In his famous farewell address in 1961, President Eisenhower urgently warned Americans to guard against the "disastrous rise of misplaced power" in the leviathan he dubbed the military-industrial complex. As Eugene Jarecki powerfully portrays in this piercing and necessary book, Eisenhower's worst fears have been realized. The complex has grown so large and powerful, with tendrils reaching so wide and deep into our political system, economy, and culture, that it is dramatically undermining our democracy, fueling an excessive militarism and an imperialist impulse that has propelled the United States into a series of horribly misguided military actions—culminating in the Iraq debacle.
Based on extensive interviews with a who's who of high-level insiders from the Beltway, the Pentagon, and the defense sector, as well as in-depth historical research, Jarecki traces the troubling story of the evolution of the complex and how it so forcefully exerts its corrupting influence. Vital listening at this crucial juncture as the nation grapples with the profound challenge of Iraq, Jarecki's penetrating examination is sure to generate wide acclaim and lively debate.
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"Recently I watched Why We Fight and found myself wanting to explore the topic more. I'm looking forward to learning more about the our nation's violent predilections."
— Sequoia (4 out of 5 stars)
As timely as today's headlines.... [Jarecki] knows how to ask the important questions, and he keeps asking until he gets the answers.
— Senator Patrick Leahy" so far, pretty interesting. "
— Adam, 11/23/2013" I guess I was expecting something different. I found it to be a bit disjointed and dry. Will try reading it later as the subject matter is quite interesting. "
— Surfing, 10/25/2013" In the interest of self-promotion I feel obligated to give this four stars. The writing itself does not rank that, the content and thesis absolutely does. "
— Christopher, 10/18/2013" This was a good companion book to the documentary "Why we Fight". I highly recommend the documentary "
— Sean, 11/9/2012" Top notch critique of contemporary america's military industrial and political system. "
— John, 9/28/2012" Really interesting history of war and how scary the military industrial complex really is and was way before bush... "
— Sheetal, 6/30/2012" Would've liked more on US policies in the past, but what was there was very interesting (found the second half dragged on) "
— Jennifer, 10/7/2010" How the Miitary-Industrial Complex came to dominate our lives and US policy-making. By the maker of the film "Why We Fight" "
— Christopher, 3/2/2010David Drummond has made his living as an actor for over twenty-five years, appearing on stages large and small throughout the country and in Seattle, Washington, his hometown. He has narrated over thirty audiobooks, in genres ranging from current political commentary to historical nonfiction, fantasy, military, thrillers, and humor. He received an AudioFile Earphones Award for his first audiobook, Love ’Em or Lose ’Em: Getting Good People to Stay. When not narrating, he keeps busy writing plays and stories for children.