Marching Toward Hell

America and Islam After Iraq

De: Michael Scheuer

Narrado por: Michael Scheuer

When Michael Scheuer first questioned the goals of the Iraq War in his 2004 bestseller Imperial Hubris, policymakers and ordinary citizens alike stood up and took notice. Now, Scheuer offers a scathing and frightening look at how the Iraq War has been a huge setback to America's War on Terror, making our enemy stronger and altering the geopolitical landscape in ways that are profoundly harmful to U.S. interests and security concerns.

Marching Toward Hell is not just another attack on the Bush administration. Rather, it sounds a critical alarm that must be heard in order to preserve the nation's security. Scheuer outlines the ways that America's foreign policy since the end of the Cold War has undermined the very goals for which we are fighting and played right into bin Laden's hands. The ongoing instability in Iraq, for example, has provided al Qaeda and its allies with the one thing they want most: a safe haven from which to launch operations across borders into countries that were previously difficult for them to reach. With U.S. forces and resources spread thinner every day, the war has depleted our strength and brought al Qaeda a kind of success that it could not have achieved on its own.

A twenty-plus-year CIA veteran, Scheuer headed the agency's Osama bin Laden unit, managed its covert-action operations, and authored its rendition program. Scheuer spent his career developing strategies to keep America safe, by any means deemed necessary by the presidents he served. It was his job to take available intelligence and devise plans to protect Americans, without considering bias, position, or even existing alliances. In Marching Toward Hell, Scheuer takes on the questions of "What went wrong?" and "How can we fix this?" and proposes a plan to cauterize the damage that has already been done and get American strategy back on track. He lists a number of painful recommendations for how we must shift our ideological, military, and political views in order to survive, even if that means disagreeing with Israeli policy or launching more brutal campaigns against terrorists.

America holds its destiny in its hands, Scheuer says, yet not nearly enough has been done to defend America and destroy its Islamist enemies. This is an eye- opening, alarming, contentious, and ultimately fascinating examination of how far off track the War on Terror has gone, and a critical read in understanding what we must do to save it.©2008 Michael Scheuer; (P)2008 Simon and Schuster, Inc.

Challenges the reader, abridgement disappoints

Even though I disagree with the author on a variety of points, I found this book challenging. It made me examine my basic assumptions about the Middle East, Islam, the War on Terror, the Wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, the US relationship with Israel, etc. Unfortunately, the abridgement left me longing for further details and input from the author. To date, no unabridged audiobook version is available. How can I decide if the author’s ideas are with, or without, merit unless I am unable to read, or listen to, his entire line of reasoning? This will be the last “abridged” non-fiction audio production that I ever purchase.

Grudgingly, I agree

Scheuer makes some very interesting points throughout this book, and one cannot help but take them into consideration. I respect his conclusions about how to deal with international terrorism. Unfortunately, I also feel that his lionization of Reagan and obvious disdain for Clinton make his conclusions harder to evaluate fairly. Often this book comes across as overly simplistic in its political analysis. That analysis being: Republicans good, and even when they are bad, they are still good, Democrats always bad and always worse than any Republicans.

Great Author, Decent Book

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

I would, because most people I know, as well as myself some time ago, are very anti-military and don't understand the idea of a just war. That is not even the point of the book really, but Scheuer's well-known opinions on "killing as many of the enemy as possible" are best surrounded by descriptions of why America's most recent wars in the region are not what he wants either.

I deliberately waited a week or two to write a short review in order to see how much I retained, because I felt that the book didn't often go into detail - it often assumes that you know the details. However his narration immensely helps sell his ideas.

A message desperately needed for future politician

mind opening, and excellent recounting of failed foreign policy from lack of knowledge. must buy

A brilliant albeit schizophrenic perspective

Any additional comments?

While everyone else at the CIA were busy replaying Cold War games, Michael Scheuer and his team were the only ones dedicated to fighting bin Laden's Al Qaeda before most Americans knew his name. For this we all owe a debt of gratitude.

So there's little doubt as to Michael Scheuer's brilliance and depth of knowledge regarding bin Laden, although I'm surprised by how much credence he gave to bin Laden's stated objectives and reasoning for causing 9/11. In my mind, there's nothing the US did or didn't do that could have avoided a purposeful attack, which motive, as I see it, was purely to draw the US into a mountainous land war inside Afganistan so bin Laden could fashion himself the head sheik in charge among the Ummah against the infidels. The old as dirt define yourself by your enemy trick.

I'm glad Michael Scheuer narrated the book. A great effort and work that was somewhat undone by an undercurrent of embittered betrayal at the hands of his former employer and a condescending tone toward those whose worldview he didn't share.