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Anand Gopal
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No Good Men Among the Living: America, the Taliban, and the War Throught Afghan Eyes Audio CD – Audiobook, 27 Jan. 2015

by Anand Gopal (Author), Assaf Cohen (Narrator)
4.7 out of 5 stars 920 ratings
Told through the lives of three Afghans, the stunning tale of how the United States had triumph in sight in Afghanistan-and then brought the Taliban back from the dead.In a breathtaking chronicle, acclaimed journalist Anand Gopal traces in vivid detail the lives of three Afghans caught in America's war on terror. He follows a Taliban commander, who rises from scrawny teenager to leading insurgent; a U. S.-backed warlord, who uses the American military to gain personal wealth and power; and a village housewife trapped between the two sides, who discovers the devastating cost of neutrality.Though their dramatic stories, Gopal shows that the Afghan war, so often regarded as a hopeless quagmire, could have gone very differently. Top Taliban leaders actually tried to surrender within months of the U. S. invasion, renouncing all political activity and submitting to the new government. Effectively, the Taliban ceased to exist-yet the Americans were unwilling to accept such a turnaround. Instead, driven by false intelligence from their allies and an unyielding mandate to fight terrorism, American forces continued to press the conflict, resurrecting the insurgency that persists to this day. With its intimate accounts of life in war-torn Afghanistan, Gopal's thoroughly original reporting lays bare the workings of America's longest war and the truth behind its prolonged agony. A heartbreaking story of mistakes and misdeeds,?No Good Man Among the Living challenges our usual perceptions of the Afghan conflict, its victims, and its supposed winners.?
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  1. Part of series
    American Empire Project
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Highbridge Co
  4. Publication date
    27 Jan. 2015
  5. Dimensions
    14.61 x 2.54 x 13.34 cm
  6. ISBN-10
    1622316665
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1622316663
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Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Highbridge Co
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ 27 Jan. 2015
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1622316665
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1622316663
  • Item weight ‏ : ‎ 236 g
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 14.61 x 2.54 x 13.34 cm
  • Part of series ‏ : ‎ American Empire Project
  • Best Sellers Rank: 48,170 in Society, Politics & Philosophy
  • Customer reviews:
    4.7 out of 5 stars 920 ratings

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Anand Gopal

Anand Gopal

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Customer reviews

4.7 out of 5 stars
920 global ratings

Top reviews from United Kingdom

Top reviews from other countries

  • Ansgar Eussner
    5.0 out of 5 stars Thoughtful account of the war in Afghanistan
    Reviewed in France on 11 November 2018
    Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase
    This is the story of the war in Afghanistan, told through the personal stories of two men and a women who try to survive a chaotic and ever shifting scene of limitless violent conflict.
    Well researched and authentic.
    Report
  • Greg A
    5.0 out of 5 stars Really good read
    Reviewed in Canada on 22 January 2021
    Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
    well written, sad story as it pointed out that there were so many missed opportunities for peace that were missed.
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  • Eric C. Petersen
    5.0 out of 5 stars A Real Eye-Opener and Very Well Written
    Reviewed in the United States on 20 October 2017
    Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
    This book turns upside down the American perspective on the war - yet another circular firing squad operation from D.C. After the Soviets pulled their troops out in 1989 they didn't wash their hands of the country, rather they continued to support the communist government in Kabul, and the U.S. continued to support the mujahidin to counter the residual communist influence. Both the Soviets and the U.S. stopped their respective support in 1991 and the country was left with a power vacuum - the Soviets had wiped out the traditional structure of local governance run by elders and to fill this vacuum various warlords and wannabees battled for power in a nightmarish civil war: women were grabbed off the streets and raped, no property was safe from theft, and executions swift of anyone thought to oppose a newly-installed war lord. Opposition to this brutal internal battle for power grew, mainly among the Pashtun in the south, the Taliban was born, and by 1996 pretty much prevailed. Although the Taliban enforced strict Sharia law including no music, TV or other satanic pass times, they did mete out justice to protect the civilian population, a sense of security returned after the terror of the civil war. Then we had 9/11, the invasion of Afghanistan and the installation of Karzai in Kabul. The Taliban, that was a loose confederation of local actors, was immediately impressed (terrified) of American air power, had no objection to Karzai (a fellow Pashtun), decided to back the Kabul government and give up their weapons. They had had enough of war, one that was continuing with the Northern Alliance when the U.S. invaded, and wanted to retire to civilian life now that there was a credible central government. Instead, the U.S. targeted all-and-any Taliban, conducted night raids into homes - often killing innocent civilians - and arrested any ex-Taliban member who came in to surrender and shipped him off to Gitmo for years, at times even the wrong person. It did not take too many of these incidents to convince the Afghans that the Americans were an invading force out to destroy their culture and religion. The nascent movement was helped and organized by a Taliban central committee in Pakistan and the Afghans began to rearm - the Americans went from being saviors to an enemy rather quickly. The U.S. offered to make anyone rich by providing information on ex-Taliban and many sprang for this opportunity as it not only provided cash but an "in" with the Americans as an intelligence source, allowing local rivals to be liquidated by the Americans. We ended up with 400 scattered bases in Afghanistan, all of which needed to be supplied by truck and each convoy needed protection. You can guess the rest. Endless amounts of money were poured into local Afghan contractors, a key source of funding for the Taliban. America has spent over $100 billion for "reconstruction" in Afghanistan, a large portion of which simply disappeared; the government in Kabul is one of the most corrupt on the planet. The police force stood up by American advisors is totally corrupt and has fanned out across the country for seemingly one purpose - to extract money at the point of a gun from the locals.

    Since Al-Qaida - perhaps 100 strong? - immediately fled to Pakistan at the opening of the U.S. invasion, our troops had to "do something" once in country. The Taliban had been branded as terrorist and were therefor open game for the American military, still there 16 years later banging away. Washington totally misread the political-security situation that had developed in the 1990s and turned a potential ally (the Taliban) into an enemy. Thirty-eight years on from the Soviet invasion the country still finds itself at war, and Washington's take of the situation unchanged.
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  • Philip Craig
    5.0 out of 5 stars Details and background and root causes exposed
    Reviewed in Australia on 2 September 2021
    Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase
    Excellent detailed probe into the why's and wherefores. Fascinating material in light of the recent 2021 developments giving insight into why...​
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  • paresh
    5.0 out of 5 stars Terrific!
    Reviewed in India on 23 August 2021
    Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase
    In 2014, Anand made the following observation: "It is clear to me that Americans would not be the victors. The Taliban has not surrendered or been defeated, the Afghan army is weak and unreliable, and the Afghan government is hopelessly corrupt.." Backed by solid on ground reporting, he nearly foresaw the future that's unravelling in 2021. Recommended for one and all!
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