Shawcross, William. Sideshow: Kissinger, Nixon, and the Destruction of
Cambodia. New York: Pocket Books, 1979. 464 pages.
Since 1970 William Shawcross covered Indochina for The Sunday Times of
London and other publications. When news of Cambodian atrocities surfaced in
1975, he began three years of research, including 300 interviews and
numerous FOIA requests, that resulted in this book. When it was published,
U.S. critics and pundits had not yet rebounded from recent revelations of
domestic repression by the FBI, and coups and assassinations by the CIA, so
the general consensus was that U.S. policy in Indochina had been a mistake
and we deserved to lose. This book, which is highly critical of Nixon policies
in Cambodia, particularly with respect to the role of Henry Kissinger, was
therefore well-received by establishment commentators.
Soon, however, the critics and pundits were taking their cues from the
invasion of Afghanistan, the arms buildup, Reagan's comments about the "evil
empire," and his assessment that the Nicaraguan contras had the morality of
our founding fathers. If nothing else, our well-paid talking heads know
which side of their bread has the most butter. Suddenly they were saying
that had it not been for those peacenik demonstrators, along with writers
who placed the blame on American policy, the tragedy of post-1975 Cambodia
would never have happened.
ISBN 0-671-83525-4
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