Drawing on insights gleaned as a soldier and a scholar, and a biologist, Mike Martin explains how the lives and deaths of our ancestors have shaped our behavior to propel us towards conflict, even as that option makes less and less sense. This ground-breaking book explores how tens of thousands of years of evolution have shaped our brains to fight, and not to fight.

It's already been a top 20 bestseller in Amazon's 'diplomacy' category, at one point outselling Machiavelli and Barack Obama.Why are we willing to die for our countries? Does religion precipitate violence? Do pride, anger and vengeance lead to war? Can ideology persuade someone to blow themselves up? I hope that many of you will want to get a copy and I'll welcome feedback, of any kind. I think learning about this will help us avoid mistakes in the future and it's in that spirit that I wrote the book. And whilst a lot of the breaking was done by Russia, by other authoritarian and rogue states, I believe we have to acknowledge the role played by Britain. But nobody can look at the state of the world in 2022 and think that things are pretty good, actually. As my profile shows, I served HMG for 16 years, often in difficult places, and consider myself a patriot. What this book is not, is an attack on Britain or the many wonderful people who have served its armed forces, foreign service or related agencies. Why the change? Because I have also published my first book - entitled How Britain Broke the World, and am now devoting some of my time to its promotion. I have recently moved from my position as Managing Director at ORBIS BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE LIMITED to become Senior Consultant. Hear Mike wherever you get your podcasts & here 🎧👇 #Politics #War #Ukraine It's an episode packed with thought-provoking insights from someone who has experienced war first-hand. If you've seen his explainer threads on Twitter (if not, do follow him or his media appearances explaining the war in Ukraine, you'll know why I was really excited to get him onto the show. And we explore what has prompted Mike to stand for election for the Liberal Democrats in the Tunbridge Wells constituency. He also explains the flaws behind misconceptions people often have about the realities of war. He provides some fascinating insights into wars, in particular the war in Ukraine, and how human decision-making has shaped successes and failures. In our discussion, we talk about Mike's career from the military to war studies to becoming a parliamentary candidate. What can we learn about human decision-making from war & politics? On the latest Human Risk podcast, I'm joined by Mike Martin, author of a new book, 'How To Fight A War' & visiting Fellow in War Studies at King's College London.

How to Fight a War by Mike Martin