5.0 out of 5 stars An instant classic, could inspire a series, December 26, 2012
I like this book very much, to the point of tempering my recurring criticisms (the author touches ever so lightly on reality that analysts are toads without decent all-source collection, 21st century processing power, and ethical interested customers for their hard-won insights).
Use Inside the Book if you have any doubts. I am particularly inspired by the pricing of this book, one of the most affordable volumes in the discipline, and one that every professional should own and every student should be required to reflect upon.
At my level of appreciation the footnotes and the bibliography are often the most interesting, and in the case of this book, I looked carefully at the sources recommended, and below list ten books that complement this one, that are NOT listed by the author.
Fifty years ago, during the Cuban missile crisis, the United States faced what is frequently described as the defining challenge of the Cold War. Today, some argue that America is facing a similarly defining challenge from Iran’s nuclear activities. In this context, it is striking to recall President John Kennedy’s warning, proffered just months before the missile crisis, that “the great enemy of the truth is very often not the lie — deliberate, contrived and dishonest — but the myth — persistent, persuasive and unrealistic. Too often we hold fast to the clichés of our forebears. We subject all facts to a prefabricated set of interpretations. We enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought.” Half a century later, Kennedy’s warning applies all too well to America’s discussion — it hardly qualifies as a real debate — about how best to deal with the Islamic Republic of Iran.
For more than thirty years, American analysts and policy-makers have put forward a series of myths about the Islamic Republic: that it is irrational, illegitimate and vulnerable. In doing so, pundits and politicians have consistently misled the American public and America’s allies about what policies will actually work to advance US interests in the Middle East.
This offers a brilliant analysis, a “connecting of the dots,” of why Petreaus was set up to leave CIA. But that's not the main story. The general's affair was cover used by Obama for getting rid of Petraeus to install Brennan for a special purpose:
“If Brennan were to succeed Petraeus at the C.I.A., the White House would not only install Obama's first choice in that office, no small matter in itself. Of far greater importance is the fact that, aside from Obama himself — and in certain respects, probably more than Obama — Brennan is the single most critical person in the design and implementation of the government's Murder Program, as I recently discussed. If Brennan does finally head the C.I.A., do you think that would be a coincidence? I do not for a moment believe in coincidences of that kind, especially not with an administration as determined in its lethality as this one. Think of it: John Brennan, who now is Obama's chief adviser on domestic security and counterterrorism goes to head the C.I.A.
I'll tell you what that means to me: Obama and his fellow murderers are absolutely determined to bring the Murder Program home to America, and probably even more quickly than I had previously thought. I described the steps by which that might happen in the second half of the preceding post. The unfolding nightmare that I described might very well lie in your future, America — and in the not too distant future at that. Do you care? To be sure, the administration could achieve the same end with another candidate if it wished, Vickers for example. But to be able to unleash the Murder Program on an even greater scale with the man who knows everything about it, and from his lofty perch at the C.I.A. … it's a dream come true for these bastards. And that may well be the reason they decided to get rid of Petraeus.”
And Congress's approving Brennan will enable Obama to say Congress approves of using drones what this writer calls the “Murder Program”:
If General Patraeus appears to commit suicide anytime soon, it will not have been suicide and the White House and the Department of Justice and the FBI will cover up the murder. Since the dual chain of command got away with the murder of JFK, the impunity with which they are willing to murder American citizens has steadily expanded. We are at a cross-roads. The final Obama term will either begin the restoration of the rule of law (very unlikely) or deliver the multiple precipitants for sparking a revolution in the USA,
Phi Beta Iota: The back chatter on the above post has been extraordinary. There appears to be a growing anger within the Special Operations community with respect to their being lied to, abused, and put in danger for political advantage — one is reminded of both Jim Webb's book, Friendly Fire, and the murder of Col James Sabow, USMC in the early 1990's. The trail of murders and uninvestigated suicides associated with the military-industrial-intelligence-terror complex is now easily over 200 in number just in the past 12 years, but evidently no one in the Inspector General, Law Enforcement, of Judiciary oversight world cares to take on the challenge.
If Patraeus is “suicided,” the irony and justice in relation to Petraeus' covering up the murder of Col Ted Westhusing, USA (RIP), is noted.
An honest President would demand that a task force itemize and investigate as a whole all of the “suicides” among all military officers in the past twelve years. The results are certain to be frightening. We do not expect such an investigation to occur, because the lack of integrity in the US Government has peaked at what we hope is a final high before public intelligence in the public interest begins to push back to good effect toward 2014 and 2016. We pray that a non-violent public majority can restore the rule of law in the USA. The elite and their security state servants are out of control, but from the bottom up, JSOG appears to be reconnecting with its integrity and that should scare the shit of Brennan and a handful of others.
Brandon Webb, a former Navy SEAL, and Jack Murphy, a former Green Beret, reveal the new claims in their book ‘Benghazi: The Definitive Report'
Petraeus was humiliated after a ‘palace coup' by high-level intelligence officers who did not like the way he was running the CIA, authors say
Amazon Page (Kindle)
The book also claims that Petraeus and Ambassador Chris Stevens were caught off guard by Benghazi consulate attack because they weren't briefed about on-going U.S. military operations in Libya
Webb and Murphy say Benghazi attack was a retaliation for secret raids authorized by Obama security adviser John Brennan
A grim Ministry of Finance (MOF) report circulating in the Kremlin today warns that Venezuela’s “nuclear option” crashing of its currency yesterday is a “clear signal” that the Western banking systems “house of cards”, erected in the aftermath of the 2007-2008 Global Economic Crisis, is in “total collapse” with the expected final outcome to be an “apocalyptic” crash of the US economy no later than April.
Currency war, (World War C) also known as competitive devaluation, is a condition in international affairs where countries compete against each other to achieve a relatively low exchange rate for their own currency. As the price to buy a particular currency falls so too does the real price of exports from the country.
Imports become more expensive. So domestic industry, and thus employment, receives a boost in demand from both domestic and foreign markets.
However, the price increase for imports can harm citizens' purchasing power. The policy can also trigger retaliatory action by other countries which in turn can lead to a general decline in international trade, harming all countries.
Brazilian Finance Minister Guido Mantega, widely credited with coining the term “currency war”, further warned yesterday that the global situation could get even worse if Europe joins the fray, and which this MOF report warns the will have to do in the “very near future.”
