Drift

The Unmooring of American Military Power

By: Rachel Maddow

Narrated by: Rachel Maddow

Length: 7 hrs and 31 mins

Publisher's summary

The #1 New York Times bestseller that charts America’s dangerous drift into a state of perpetual war. "One of my favorite ideas is, never to keep an unnecessary soldier," Thomas Jefferson wrote in 1792. Neither Jefferson nor the other Found­ers could ever have envisioned the modern national security state, with its tens of thousands of "privateers"; its bloated Department of Homeland Security; its rust­ing nuclear weapons, ill-maintained and difficult to dismantle; and its strange fascination with an unproven counterinsurgency doctrine.

Written with bracing wit and intelligence, Rachel Maddow's Drift argues that we've drifted away from America's original ideals and become a nation weirdly at peace with perpetual war, with all the financial and human costs that entails. To understand how we've arrived at such a dangerous place, Maddow takes us from the Vietnam War to today's war in Afghanistan, along the way exploring the disturbing rise of executive authority, the gradual outsourcing of our war-making capabilities to private companies, the plummeting percentage of American families whose children fight our constant wars for us, and even the changing fortunes of G.I. Joe. She offers up a fresh, unsparing appraisal of Reagan's radical presidency. Ultimately, she shows us just how much we stand to lose by allowing the priorities of the national security state to overpower our political discourse.

Sensible yet provocative, dead serious yet seri­ously funny, Drift will reinvigorate a "loud and jangly" political debate about how, when, and where to apply America's strength and power--and who gets to make those decisions.

©2012 Rachel Maddow (P)2012 Random House

Critic reviews

"Thank Ms. Maddow for picking this and every other fight that Drift provokes. It will be a smarter public debate than the kinds we're used to." (Janet Maslin, New York Times)

"Maddow’s distinctive voice in Drift is highly intelligent, often incredulous and intermittently and humorously profane...Her thesis, which is passionately and effectively articulated, remind[s] us of how far we have drifted from linking the sacrifices of our armed forces around the world to the citizens at home they so selflessly serve… Maddow…[has] provided readers with a timely and perhaps necessary provocation to examine the far-reaching consequences of the American way of war." (Gordon M. Goldstein, Washington Post)

"Crosses partisan lines and deals with issues that deserve a healthy debate...A compelling, intelligent read filled with Maddow's trademark wit." (Mary Houlihan, Chicago Sun-Times)

Enlightening

I'm old enough to remember the events Rachel discusses in 'Drift', but I was amazed to learn of all the background she gives to the Reagan administration. I also immensely enjoyed Rachel's reading, and I hope she is already working on her next book.

Engaging and smart, sometimes a bit too glib

Any additional comments?

A whirlwind tour through the last 60-ish years (plus a necessary grounding in the founding fathers, how they viewed war with wariness, and how the Constitution reflected this) and how America at war has morphed, and not for the better. Most likely to appeal to those who are generally in line with Maddow's political views, but even for others, she makes her points well and some of the conclusions should (rationally) be bipartisan. The strength of the book is Maddow's fast-paced and pithy delivery, her use of many primary and secondary sources, and the highlighting of the worst weaknesses of how we currently engage in war (largely hidden from the public, without the nation really feeling it, with ever-increasing budgets that cannot be second guessed without accusations of being unpatriotic). The weakness of the book dovetails with one of its strengths - the pithiness. Sometimes it is a bit too glib and a bit too sarcastic, in such a way that will grate on those who are ideologically further away from Maddow. This can be a disservice as it could make some very good information and some convincing points easier to ignore. All in all, though, informative and worth the time.

Not really a Military person but

Rachel has written (spoken) in the same delivery style as her shows accustomed delivery. I find it holds my attention on a subject that I know nothing about. The content is balanced across the political spectrum and just points to the nuts and bolts without much judgement. Was an enjoyable listen to the end.

Interesting Topic, Excellent Reading

First of all, Rachel Maddow is just a joy to listen to, she has the perfect voice for audiobooks and her book is written in that voice (or else, she has added comments into the audiobook that isn't in the written version). I would probably happily listen to Maddow read most anything, but the book feels like a long-form version of her show.

She talks in knowing detail of events from the Ford, Reagan, Bush, Clinton, Bush and Obama presidencies. Her focus is military involvements and politics as they intersect with the US military. I have read and am familiar with pieces of this history and her accounts match (as I would expect them to) those I have read from more traditional historians (like David Halberstam).

