This candid, provocative book by a lately retired American Army officer is written with the staccato of a machine gun. The general tells the American public that it should make up its mind whether it wants a military establishment for offensive purposes or merely for the defense of its own territory; once this decision is made, he says, it should be carried out with ruthless logic, throwing sentiment and outmoded ideas to the winds. Bureaucrats, military or civilian, will not welcome this book.