This volume investigates how the United States constructs and responds to perceptions of insecurity in the post-9/11 era. Francois Debrix, a scholar of international relations and critical theory, curates a collection of essays that analyze the intersection of political strategy, cultural anxiety, and military intervention. The contributors argue that American foreign policy is driven not merely by objective threats, but by the active production of insecurity as a tool for maintaining power and domestic consensus.

Scholars in the field of critical security studies frequently cite this work for its rigorous interrogation of state-sponsored fear and geopolitical strategy. The text is recognized as a significant contribution to understanding the ideological underpinnings of contemporary American foreign policy.