Maddow refreshingly, and maybe surprisingly, for some readers, gives a history that doesn't appear to favor one administration (or 2) over the others. She seems complementary of particular motives or actions of the Republicans and disappointed or disdaining of particular motives or actions of the Democrats (and vise versa). She humanizes the men of her story and her voice and her reading suggest that while she is exasperated with events and where we have ended up, she doesn't hate or blame any one person (though she obviously points out turning point events and the men who caused them).

I only have one complaint: I would like more.This was a thorough history, but only about 5 hours long. I would now like to read (or have her read) her thorough history of basically any other topic.

It's always the connections...

Would you listen to Drift again? Why?

Rachel reads her own work, and her comedic take on our human foibles is sharp. Her research is meticulous, of course, but more important are the connections-- how one event leads to the inevitable result.
She does leave us with options, and it is important to hear them again.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Drift?

The consequences of our path since 9/11 have lead to many unforeseen products of war. The most absurd are a toss-up between the palatial houses on unpaved streets in Iraq, a sewage processing plant that doesn't process sewage, and a fenced area around a municipal water supply in her tiny town in New Hampshire, where no one in the community has the security clearance to get in to mow the grass.

Rachel walks us through the events and choices that lead to these 'products', and the thoughtlessness that spurs us to more of these knee-jerk actions.

What about Rachel Maddow???s performance did you like?

Rachel's voice-- her irreverent, witty stories pull us in to the details without being pedantic or preachy-- is full of life and humor. Even when describing some of the dumbest things our government has chosen to do.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

This title is just over seven hours... not that long. And... me being me, I did listen to it in one setting. Then I listened again. Then I bought the hard copy, because I wanted to flag passages. It is a delightful listen... it was just so much was very dense, literally. I like to see in print those passages that touch me... how can you quote it, otherwise?

Any additional comments?

I am a fan... Rachel is one of the smartest women around the TV machine. She is diligent and dedicated to her work. This is proof of that.

A Well Documented History of the US Military

Where does Drift rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Very well thought out and presented non fiction.

Who was your favorite character and why?

The truth surrounding the Reagan and Bush/Cheney presidencies.

If you could give Drift a new subtitle, what would it be?

The Growth of the Military Industrial Complex, as never been thought of before.

Any additional comments?

A brillant informative book. A must read.

Good read/listen

What did you love best about Drift?

Opened my eyes to the power of the American military

What was one of the most memorable moments of Drift?

The CIA's activates in south America

Well-argued, well-researched and well-read

What made the experience of listening to Drift the most enjoyable?

Hearing Rachel read it herself. She was a little stiff in the first chapter, but she soon warmed up and the rest of the book flowed with her usual verve and wit.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Drift?

The chapter on America's decaying nuclear arsenal is arresting. Rachel lays out the "facts on the ground" in their simple and damning simplicity: $8 trillion worth of nuclear weapons, 20-30 years past their projected shelf life, falling apart in their bunkers, each of them a plutonium-laden accident waiting to happen, while the airmen assigned to guard them have become lazy, sloppy and demoralized from the little-regarded nature of their assignment. The situation has gotten so bad that six nuclear missiles were shipped from North Dakota to Alabama for decommissioning WITHOUT removing their live warheads first! Rachel elegantly and gently lays out the argument for unilateral disarmament, not out of leftist idealism but simply to prevent a statistically-inevitable disaster.

What does Rachel Maddow bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

i listen to Rachel's show regularly on Stitcher, and I love the energy she brings to the news. She excels at taking potentially-dry topics and making them engaging. Listening to her read her own words brings them to vivid life.

What’s the most interesting tidbit you’ve picked up from this book?

The real foreign policy history of the Reagan administration, with the nostalgic gloss taken off of it. Rachel does a great job of showing how Reagan developed his views of the military, how they influenced his behavior while in office, and how his actions in the first three years of his presidency scared the bejesus out of the Russians. The near-apocalyptic screw-up of Able Archer '83 (which Rachel doesn't talk about, but which I knew about from other sources) makes a lot more sense with this additional context.

Any additional comments?

Rachel needs to write more books. :)

Our Military Gone Wrong

this is a must read for each and every US resident. It outlines the problem and identifies a solution.

A must read!

Right or Left, this is an important book! It should be required reading in Civics classes.