America's Secret War: Inside the Struggle Between the United States and Its Enemies

This book is loaded with very good analysis of the Terrorist activities. The narrator is kind of monotonous, but the contents keep you hooked.

In my opinion this is a story full of falsehoods presented as facts. In America's Secret War, Friedman rivals Michael Moore for twists of reality. This book discussed no relevant, new information regarding the state of american intelligence agencies. Friedman apparently authored the book to feed the paranoia of those intent on believing in government conspiracies and ineptitude, but provides no substantive facts to back up his claims. My personal experience working in and with said agencies contradicts many of the Friedmans claims calling into question all of his hyperbole. Enjoy one of the many other better books such as Digital Fortress, Chatter, or Puzzle Palace, but skip this piece of work.

First, thumbs up to the performance artist. Great work. Thank you.

This work is a view from 2004. It is not surprising that Stratfor nails both the facts and the political realities. That is their job.

What is so moving to me was the well timed kid in the guts to our political elite who do not send their kids to fight and suffer and maybe die.

As seen post Trump, I wonder if they get it yet?

Well done. Where's the next one?

In-depth analysis of US responses after 911. A clear story and analysis. Very easy to follow despite of it being a difficult geopolitics subject. Book is well written and read.

If you ever want to understand geo politics read George Friedman at Stratfor and all of his books. He understand the way the world works.

This is the second George Friedman book I have enjoyed and I am again blown away by his insight into "Realpolitik". He goes beyond the headlines and even the conclusion of pundits to look at the core factors behind the rise of Muslim extremists. Of particular interest was his view on the Iraq war. Great stuff, well worth the listen

Personally I have much reading on the war against al-qeada, and the taliban. However I have not read up as much on the war in Iraq and its reasons. This book was perfect for filling in the gaps. I found the lead up to these wars very interesting and well thought out, going through WWII to current times while explaining the geo-political basis that brought the U.S. to its current position in the world. I also found the description of the United States in the Islamic worlds eyes enlightening. I would recommend this book to anyone who came of age before 9-11 and to anyone who's family had a member in the armed forces. All around very enlightening.

I had a friend from Iran who mentioned America's role in the revolution of her country and I realized I was completely uninformed. If you are uninformed about the US's history in the middle east it's probably a must read. I had no idea about Afghanistan and it's role in the cold war. I have actually realized that I have a lot of military history to relearn following this book. My US history class in high school was shockingly poor and biased and this is a good start to understanding some background information.

The author does a great job remaining unbiased in his explanations of each's side perspective. My only complaint about this book is the narration. It put me to sleep several times. So I wouldn't listen to this thing driving. I should repeat, its not the story or research, it's really the narrator.

So try it out if you want to understand the Taliban, Iraq, and why on earth we are even there. If I had it to do again I would definitely download it again.

1. The best point of this book is it brings together some off-beaten-path view of the US actions since 9/11
2. The worst point is its examination of these views is fundamentally flippant, and repetitive. The author loves his own shallow insight so much that he repeats them tiresomely as if simply repetition gives it weight it does not carry through its actual substance.

No. It covers a interesting topic, and its poseur treatment makes me want to read a real book.

Not much, except for the ability to go through it during driving commute

No

No

I enjoy history and politics (while not a scholar by any means) and I get frustrated by the news because so little of the story is ever really told. I found this book very enlightening and engaging despite it being a non-fiction book.