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)

Thank you, Rachel Maddow!

Factual and SCARY! I listened to Rachel read the book on Audible while following along on my Kindle. As has been stated in other reviews, this book is written in conversational style. If you watch her show you know how personable Ms. Maddow is. She includes puns and her opinion, supported by evidence of long hours of research.

Anyone who follows my reviews knows that I like to leave reality and hang out in fantasy-land. Maybe it is because of being surrounded by Real Life that is quite stressful and frightening. Don't expect to come away from this book mollified. No soothing story, this.

But Rachel doesn't leave you with a sense of helplessness. This book was written to raise our awareness of what has been happening right under our noses. But once we are aware, there are things we can do to make sure we get back to our constitutional foundations. This points fingers at a lot of wrongs but neither party is innocent.

I can't believe I read anything about American Military Power. But I feel this book has enlightened me. If it hadn't been written and narrated by Rachel Maddow, I don't think I would have read it.

Thank you, Rach, for keeping us informed.

Everyone needs to read this book!

The audio edition of Drift must certainly be better than the print version. Rachel Maddow is a superb narrator. The sparkle and wit in her voice held my intense interest during this recital that is both grim and hugely important.

I am not old enough to remember Thomas Jefferson, but I am old enough to remember vividly the Viet Nam Conflict and succeeding events, both military and political. Whereas our founding fathers feared the idea of an imperial presidency, and tried to preclude it happening, that is exactly what has developed within my lifetime, a trend which Rachael brings into sharp focus. Dr. Maddow examines America's changing attitude about war and the shift in the power of the executive branch of government to take us to war which such clarity and insight as to be breathtaking. Although this is a scholarly work, it is easy to read and comprehend. I urge everyone read this book and give it serious thought. Perhaps then we could bend the tide -- or at least have an intelligent national conversation about tide bending.

Great Book for the left or right

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

Rachel did not stray away from the Dems for not doing the right things. She points out the power grab of both parties and allows you to understand how this has happened and why (as to what was going on during that period). She also shows the dangers of what is going on and the scale to which it is going on. I do not believe Americans know to what level the power grab is going on.

Uncomfortable Tuths, Well Presented

Carefully providing the historical underpinnings of both the intentions of the Founding Fathers and the "good" reasons for which "bad" laws have been put into place, Maddow lines out how we have handed off most of our freedoms for the illusion of security. Whether her liberal slant resonates with you or not, there's much here that should get your hackles up. I'm a Libertarian/Republican and I found much of interest here.

Maddow is an exceptionally intelligent, articulate, and charismatic woman who also has a strong academic bent. My only complaint about this book was that in her narration I found a bit more of her liberal smug sarcastic delivery, the thing that keeps me from watching her news program, than I was entirely comfortable with.

In the end, smugness aside, this is a book that everyone who really wants to believe that this is a free country needs to read and understand.

Rachel's Voice made all the difference~!~

Would you listen to Drift again? Why?

Rachel's soothing, familiar voice and warm bedside manner made it possible for me to stay with a very interesting subject, and actually learn something. I appreciated the history lessons and insight into the thought process of Presidents of the past. Great Listen...

Once was enough...Rachel makes it easy listening.....You'll get it...If I listen again it will be strictly for entertainment. I loved hearing her speak of Reagan....laughed lots...Johnson too~~

Who was your favorite character and why?

President Johnson had an ego out of this World....Reagan talked tough and worked the crowd....enjoyed learning more about both.

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

Rachel have a gift of making a boring subject palatable.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Lets just say it held my attention and I listened for the entire 7 hours...until it ended.
The emotion would be happy...lots of humor mixed in...

Any additional comments?

Thanks Rachel for writing this book. I did not completely comprehend the whys of Vietnam..I feel enlightened.

Revealing

If you could sum up Drift in three words, what would they be?

I will listen again which I rarely do. Rachel Maddow is bright, articulate and thorough with her research team before she puts anything in writing. I have lived through most of the moments of which she addresses. My opinions during those moments were often strongly felt, as well as the belief in the thought that they were based on accurate facts. She documents her facts and reveals a different truth. While acknowledging that perspectives on specifics may be different, US military operations from the top authority has drifted away from the Constitution's original plan and the people living in the US have drifted or been insulated from the realities of the war/wars their dollars support.

Ron Paul would agree

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

I am a conservative libertarian and always enjoy it when people of the other persuasion say something that resonates. All conservatives are not pro-war defenders of the military industrial complex. There are many non-interventionists, myself included.

Who was your favorite character and why?

N/A

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

By reading the book herself, she gets to emphasize those points she thinks most salient.

Had hard time turning it off, wanted to hear more

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

One of the best.factual not a story

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

Yes.

Any additional comments?

Well research, factual and a bit scarey

Drift is informative book on why we go to War

If you could sum up Drift in three words, what would they be?

Informative, inspiring, maddening

Who was your favorite character and why?

My favorite characters are the people that fight for peace, trying to change the culture of our Nation

Have you listened to any of Rachel Maddow’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

only on MSNBC's Rachel Maddow show

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Drift confirmed some of what I had thought before about the military and our “leaders” both Republicans and Democrats, but I didn’t realize just how bad our government has become.

Any additional comments?

We have to change the culture of the American people who make hero of warriors who take lives and the peacemakers who save lives (peacemakers= Police, Firefighters, Doctors, and the Coastguard)

Rachel Rocks Informatively

Would you consider the audio edition of Drift to be better than the print version?

I didn't read the print version.

What was the most compelling aspect of this narrative?

Just how scary the American public's disconnect from the horrors and sacrifice in war has become.

Which character – as performed by Rachel Maddow – was your favorite?

Rachel Maddow

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Having lived through "Duck and Cover", America's lax attitude about aging nuclear weapons

Any additional comments?

Hearing Rachel adds just the right tone of humor and incredulity about America's serious slippery slope to separating the vast majority of the public from war policy and awareness.