographs introduce the geography, history, government, people, and economy of Nicaragua.

While South Carolina's preemptive strike on Fort Sumter and Lincoln's subsequent call to arms started the Civil War, South Carolina's secession and Lincoln's military actions were simply the last in a chain of events stretching as far back as the early 1750s. Increasing moral conflicts and political debates over slavery--exacerbated by the inequities inherent between an established agricultural society and a growing industrial one--led to a fierce sectionalism which manifested itself through cultural, economic, political and territorial disputes. This historical study reduces sectionalism to its most fundamental form, examining the underlying source of this antagonistic climate. From protective tariffs to the expansionist agenda, it illustrates the ways in which the foremost issues of the time influenced relations between the North and the South.

Award-winning historian Leonard L. Richards gives us an authoritative and revealing portrait of an overlooked harbinger of the terrible battle that was to come. When gold was discovered at Sutter's Mill in 1848, Americans of all stripes saw the potential for both wealth and power. Among the more calculating were Southern slave owners. By making California a slave state, they could increase the value of their slaves—by 50 percent at least, and maybe much more. They could also gain additional influence in Congress and expand Southern economic clout, abetted by a new transcontinental railroad that would run through the South. Yet, despite their machinations, California entered the union as a free state. Disillusioned Southerners would agitate for even more slave territory, leading to the Kansas-Nebraska Act and, ultimately, to the Civil War itself.

Winner of the 1988 Pulitzer Prize for History and a New York Times Bestseller, Battle Cry of Freedom is universally recognized as the definitive account of the Civil War. It was hailed in The New York Times as "historical writing of the highest order." The Washington Post called it "the finest single volume on the war and its background." And The Los Angeles Times wrote that "of the 50,000 books written on the Civil War, it is the finest compression of that national paroxysm ever fitted between two covers." Now available in a splendid new edition is The Illustrated Battle Cry of Freedom. Boasting some seven hundred pictures, including a hundred and fifty color images and twenty-four full-color maps, here is the ultimate gift book for everyone interested in American history. McPherson has selected all the illustrations, including rare contemporary photographs, period cartoons, etchings, woodcuts, and paintings, carefully choosing those that best illuminate the narrative. More important, he has written extensive captions (some 35,000 words in all, virtually a book in themselves), many of which offer genuinely new information and interpretations that significantly enhance the text. The text itself, streamlined by McPherson, remains a fast-paced narrative that brilliantly captures two decades of contentious American history, from the Mexican War to Lee's surrender at Appomattox. The reader will find a truly masterful chronicle of the war itself--the battles, the strategic maneuvering on both sides, the politics, and the personalities--as well as McPherson's thoughtful commentary on such matters as the slavery expansion issue in the 1850s, the origins of the Republican Party, the causes of secession, internal dissent and anti-war opposition in the North and the South, and the reasons for the Union's victory. A must-have purchase for the legions of Civil War buffs, The Illustrated Battle Cry of Freedom is both a spectacularly beautiful volume and the definitive account of the most important conflict in our nation's history.

Sustainable Ecotourism in Central America: Comparative Advantage in a Globalized World examines the factors necessary for Nicaragua, Panama, and Belize to implement an economic development model based on the growth of ecotourism and foreign direct investment. In order to determine what factors are necessary to implement this model, this book analyzes the state of ecotourism development in Costa Rica and the lessons that the Costa Rican case can provide for other Central American states. It also assesses the effects of globalization and the increasing implementation of free market policies on the development of ecotourism. The book ultimately argues that globalization and neoliberalism have made it more likely that states will be able to adopt a development model based on ecotourism and foreign direct investment due to the manner in which neoliberalism and globalization help to create ever-increasing economic interconnectedness and openness. While globalization has served to shrink the world and make it easier for people to travel, the economic openness of neoliberalism has facilitated global flows of both tourists and international capital into every corner of the world. Understanding the way globalization and neoliberalism interact with ecotourism development and foreign direct investment is the key to formulating policy recommendations for states in Central America to jumpstart their economic development.

In 1986, Mayumi left Japan with a bicycle to flee from constrains of life as a Japanese girl. Without a plan nor travelling experiences, she kept pedalling around the globe – during the final epoch of the Cold War – for about 35,000 kilometres, facing various kinds of difficulties and taking advantage of people’s goodwill. This is the travel story of about the first half of her drifting passage, from Japan up to the last stop in South America – Brazil – in which there are clues to interpret the enigma of Japan and Japanese as well as a cross section of Latin America in the Cold War era.

Examining the legality of foreign military intervention in internal conflicts with the consent of the government, this book analyses a to-the-point account of post-Cold War State practice with more than 45 incidents of such interventions on a scale neglected in current scholarship.