CHEMICAL AND BIOLOGICAL WARFARE

In a clear and concise overview of major issues of their chemical and biological arms control, Pringle provides background on the dangers present, as well as of the social and political factors that have spread them even more widely than nuclear weapons.

Though he cites chemical warfare in ancient Greece, and British smallpox infections of Native Americans, he concentrates on the 20th century: gas attacks by both sides in World War I, Italian attacks on Ethiopians, "Agent Orange'' in Vietnam, Iraqi attacks on Kurds. He speculates that the Germans withheld using nerve gases in World War II because of Hitler's experience of being gassed in the previous war, or because of their fear of retaliation. But `"bad guys'' were not the only experimenters: Americans tried to develop diseases as weapons; later, the CIA experimented on whole sections of the country. One chapter exposes in detail the CIA's attempt to accuse the Vietnamese of using poison gas in the "Yellow Rain'' incident. (It turned out to be bee feces.) Pringle doesn't provide much direct documentation but does list his authoritative sources in a bibliography.

An excellent summary—so evenhanded that both sides in a debate could find it useful. Index. (Nonfiction. 12+)