Psych!

McMahon's treatment of the psychology of US decision makers is a bit weird. Decisions on SE Asia were driven by fears that lie "within the realm of social psychology." (221) Yet throughout the book, there are examples of people who seem unaffected by these fears, like LBJ's undersecretary of state George Ball, who argued for cutting losses and getting out of Vietnam when his colleagues were arguing for an increased commitment. (118) Yet apart from calling Ball "savvy," McMahon gives no hint as to why Ball would be immune to the kind of group psychology that had gripped everyone else. Were McNamara, Bundy and the rest just not "savvy?" Was Ball's stance just some sort of fluke? Or was there some substantive difference between these people that might explain why they came to such different conclusions?