The Operators: The Wild and Terrifying Inside Story of America's War in Afghanistan
Written by Michael Hastings
Narrated by Lloyd James
4/5
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About this audiobook
Michael Hastings
Michael Hastings (1980-2013) was a contributing editor to Rolling Stone and a reporter for Buzzfeed. In 2008, he covered the US presidential election for Newsweek. His work appeared in GQ, The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Slate, Salon, Foreign Policy, The Daily Beast, and a number of other publications. In 2011, he was awarded the George Polk Award for magazine reporting for his story in Rolling Stone, “The Runaway General.” He is the author of I Lost My Love in Baghdad: A Modern War Story (Scribner, 2008) and The Operators: The Wild and Terrifying Inside Story of America’s War in Afghanistan (Blue Rider, 2012).
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Reviews for The Operators
8 ratings3 reviews
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5This book takes the "Almost Famous" approach to reporting on a general. Free-lance Rolling Stone reporter Michael Hastings used his groupie status in the McChrystal entourage into a revealing article that exposed the attitude and contempt Stanley McChrystal felt for his political superiors. Stanley McChrystal probably assumed to be untouchable, a "golden god", for the job he did keeping the war in Afghanistan out of the American public's mind. David Petraeus and Stanley McChrystal had become masters in the public relations department, selling and repackaging an unwinnable war inro signs of progress, making the Friedman units bearable.Among McChrystal's early PR works were declaring in 2003 that "I would anticipate that the major combat engagements are over" (in Iraq) and promoting the Pat Tillman hero story despite evidence to the his being killed by friendly fire McChrystal's Task Force 6-26 was heavily involved in torture and abuse of detainees. Copying the Petraeus play book, McChrystal asked for and received the means for a surge in Afghanistan. While Petraeus' surge succeeded in its main goal of prolonging Bush's war into Obama's, McChrystal lacked both such a military and political objective, thus its failure wasn't critical, the unnecessary blood shed apart. McChrystal stumbled not over his failed progress in Afghanistan but over ruffling the feathers of the bigwigs in Washington, DC.While the grievances revealed by Hastings' article were mostly petty, he showed the world an egomaniac general on an ascetic Schmerzensmann performance and an incredible tone-deafness towards non-Americans. The contempt and stupidity McChrystal's entourage engaged in in Paris and Berlin highlighted that they were incapable in understanding even close Western allies. If somebody is unable to close the cultural gap between the United States and Europe, it is unlikely that such a person would manage to handle a complex case like Afghanistan. It is one of Obama's main failures that he did not put a stop to the war in Afghanistan or at least replace most of the Bush generals.In sum, a good account of the life of Stanley McChrystal, interlaced with a rather tasteless account of the partying of the general and his entourage while soldiers and civilians were being killed in Afghanistan. An early warning sign should have been McChrystal's favorite beverage, Bud light lime.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5The War Machine movie got me here
- Rating: 1 out of 5 stars1/5Journalist Michael Hastings’ “The Operators” (2012) is billeted as the inside story of America’s war in Afghanistan. It isn’t. Instead, it tells about General McChrystal and his staff, a bunch of macho, unadjusted power brokers, fighting as much a war with the American political establishment as with Taliban forces. I don’t think Mr Hastings has actually been to Afghanistan. Disappointing, it never gets really interesting, and it is poorly written with frequent irrelevant distractions about Mr Hastings traveling to Europe to stay on the tail of the general.