[Examines] "the causes of warfare in the context of a deterrence model, or, specifically, the deterrence factors inherent in the checks and balances of a democratic state and the absence of such factors in the nondemocratic state....Sharp analyzes the concepts in [John Norton] Moore's seminal work [Solving] the War Puzzle (2005 [i.e 2004]), which describes Moore's incentive theory of war avoidance" -- Forward (ix).