Rethinking the Economics of War: The Intersection of Need, Creed, and Greed questions the adequacy of explaining today's internal armed conflicts purely in terms of economic factors and reestablishes the importance of identity and grievances in creating and sustaining such wars. This collection of essays responds to current works asserting that the income from natural resources is the end and not just a means for warring rebel groups. The study puts greed in its place and restores the importance of deprivation and discrimination as the primary causes of armed conflict within states. Countries studied include Lebanon, Sierra Leone, Angola, the Republic of the Congo, Colombia, and Afghanistan.

Cynthia Arnson incorporates substantial amounts of new primary source and recently declassified material coming out of the Iran-Contra trials and other Freedom of Information Act requests in this new edition of Crossroads. She also includes an entirely new chapter that carries the story of the Nicaragua and El Salvador policy debates to the end of the Bush Administration.

Outlines the struggle for control of American foreign policy during the Reagan administration