Collateral Damage
America's War Against Iraqi Civilians
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- $10.99
Publisher Description
A harrowing record of the atrocities of the Iraq War, as told through the haunting testimonials of US soldiers who witnessed—and in some cases, were complicit in—the horrors of civilian life there
“The best account so far of what Hedges calls the ‘vast enterprise of industrial slaughter unleashed in Iraq.’” —HuffPost
In this devastating exposé of a military occupation gone awry, Pulitzer Prize–winner Chris Hedges and Emmy Award–winning journalist Laila Al-Arian reveal the terrifying reality of daily civilian life in Iraq at the hands of US troops. Based on hundreds of hours of interviews with combat veterans, Collateral Damage represents the largest number of named eyewitnesses to have testified on the record. These veterans, many of whom have come to oppose the war, describe a venal conflict fought largely out of view of journalists and television cameras. A stark and unflinching narrative, Collateral Damage exposes the true consequences of what the American government unleashed in Iraq.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Pulitzer Prize winner Hedges (War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning) collaborates with journalist Al-Arian in this slight polemic that investigates "the suffering of Iraqi civilians" at the hands of American troops. With the help of groups like Iraq Veterans Against the War and Veterans for Peace, the authors identify and interview 50 combat veterans their methodology, however, is noticeably flawed: their sample is too small and their selection process is skewed toward critics of the war. Interviewees like Sgt. Camilo Majia, who was court-martialed for desertion and given a bad-conduct discharge, are allowed to relate not only eye-witness but also secondhand accounts. Broad allegations implying that "most troops" are complicit in murdering unarmed Iraqis or that it is "standard" practice to plant weapons on murdered civilians go unchallenged, while the authors point to "a culture of terror and hatred among U.S. forces" for whom abusing civilians has become "a kind of perverted sport." However admirable the authors' aims, their selective and biased interpretation of events might disappoint readers looking for a more objective analysis.
