false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1170797595m/71984.jpg 71984 4 Steve Coll's <I>Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan, and Bin Laden, from the Soviet Invasion to September 10, 2001</I> offers revealing details of the CIA's involvement in the evolution of the Taliban and Al Qaeda in the years before the September 11 attacks. From the beginning, Coll shows how the CIA's on-again, off-again engagement with Afghanistan after the end of the Soviet war left officials at Langley with inadequate resources and intelligence to appreciate the emerging power of the Taliban. He also demonstrates how Afghanistan became a deadly playing field for international politics where Soviet, Pakistani, and U.S. agents armed and trained a succession of warring factions. At the same time, the book, though opinionated, is not solely a critique of the agency. Coll balances accounts of CIA failures with the success stories, like the capture of Mir Amal Kasi. Coll, managing editor for the <I>Washington Post</I>, covered Afghanistan from 1989 to 1992. He demonstrates unprecedented access to records of White House meetings and to formerly classified material, and his command of Saudi, Pakistani, and Afghani politics is impressive. He also provides a seeming insider's perspective on personalities like George Tenet, William Casey, and anti-terrorism czar, Richard Clarke ("who seemed to wield enormous power precisely because hardly anyone knew who he was or what exactly he did for a living"). Coll manages to weave his research into a narrative that sometimes has the feel of a Tom Clancy novel yet never crosses into excess. While comprehensive, Coll's book may be hard going for those looking for a direct account of the events leading to the 9-11 attacks. The CIA's 1998 engagement with bin Laden as a target for capture begins a full two-thirds of the way into <I>Ghost Wars</I>, only after a lengthy march through developments during the Carter, Reagan, and early Clinton Presidencies. But this is not a critique of Coll's efforts; just a warning that some stamina is required to keep up. <I>Ghost Wars</I> is a complex study of intelligence operations and an invaluable resource for those seeking a nuanced understanding of how a small band of extremists rose to inflict incalculable damage on American soil. <I>--Patrick O'Kelley</I> 69695 28 12 2004 Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan, and Bin Laden, from the Soviet Invasion to September 10, 2001 total:1026|5:464|4:417|3:127|2:15|1:3| 1026 4402 1989 201 3 8 false false Mon Oct 05 07:48:46 -0700 2009 Fri Mar 16 17:17:17 -0700 2007 Mon Oct 05 07:48:46 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 1 false false Wed Nov 05 07:13:21 -0800 2008 Wed Nov 05 07:13:59 -0800 2008
Coll begins with the Islamabad riot of 1979, in which thousands of Islamic militants laid waste to the US embassy while Zia was riding about on a bicy...more...]]> 0 1 false false Thu Feb 05 11:00:13 -0800 2009 Thu Feb 05 11:00:57 -0800 2009 5 1 false false Tue Feb 27 17:31:39 -0800 2007 Sat Apr 21 20:53:25 -0700 2007
This was one of the best nonfiction books I have read in a long time. I have no idea how Coll got access to that much information and how he was able to organize it that well. But just trying to imagine how much research must have gon...more...]]> 5 0 false false Wed Feb 04 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Thu Feb 05 19:01:27 -0800 2009 Thu Feb 05 19:20:34 -0800 2009 more...]]> 0 1 false false Fri Dec 05 08:19:29 -0800 2008 Fri Dec 05 08:28:24 -0800 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Nov 30 16:54:43 -0800 2008 Sun Nov 30 17:13:10 -0800 2008
Turns out we pretty much funded our own problems through our dependence on oil--especially in the 70s and 80s--and that we overtly funded the radical Islamists to fight against ...more...]]> 3 0 false false Tue Dec 16 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Wed Dec 10 19:43:21 -0800 2008 Wed Dec 17 15:05:40 -0800 2008 Cardinal in the Kremlin (which was awesome. don't hate)).

As of page 396: T...more...]]> 5 0 false false Sun Mar 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Mon Mar 16 11:11:58 -0700 2009 Thu Mar 26 00:31:36 -0700 2009
Let me first say that this is the type of book to read when ...more...]]> 5 1 false false Sun Apr 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Fri Aug 31 22:06:27 -0700 2007 Fri Aug 31 22:06:27 -0700 2007 more...]]> 4 1 false false Sun Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2006 Fri Jun 22 13:10:08 -0700 2007 Fri Jun 22 13:12:59 -0700 2007 more...]]> 5 1 false false Tue May 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Sat Jun 23 13:34:22 -0700 2007 Sat Jun 23 14:12:16 -0700 2007 more...]]> 5 0 false false Sat Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2005 Mon Jul 13 11:21:06 -0700 2009 Tue Jul 14 20:26:09 -0700 2009 Ghost Wars is for serious students of late Cold War US policy and the proxy wars of the super powers and provides an excellent history of US involvement in Afghanistan. Events, people,...more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun May 03 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Thu Apr 16 10:24:32 -0700 2009 Tue May 05 15:02:10 -0700 2009
It was a loooong read. Part of that was my springtime switch in commute methods, back to almost all biking, which cuts into my reading time. ...more...]]> 4 1 false false Mon Mar 12 18:22:46 -0700 2007 Mon Mar 12 18:24:53 -0700 2007 5 0 false false Thu Oct 08 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Fri Oct 09 05:52:12 -0700 2009 Fri Oct 09 05:58:12 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 1 false false Tue Jul 24 10:39:45 -0700 2007 Tue Jul 24 10:40:40 -0700 2007 4 0 false false Fri Sep 04 14:43:19 -0700 2009 Fri Sep 04 14:45:56 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Sat Jul 25 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed May 27 19:08:24 -0700 2009 Sat Aug 01 15:23:33 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Apr 26 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Mon Feb 09 12:03:06 -0800 2009 Sun May 24 02:30:55 -0700 2009
Ghost Wars is the second book on Afghanistan/CIA/bin Laden which I read after a recommendation from my ol' international relations professor ...more...]]> http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=71984