On Wargames: How Wargames Have Shapd History and How They May Shape the Future

This book answers questions you’ve probably never thought to ask—such as:
• What do Ronald Reagan and Bobby Kennedy have in common? (They both participated in top-secret wargames.)
• How many times was Pearl Harbor attacked by air on a Sunday morning? (At least three times; first in 1932 by the U.S. Navy during a live wargame, then in October 1941 by the Imperial Japanese Navy during an operations planning wargame, and finally on 7 December 1941 by “naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan.”)1
• Which came first, civilization or wargaming? (A trick question: it appears that civilization and wargaming began at the same time and place.)
This preface answers three more-serious questions about this book: why you should read it, why I wrote it, and how it was created.
This book answers questions you’ve probably never thought to ask—such as:
• What do Ronald Reagan and Bobby Kennedy have in common? (They both participated in top-secret wargames.)
• How many times was Pearl Harbor attacked by air on a Sunday morning? (At least three times; first in 1932 by the U.S. Navy during a live wargame, then in October 1941 by the Imperial Japanese Navy during an operations planning wargame, and finally on 7 December 1941 by “naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan.”)1
• Which came first, civilization or wargaming? (A trick question: it appears that civilization and wargaming began at the same time and place.)
This preface answers three more-serious questions about this book: why you should read it, why I wrote it, and how it was created.