In Only the Dead, Bear Braumoeller assesses the claim that armed conflict is in decline and finds it wanting. In the course of his assessment, he also develops a powerful explanation for trends in warfare over time. His central finding is that, although there has been a drop in the rate of international conflict following the end of the Cold War, that drop followed nearly two centuries of steady increases in the rate of conflict.

• Preface


• 1 Introduction


• 2 Empirical Reasons for Skepticism


• 3 Theoretical Reasons for Skepticism


• 4 A Conventional View of War


• 5 Measuring War


• 6 A Few Handy Tools


• 7 Trends in Warfare, 1815-present

Bear F. Braumoeller is a political scientist at The Ohio State University who studies Great Power politics, international conflict, complex systems, and statistical methodology. He earned his Bachelor's degree at the University of Chicago and his Ph.D. at the University of Michigan. He has previously been a faculty member at Harvard University and the University of Illinois and has been a Fellow at the Norwegian Nobel Institute. His first book, The Great Powers and the International System, won the Best Book Award from the International Studies Association as well as the J. David Singer Award.