The Strongest Tribe; War, Politics, and the Endgame in Iraq
Saurabh Das (Jacket Photograph) New York: Random House, 2008. First Edition [Stated], First Printing [Stated]. Hardcover. xix, [1], 417, [9] pages. Illustrations (color). Includes Map of Iraq, Map of Baghdad, Preface, 25 chapters, Appendix A: Insurgency and Unity of Command in Vietnam, Appendix B: Memo to Gen. George W. Casey, USA, Appendix C: Bing West's Counterinsurgency Lessons, Notes. and Bibliography. From a universally respected combat journalist, a gripping history based on five years of front-line reporting about how the war was turned around and the choice now facing America. During the fierce battle for Fallujah, Bing West asked an Iraqi colonel why the arch terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi had fled in women's clothes. The colonel pointed to a Marine patrol walking by and said, Americans are the strongest tribe. In Iraq, America made mistake after mistake. Many gave up on the war. Then the war took a sharp U-turn. Two generals, David Petraeus and Raymond Odierno, displayed the leadership America expected. Bringing the reader from the White House to the fighting in the streets, this remarkable narrative explains the turnaround by U.S. forces. In the course of fourteen extended trips over five years, Bing West embedded with more than sixty front-line units, discussing strategy with generals and tactics with corporals. Disposing of myths, he provides an expert's account of the counterinsurgency. By describing the characters and combat in city after city, West gives the reader an in-depth understanding that will inform debate about the war. This is the definitive study of how American soldiers actually fought--a gripping and visceral book that changes the way we thing about the war, and essential reading for understanding the next critical steps to be taken. Francis J. "Bing" West (born May 2, 1940) is an American author, Marine combat veteran and former Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs during the Reagan Administration. West writes about the military, warfighting, and counterinsurgency. In the Vietnam War, he fought in major operations and conducted over a hundred combat patrols in 1966–1968. For the United States Marine Corps, he wrote the training manual Small Unit Action in Vietnam, describing how to fight in close combat. As an analyst at the RAND Corporation, he wrote a half dozen detailed monographs about fighting against an insurgency. Later, as Assistant Secretary of Defense, he dealt with the insurgencies in El Salvador. From 2003 through 2008, he made 16 extended trips to Iraq, going on patrols and writing three books and numerous articles about the war. From 2007 through 2011, he made numerous trips to embed in Afghanistan. In The Strongest Tribe and in a subsequent article in Military Review about counterinsurgency lessons, West argued that the current doctrine of nation-building and winning hearts and minds by economic development was based on Western liberal theory rather than the realities of battle. West has grave reservations about extolling the effects of "non-kinetic COIN" (counterinsurgency). He believes that the warriors, not the people, defeat warriors, and that America's mistake in both Iraq and Afghanistan was to concede all authority to appoint and to remove for cause military and police officers. He believes American policymakers tried to do too much with too little in too short a time. He believes the White House has devolved into a kingdom of courtiers, disconnected from a populace that must be united to emerge victorious from wars, large or small. Condition: Very Good / Very good.
Keywords: Counterinsurgency, Islamic Caliphate, Haditha, Al Qaeda, Anbar, Baghdad, George Casey, Fallujah, al-Zarqawi, David Petraeus, Raymond Odierno, War Correspondent, Iraq War
ISBN: 9781400067015
[Book #82921]
Price: $75.00