Books : The Dark Side: The Inside Story of How The War on Terror Turned into a War on American Ideals
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Binding: Audio CD
Dewey Decimal Number: 973.931
EAN: 9780739375921
Format: Audiobook, Unabridged
ISBN: 073937592X
Label: Random House Audio
Manufacturer: Random House Audio
Number Of Items: 13
Publication Date: July 15, 2008
Publisher: Random House Audio
Release Date: July 15, 2008
Sales Rank: 134184
Studio: Random House Audio
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Product Description:
In the days following September 11, the most powerful people in the country were panic-stricken. The decisions about how to combat terrorists and strengthen national security were made in a state of utter chaos and fear, but the key players, Vice President Dick Cheney and his powerful, secretive adviser David Addington, used the crisis to further a long-held agenda to enhance presidential powers to a degree never known in U.S. history.
The Dark Side is a riveting narrative account of how the U.S. made terrible decisions in the pursuit of terrorists–decisions that not only violated the Constitution, but also hampered the pursuit of Al Qaeda. In gripping detail, acclaimed New Yorker writer and bestselling author Jane Mayer relates specific cases, shown in real time against the larger tableau of Washington, looking at the intelligence gained–or not–and the price paid. In all cases, whatever the short-term gains, there were incalculable losses in terms of moral standing, our country’s place in the world, and its sense of itself. The Dark Side chronicles one of the mostdisturbing chapters in American history, one that will serve as the lasting legacy of the George W. Bush presidency.
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One of the best books on the thinking of the Bush Administration, and their misguided journey into torture and imprisonment. Ms. Mayer does a wonderful job of documenting the twists and turns of the decision making process, and capturing the damage done not only to the victims and the aggressors, but to the country as a whole. The New York Times Review of Books has rated The Dark Side one of the 10 best books of 2008, and rightly so.
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This book is one of the the most chilling I have read in some time. It makes the Watergate era look like child's play. Where was Congress? Where were men of stout heart and sober minds to combat the sick minds of Cheney,Addington,Yew, and others?
Most importantly, the echoes of torture approved by these men of no conscience, men that believed that cruelty was both necessary and justified, will reverberate throughout the years to come. The story is yet to end.
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This review covers the audio version of The Dark Side. I had no intention of listening to all 13 CDs, but the story was so compelling, so clearly and carefully told, that I was riveted until the end. I have loaned my set out, so I can't complement the reader (whose name is on the boxed set), who is wonderful. In terms of the book's content, I have nothing to add to prior reviews. My point is that for those of you who, like me, like "to read" while driving, this one is a winner.
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The Dark Side: The Inside Story of How The War on Terror Turned into a War on American Ideals
Jane Mayer's well-written and infuriating narrative of the current administration's abuses of the U. S. Constitution, laws and treaties is required reading for anyone who believes that one of the most monumental tasks of the Obama administration will be to restore the Constitution and the rule of law to the American people. Among the book's many attributes, Mayer puts the question to rest whether waterboarding constitutes torture. She also argues convincingly in several places that torture as practiced by the Bush administration involved the application of multiple forms of abuse on one person's body, either simultaneously or sequentially. Combined techniques could produce any kind of confession the CIA wanted, truthful or not. America will not be a civilized nation until these practices are abolished. Incidentally, I came away from Mayer's book with a better understanding of the military's strenuous objections to the tactics pushed relentlessly by the vice-president's office, and of the FBI's doubts about the administration's practices.
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This book is absolutely scary. The audacity of this government to impose their neo-conservative value system on the reputation of our great country makes me shiver with the thoughts of a neo-nazi police state.
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