In this novel and intriguing book, Michael Schaller traces the origins of the Cold War in Asia to the postwar occupation of Japan by U. S. troops. Determined to secure Japan as a bulwark against both Soviet expansion and Asian revolution, the U. S. instituted ambitious social and economicreforms under the direction of the flamboyant Occupation Commander, General Douglas MacArthur. MacArthur was later denounced by the Truman Administration as a "bunko artist" who had wrecked Japan's economy and opened it to Communist influence, and power was shifted to Japan's old elite. Cut offfrom its former trading partners, which were now all Communist-controlled, Japan, with U. S. backing, turned its attention to the rich but unstable Southeast Asian states. The stage was thus set for U. S. intervention in China, Korea, and Vietnam. | The American Occupation of Japan by Michael Schaller, Paperback | Indigo Chapters