Introduction: “Pay any Price: Greed, Power and Endless War”, is written by James Risen, a veteran journalist and two time Pulitzer Prize winner, who has written many articles about the U.S government. The book was published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt in October of 2014. It contains 309 pages and falls under the non fiction genre. It includes an overview of the author’s sources and notes relating to the validity of Risen’s research. Summary: James Risen discusses the fear frenzy that has taken hold of the United States for the past 14 years. This fear, primarily caused by the effects of the War on Terror has spawned what the author calls a “homeland ¬security-industrial complex” and cost American citizens billions of dollars. The author thoroughly …show more content…
KBR, the Iraq war’s largest contractor has been the subject of much controversy over the past decade. However, due to the company influence and connections to government officials, it has remained unopposed and “was repeatedly able to survive controversies and investigations and a lengthy series of allegations of wrongdoings in its operations in Iraq” (Risen 143). Those three words “KBR runs Iraq”, shows just how corrupt and deceitful the United States’ War on Terror and Iraq has been. Companies that are “too big to fail” are so influential that the government must back them up regardless of their level of negligence. In the War on Terror, the American government has become so heavily dependent on large corporations it has been “reluctant to ever hold those firms accountable to their actions” (Risen …show more content…
Having grown up during the Iraq war, I have never really been aware of the events unfolding around me, less so the secrecy that has shrouded these events. I’m grateful that I’m able to learn about recent events that have not yet made it into our textbooks. I feel as if I have a better sense of the modern policies and actions carried out by our government. I enjoyed the author’s use of numbers and statistics, which gave a sense of the scale of the resources expended in the name of national security. Another thing I liked about the book was how the author did not just limit himself to a one sided story, but explored many different perspectives. The reader was able to understand the individuals involved, how everyone was connected and their motives. However, at times I found the book bombarding the reader with too much
War is the means to many ends. The ends of ruthless dictators, of land disputes, and lives – each play its part in the reasoning for war. War is controllable. It can be avoided; however, once it begins, the bat...
McCraw, David, and Stephen Gikow. “The End to a Unspoken Bargain? National Security and Leaks in a Post-Pentagon Papers World.” Harvard Civil Rights-Civil Liberties Law Review 48.2 (2013): 473-509. Academic OneFile. Web. 5 Dec. 2013.
Denise Grady’s (2006) article sound a strong wake up call for the American government and for the American public to re-evaluate their guiding principles towards war in Iraq and the continued presence of the American soldiers in the Iraqi soil. Grady delineated the enormous damages the war had costs in not only monetary terms but also the future of thousands of promising young and talented men and women sent in the Iraq War; that had no clear benefits to them or the American people.
Prados, John. Safe for Democracy The Secret Wars of the CIA. Chicago, IL: Ivan R Dee, Publisher, 2006.
Our nation seems as if it is in a constant battle between freedom and safety. Freedom and security are two integral parts that keep our nation running smoothly, yet they are often seen conflicting with one another. “Tragedies such as Pearl Harbor, 9/11 and the Boston Marathon bombings may invoke feelings of patriotism and a call for unity, but the nation also becomes divided, and vulnerable populations become targets,” (Wootton 1). “After each attack a different group or population would become targets. “The attack on Pearl Harbor notoriously lead to Japanese Americans being imprisoned in internment camps, the attacks on 9/11 sparked hate crimes against those who appeared to be Muslim or Middle Eastern,” (Wootton 1). Often times people wind up taking sides, whether it be for personal freedoms or for national security, and as a nation trying to recover from these disasters we should be leaning on each other for support. Due to these past events the government has launched a series of antiterrorist measures – from ethnic profiling to going through your personal e-mail (Begley 1). Although there are times when personal freedoms are sacrificed for the safety of others, under certain circumstances the government could be doing more harm than good.
The reason I picked this book is because I have always been curious about terrorism. Truthfully, I really didn’t expect the book to take the stance it did, which focused mainly on the religious implications of what influences people to commits acts of terror. I liked the fact that the book takes new angles in approaching the search for truth, by focusing on case studies and performing interviews with the people who have committed terrorist acts. This is like getting the insiders view of the inner workings and frame of mind people have before, during, and after they have unswervingly performed the acts of violence.
