If you want to know what it is like on the ground in the mid-east with the CIA read this book. If you want a blow by blow of how the agency (under clinton) eviscerated the human field operatives in favor of “technology”, a move that lead to our TOTAL blindness to 911, read this book. There is no option to human intelligence. Even if you don’t like the thought that America “spies”, it is necessary for us to know what the hell is going on in the world. Even today there are many countries where we have ZERO human intelligence agents, many across the mid-east. When we invaded Iraq we had exactly ZERO on the ground agents. We based everything on ex-pat reports and third hand intelligence and “analysis”. Look what we got.

After reading this book and others I am more convinced than ever we need to strengthen our intelligence services at home and abroad.

I give it a 4 of 5