Introduction
Thirteen Days is an account of the Cuban missile crisis written by Senator Robert Kennedy; where he described an incident in October 1962 when the United States dealt with the Soviet Union over its setting up of weaponry in Cuba.
Description of the summary of the book
In this case, the narrator explains the hour-by-hour discussions with meticulous consideration to the actions and observations of his brother, President J. F. Kennedy. In this case, the narrator explains assemblies of the president with the team of executive committee members to resolve the anxiety which was cropping up between the two superpowers. Based on this, the U.S. president’s management style is explained as concerned during the crisis but not commanding.
From this, the president is explained as one who held back his observations throughout conferences while being informed that; others would apt to imitate his thoughts rather than give sincere assessments. It can be argued that Robert Kennedy observed the leaders of the armed forces on the committee compassionately, and documented that their enduring attentiveness to the war was hard to set aside (Kennedy 12-167).
From the book, it can be argued that there were two faces of disagreement depicted during the cold war era where the Soviet Union preferred to bring the whole of Europe; and the rest of the world under communism while on the other hand the United States, desired to stop the more extension of communism which resulted to the Cuban missiles tensions. It is of importance to note that, the American president had a less aggressive reaction towards the building of secret missile bases in Cuba; by the Soviet Union after being informed by the U.S. intelligence. Based on this, the U.S. president feared that if he invaded the Russians in Cuba, the Soviets would invade Berlin.
In this case, there was tension between the U.S president and Russian Khrushchev were each authorized invasion in case they were threatened. From this, it is well indicated from the book that, on October 28 the Russian Premier thought of extending his threat to the U.S. by acknowledging President Kennedy’s orders. In this case, they authorized all Soviet provision vessels to retreat from the Cuban waters; and accepted to take away the missiles from Cuba’s mainland. It can be argued that the book outlines the tension which was cropping not only in America but also worldwide as the probability of another world war was increasing. It can be argued that President Kennedy avoided any act of war when resolving the conflict, which made him apt to use an act of war referred to as a quarantine (Kennedy 12-167).
Discussion of personal reaction towards the book
From a personal perspective on the reaction of the book, it can be argued that President Kennedy’s administration did not want the world to fight another war like the Second World War; which had previously ended. This can be evident from his reluctance in resolving the building up tension through any act of war; as he feared that Berlin (a capitalist country) would be invaded by the Soviets. On the other hand, it can be said that the U.S. feared that the whole world would be turned into communism; hence tried to stop the vast spreading of communism (Kennedy 12-167).
It can be argued that the U.S. president according to Robert Kennedy had to try and stop missiles in Cuba. This is because they had the potential of wiping out the whole of Southern and Eastern United States, in the case they were made operational. It can be seen that the two superpowers had cold wars against each other; as the U.S. president was told to order for the removal of its Jupiter missiles, which had been placed in Turkey.
In this case, President Kennedy was observed as reluctant in responding to this order. Based on this, when the Joint Chiefs observed that the president was reluctant; they raised the U.S. defense without informing him. In this case, the book indicates that the U.S president did not want to start a war against the Soviet Union; but the Joint Chiefs were getting prepared for the war without the president’s consent.
Based on this, this can be used to indicate that the president was reluctant; which could lead to America being fought and defeated by the Soviets hence the spread of communism all over the world. It can further be argued that President Kennedy ignored threats from the Soviets, which increased the tension between the two superpowers (Kennedy 12-167).
It is of importance to note that, it was only after much consideration with the ‘Executive Committee of the National Security Council’; that the U.S. president in secret decided to take away the Jupiter missiles from Turkey. This can be used to indicate that, the U.S. president did not want to end the cold war against the Soviets; until communism had been ended. From this, the war seemed to have ended but each superpower was preparing for an invasion by its rival, which culminated in the Cold War (Kennedy 12-167).
Conclusion
As a matter of fact, the U.S. president seemed to fail the Americans (capitalists) with his reluctance in considering the Soviet Union’s threats seriously; and act accordingly. In this case, the Joint Chiefs in America decided to prepare themselves for any war without the consent of the president.
Work cited
Kennedy, Robert. “Thirteen Days: A Memoir of the Cuban Missile Crisis”, Reissue edition. New York: W.W. Norton & Company Publishers. (1999): 12-167.