Lewis provides a comprehensive, impartial examination of Argentina"s "Dirty War." He analyzes the causes, describes the ideologies that motivated both sides, and explores the consequences of all-or-nothing politics. He begins by tracing the Dirty War"s origins back to military interventions in the 1930s and 1940s, and the rise of General Juan Peron"s populist regime, which resulted in the polarization of Argentine society. Peron"s overthrow by the military in 1955 only heightened social conflict by producing a resistance movement out of which several guerrilla organizations would soon emerge. The ideologies, terrorist tactics, and internal dynamics of those underground groups are examined in detail, as well as their links to other movements in Argentina and abroad. The guerrillas reached the height of their influence when the military withdrew from power in 1973 and turned over the government to Peron"s puppet president, Hector Campora. They quickly found themselves in opposition...