| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Plus, get an extra £5 Gift Certificate when you trade in books worth £10 or more before June 30, 2012. Visit the Books Trade-In Store for more details. |
Frequently Bought Together
Product details
|
More About the Author
Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
Against All Enemies takes the reader inside the Beltway beginning with the Reagan administration, who failed to retaliate against the 1982 Beirut bombings, fuelling the perception around the world that the United States was vulnerable to such attacks. Terrorism becomes a growing but largely ignored threat under the first President Bush, whom Clarke cites for his failure to eliminate Saddam Hussein, thereby necessitating a continued American presence in Saudi Arabia that further inflamed anti-American sentiment. Clinton, according to Clarke, understood the gravity of the situation and became increasingly obsessed with stopping al-Qaeda. He had developed workable plans but was hamstrung by political infighting and the sex scandal that led to his impeachment. But Bush and his advisers, Clarke says, didn't get it before 9/11 and they didn't get it after, taking a unilateral approach that seemed destined to lead to more attacks on Americans and American interests around the world. Clarke's inside accounts of what happens in the corridors of power are fascinating and the book, written in a compelling, highly readable style, at times almost seems like a fiction thriller. But the threat of terrorism and the consequences of Bush's approach to it feel very sobering and very real. --John Moe, Amazon.com --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Review
Suggested Tags from Similar Products(What's this?)Be the first one to add a relevant tag (keyword that's strongly related to this product)
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Where Clarke's book becomes really interesting, even more so than the recording of history, is when comparing various Presidents' style. As someone who strongly disagrees with virtually all government actions, it was valuable to gain insight to the processes, or lack thereof, used by the various Presidents.
I can understand why the current White House is concerned with this critical book, from a credible and authoritative source. It really discredits many of the actions of Bush, Rice, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz and Ashcroft, as well as the FBI, CIA and even Joint Chiefs of Staff. Few in the Bush administration come out of this with their credibility intact, only Colin Powell appears to have any understanding of the geopolitical consequences of action and inaction based on imprecise, dogmatic ideology, rather than a holistic view of the complexities in the real world. Unfortunately he appears to have been browbeaten by the inflexible ideologues in the Bush administration. Rather surprisingly ex-President Clinton is demonstrated to be a deep thinker who revels in the complexities of geopolitical analysis, often to the chagrin of his analysts.
This text should be mandatory reading for anyone with a vote in the forthcoming US Presidential election (and the UK General Election as this indicates what Blair was allying himself and the UK to).
If you are at all interested in the on-going geopolitical crisis then read this book (and "Holy War, Inc.")!
What is so important, and so very clear from the book, is that:
1. The Bush Administration was actually less concerned, and devoted substantially less resources and attention, to combating Al Qaeda, than the Clinton Administration. While Clinton's efforts to fight Al Qaeda were not sufficient to prevent 9/11, Bush further diminished the government's efforts.
2. The Bush Administration made a catastrophic mistake in launching an unnecessary and counterproductive war against Iraq while failing to complete the job in Afghanistan or otherwise focus sufficiently on Al Qaeda after 9/11.
Prior to 9/11, neither administrations did what would have been necessary to prevent the attacks, and neither would have had the political support to do so. After 9/11 however, the Bush administration did have the political support, both domestically and internationally, to do whatever was reasonably necessary, but squandered that support on the wrong war at the wrong time in the wrong place, for reasons that were preconceived prior to 9/11.
These truths are so clear that they are beyond reasonable refutation, which is doubtless why the Bush administration has undertaken personal attacks on Mr. Clarke rather than any refutation of his book on its merits. With the domestic economic policies of the administration so obviously a failure, there is no rationale for the Bush administration except its supposed wisdom and skill in fighting terrorism. This book demolishes that rationale
It remains to be seen what impact the book will have on President Bush's re-election campaign but, given that this book represents the second intervention to date by people "in the know" accusing him of misleading his electorate, it could do him damage - Blair too.
We'll have to see - until then, settle back for a good read...
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
|
|
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
|
