Join Political Science professor Russ Leng for a standalone, Zoom-only class on the similarities between the intelligence failures of America in 1941 and Israel in 2023. Military intelligence failures, which have been cited as major causes of Israel’s lack of preparedness on Oct. 7, 2023, are eerily similar to those that preceded the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, four decades earlier. In both cases, human errors arising from preconceived views of the adversary’s intentions and capabilities, communication failures within the chain of command, and possibly sexism, had disastrous consequences. Dr. Leng’s lecture illustrates the similarities in the two cases and demonstrates that the technological advances in intelligence gathering have not resolved the key issues: human judgment and communication.

Presented by the Friends of Snow Library. To register or for more information, visit https://friendsofsnowlibrary.org/lifetime-learning-program/.