"None of human history really meant much if racial history were not thoroughly understood first." -Theodore Rooseveldt

While Teddy wrote that quote to emphasize his total agreement with the Mein Kampf-like racist philosophy that is Manifest Destiny, which explains Teutons (Caucasians) inherited the earth because of their innate goodness and utter superiority in everything physical mental and moral, the quote is as apt an analysis for why this book is important.

To really understand why Teddy did what he did in his political life (and his personal life) we must fully understand his philosophical comfort with racist, bigoted and misogynistic beliefs. One of the early chapters goes into great detail with Aryanist racist philosophy and mythology, Teddy's childhood and higher education being chambers of inculcation into this way of thinking, and he remaking of his image into something that resembles someone who could be seen as a champion of heroes of that mythology. And from there, the decisions he makes about the mission of this cruise become more clearly understood.

With stop after stop on the cruise, it becomes successively clearer how racist illogic dictated America's (via Taft's via Teddy's) every move, destroyed civilizations, murdered hundreds of thousands of men women & children, and crippled Asia-USA relations for over a century, and counting.

To paraphrase the author in his postscript, it was surprising that he was the researcher who, after over a century, became the first to shine the spotlight on Theodore Rooseveldt's Hitler-esque racism, when all the information was sitting in plain sight all along waiting for anyone to access it and write the truth. That he was the first to present this vitally important information which will help us put American history in a more correct assessment, says a lot about the whitewashing of US history.

While an overused phrase, this is a book that everyone should read. Well, at least every American should read it. It's that significant.