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jakewritesbooks 's review for:
(3.5) When I was a kid, all I wanted to be when I grew up was a grown up. I'm one who naturally defers to authority and thus I assumed that most grown ups had all the answers to life's problems and they behaved the way that grown ups should.
Of course, as I got older, this myth was shattered into a thousand pieces. And as I became an adult myself, I realized that all of us, even those in positions of great authority, are impostors.
It comes as no surprise to any learned person that the war in Afghanistan was a total failure. There's a reason why many call Afghanistan the "graveyard of empires." What is disappointing, painfully so as it plays out in this book, is that all of the adults know the war is a catastrophic failure and yet for whatever reason, they have to put on a brave face for their bosses and/or the American public to make sure we all feel comfortable in our nation's one "successful" middle east militaristic endeavor.
Michael Hastings is a talented writer and he does a good job covering the sordidness around Gens. McChrystal and Petraeus during their time leading US forces from 2009-2011. This book should have been better, though. Hastings jumps around from story-to-story at will, like he has ADD (which maybe he does). One second, you're in 2010, trying to follow the globetrotting journalist who is trying to follow the globetrotting general. The next, you're back in 2009 as the groundwork is laid for McChrystal's ascent to power. It's exasperating at times to keep up. But still worth the read if you have an interest in the subject and don't care too much about detailed military terms and maneuvers.
Of course, as I got older, this myth was shattered into a thousand pieces. And as I became an adult myself, I realized that all of us, even those in positions of great authority, are impostors.
It comes as no surprise to any learned person that the war in Afghanistan was a total failure. There's a reason why many call Afghanistan the "graveyard of empires." What is disappointing, painfully so as it plays out in this book, is that all of the adults know the war is a catastrophic failure and yet for whatever reason, they have to put on a brave face for their bosses and/or the American public to make sure we all feel comfortable in our nation's one "successful" middle east militaristic endeavor.
Michael Hastings is a talented writer and he does a good job covering the sordidness around Gens. McChrystal and Petraeus during their time leading US forces from 2009-2011. This book should have been better, though. Hastings jumps around from story-to-story at will, like he has ADD (which maybe he does). One second, you're in 2010, trying to follow the globetrotting journalist who is trying to follow the globetrotting general. The next, you're back in 2009 as the groundwork is laid for McChrystal's ascent to power. It's exasperating at times to keep up. But still worth the read if you have an interest in the subject and don't care too much about detailed military terms and maneuvers.