AR15/M16: AmericaS Assault Rifles
by Richard A. Bitzinger
Category: History

Whether it's guns and ammunition or multidimensional anti-terrorism systems, the defense industry is dynamic, complex, and ubiquitous. It is also mysterious, powerful, and controversial, involving thousands of players worldwide—from suppliers and producers to government and military procurers to shadowy figures that trade in the black market. This comprehensive, two-volume reference will explore, on a global scale, the various issues, concepts, problems, and controversies surrounding the rise of the modern defense industry. Unparalleled in its scope and insight, The Modern Defense Industry will prove invaluable to the industry's critics and champions alike. The phenomenon of a more-or-less permanent defense industry—especially one so wide in scale, breadth (air, sea, land, and space), technology, and geography—is still relatively new. Until now, its implications for politics, economics, and technology have not been adequately discussed in an authoritative, accessible format for scholars and researchers, business people, journalists, policymakers, and interested laymen. The Modern Defense Industry addresses the period from 1945 to the present, covering the United States, Europe, Russia, China, Israel, and other important arms-producing and arms-procuring countries. Including essays by experts from around the world, a glossary, data on firms and governments, laws and policies, primary documents, case studies, and a host of other elements, this set will be a unique resource for anyone interested in the arms industry. It will also offer penetrating insights into topics like international relations and diplomacy, arms proliferation, and contemporary politics. Volume I comprises chapters by experts in the field on topics like the relationship between the industry, military, and government; how new modes of warfare are changing the industry; the implications of globalization on the industry; the black and gray areas of the arms trade; and much more. Volume II features an extensive A-Z glossary of terms, lists of defense firms and government agencies, annotated primary documents, lists of leading defense contractors and key weapons systems, an analysis of key legislation, and professional organizations. The Modern Defense Industry sets the standard for state of the art overviews of an industry that has, for better or worse, come to infuse nearly every aspect of world affairs in the early twenty-first century.