The Road to War 1945-1951

In The Road to War, John M. Swomley Jr. presents a meticulous critique of American foreign policy between 1945 and 1951, arguing that the United States was deliberately steered toward a permanent state of militarization. Published by the National Council Against Conscription, the text contends that the “Cold War” was leveraged by military and political elites to justify massive armaments, universal military training, and the erosion of civilian control over government. Swomley exposes what he views as a calculated effort to create an atmosphere of perpetual crisis—using the threat of Communism to consolidate power and expand the American empire. By analyzing diplomatic maneuvers, the role of the North Atlantic Pact, and the escalation of the Korean conflict, Swomley suggests that the path to war was not an accident of history, but a byproduct of a “military-industrial” logic that prioritizes global dominance over genuine peace and democratic transparency.