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America's War for the Greater Middle East
- A Military History
- Narrated by: Rob Shapiro, Andrew J. Bacevich
- Length: 15 hrs and 7 mins
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America's War for the Greater Middle East
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Summary
Retired army colonel and New York Times best-selling author Andrew J. Bacevich provides a searing reassessment of US military policy in the Middle East over the past four decades.
From the end of World War II until 1980, virtually no American soldiers were killed in action while serving in the Greater Middle East. Since 1990, virtually no American soldiers have been killed in action anywhere else. What caused this shift? Andrew J. Bacevich, one of the country's most respected voices on foreign affairs, offers an incisive critical history of this ongoing military enterprise - now more than 30 years old and with no end in sight.
During the 1980s, Bacevich argues, a great transition occurred. As the Cold War wound down, the United States initiated a new conflict - a war for the Greater Middle East - that continues to the present day. The long twilight struggle with the Soviet Union had involved only occasional and sporadic fighting. But as this new war unfolded, hostilities became persistent. From the Balkans and East Africa to the Persian Gulf and Central Asia, US forces embarked upon a seemingly endless series of campaigns across the Islamic world. Few achieved anything remotely like conclusive success. Instead, actions undertaken with expectations of promoting peace and stability produced just the opposite. As a consequence, phrases like permanent war and open-ended war have become part of everyday discourse.
Connecting the dots in a way no other historian has done before, Bacevich weaves a compelling narrative out of episodes as varied as the Beirut bombing of 1983, the Mogadishu firefight of 1993, the invasion of Iraq in 2003, and the rise of ISIS in the present decade. Understanding what America's costly military exertions have wrought requires seeing these seemingly discrete events as parts of a single war. It also requires identifying the errors of judgment made by political leaders in both parties and by senior military officers who share responsibility for what has become a monumental march to folly. This Bacevich unflinchingly does.
A 20-year army veteran who served in Vietnam, Andrew J. Bacevich brings the full weight of his expertise to this vitally important subject. America's War for the Greater Middle East is a bracing after-action report from the front lines of history. It will fundamentally change the way we view America's engagement in the world's most volatile region.
Read by Rob Shapiro, with a Prologue and Note read by the author.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Mrs Christine Ralphs
- 26-11-17
A 'must read' for modern history readers.
if you want to understand why the USA continually uses a costly and counter productive strategy in the middle east then this is the book for you. it details all the military campaigns since the USA lost power in iran. it also explains why all this effort has achieved nothing substantial at the price of so many lives lost and so much financial debt.
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- Laura Lee Murray
- 17-11-22
Excellent account of all the wars
Narration is perfect. Very informative book on every war started and hailed as a success yet later we find out where anything but. I highly recommend this book and all other books by Andrew as they are a complete account of what why how and what can be done to change things. Also this is not a biased for or against any political party etc. Rather who and why each war was started and what happened along the way. It's astounding to see how many wars that America has been involved with and yet they still don't understand the middle east any better than when WW2 ended. They honestly believe that Afghanistan and Iraq are exactly the same as each other in customs and beliefs. That's like saying Mexico and America are one in the same because they are neighbours. Very odd.
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- ReadingFan
- 03-05-16
Must read
Very very thoughtful, insightful and educational text that should be required reading for anyone wishing to vote in the United States and indeed in the western world. The last chapter in particular list key topics that require educated debate and more importantly thoughtful policies
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- GooDNoYZ
- 17-07-16
one if the most important books of our time.
One of the most important books for our time and for the future. With questions and answers and a crucial concluding chapter.
This is what needs to go viral, not sneezing pandas
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- Mr Simon Graham
- 20-04-17
highly recommended
an incredibly insightful and thought provoking book. It helps put into context the tiny part which I myself have played in this war. I was gripped from start to finish and this book and the messages portrayed have made a deep impression on me.
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