In today’s society the word “terrorism” has gone global. We see this term on television, in magazines and even from other people speaking of it. In their essay “Controlling Irrational Fears After 9/11”, published in 2002, Clark R. Chapman and Alan W. Harris argue that the reaction of the American officials, people and the media after the attacks of 9/11 was completely irrational due to the simple fact of fear. Chapman and Harris jump right into dismembering the irrational argument, often experienced with relationships and our personal analysis. They express how this argument came about from the terrorist being able to succeed in “achieving one major goal, which was spreading fear” among the American people (Chapman & Harris, para.1). The supporters of the irrational reaction argument state that because “Americans unwittingly cooperated with the terrorist in achieving the major goal”, the result was a widespread of disrupted lives of the Americans and if this reaction had been more rational then there would have been “less disruption in the lives of our citizens” (Chapman & Harris, para. 1).
As we move steadfast into the twenty-first century we are confronted with more complex and compromising issues affecting the intricately connected global system. New forms of aggression and threat are the faces that greet policy-makers as they spend countless hours configuring ways to counter future attacks such as terrorism or massive drug trafficking within and across national borders. Instead of submitting ourselves to the tyranny of chance, which cruelly deals out futures blighted with catastrophes that can remain vivid in our memories, President George W. Bush has issued a mandate in an attempt to regain control over future acts of aggression such as terrorism in the United State; he issued the Executive Order of Homeland Security as that initial step.
In conclusion, the entire book, while being non-sequential and confusing throughout, still conveys its theme very well. This is mainly thanks to the author’s ability to bend the English language to his will, and the timing that it was released. It came out at a time that all war novels were heroic and romantic, yet do to Heller’s own Air Force experience he knew the truth about war, and by writing about it, he brings it to the foreground. The entire novel centers around and contributes to the theme that true war is not how it has been portrayed in the media of the day. It is actually a self-contained hell that is perpetuated by crazy leaders, death, and violence. This makes this novel one that should be required reading for all peoples in the world, so that we can better understand the truth about war, and maybe, just maybe, we will have fewer wars.
Bellavita, C. (2009). Changing homeland security: The year in review - 2008. Homeland Security Affairs, 5(1) Retrieved from http://ezproxy.fau.edu/login?url=http://search.proquest.com/docview/1266212855?accountid=10902
The breath-taking expansion of police power that the United States government took after 9/11 now poses as a troubling issue. Americans need to address the issues of government surveillance because it affects t...
According to Charles Mahoney, the US military depended upon contractors to support counterinsurgency operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. Some of the tasks the military contractors conduct include drone missions to collect signals intelligence and assist foreign countries like Iraq and Afghanistan forces to fight insurgencies. There have been notable occurences of use of excessive force in violation of human right by companies such as CACI at Abu Ghraib Prison in Iraq and Blackwater at Nisour Square. Iraq has made reference to the lack of monitoring the private military defenses on their grounds. “If the US government is going to work extensively with contractors, it requires a more robust oversight system, government agencies and courts also need assurances they can hold defense firms accountable if they break the law overseas”
Adam Penenberg’s “The Surveillance Society” reminds Americans of the tragic events of September 11, 2001 and the instant effects the that attacks on the World Trade Center had on security in the United States. Penenberg discusses how the airports were shut down and federal officials began to plot a military response. Although those were necessary actions, they were not as long lasting as some of the other safety precautions that were taken. The Patriot Act, which makes it easier for the government to access cell phones and pagers and monitor email and web browsing, was proposed. Politicians agreed that during a war civil liberties are treated differently.
The concept of homeland security has developed over the last decade. Homeland security as a concept was precipitated by the terrorist attacks of 9/11. However, prior to 9/11 such entities as the Gilmore Commission and the United States Commission on National Security discussed the need to evolve the way national security policy was conceptualized due to the end of the Cold War and the rise of radicalized terrorism. After 9/11, policymakers concluded that a new approach was needed to address the large-scale terrorist attacks. A presidential council and department were established, and a series of presidential directives were issued in the name of “homeland security.” These developments established that homeland security was a distinct, but undefined
Citizens feeling protected in their own nation is a crucial factor for the development and advancement of that nation. The United States’ government has been able to provide this service for a small tax and for the most part it is money well spent. Due to events leading up to the terrifying attacks on September 11, 2001 and following these attacks, the Unites States’ government has begun enacting certain laws and regulations that ensure the safety of its citizens. From the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) of 1978 to the most recent National Security Agency scandal, the government has attempted and for the most part succeeded in keeping domestic safety under control. Making sure that the balance between obtaining enough intelligence to protect the safety of the nation and the preservation of basic human rights is not extremely skewed, Congress has set forth requisites in FISA which aim to balance the conflicting goals of privacy and security; but the timeline preceding this act has been anything but honorable for the United States government.