January 16, 2009

A Man of Big Ideas

By AARON L. FRIEDBERG

Remembering Samuel P. Huntington

Since his death on December 24, 2008 at the age of 81, Samuel P. Huntington has been described as the most influential political scientist of the past half-century. That label is well deserved, but it fails to convey the full measure of his achievement. For that, one needs to look forward rather than back. Fifty years from now (and beyond), when lesser lights have faded, Huntington's books will continue to be studied, and not only for what they say