Operation Dark Heart
Spycraft and Special Ops on the Frontlines of Afghanistan -- and The Path to Victory
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3.7 • 160 Ratings
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
Operation Dark Heart tells the story of what really went on—and what went wrong—in Afghanistan. Lt. Col. Anthony Shaffer led a black-ops team on the forefront of the military efforts to block the Taliban's resurgence.
For a moment he saw us winning the war. Then the military brass got involved. He witnessed firsthand the tipping point, when what seemed like certain victory turned into failure.
This wasn't the first time he had seen bureaucracy stand in the way of national security. He had participated in Able Danger, the aborted intelligence operation that identified many of the future 9/11 terrorists but failed to pursue them. His attempt to reveal the truth to the 9/11 Commission would not go over well with the higher-ups.
Operation Dark Heart made headlines when the Department of Defense bought the entire unredacted first printing. The book's revised second printing includes redactions, which, according to The New York Times, "offer a rare glimpse behind the bureaucratic veil that clocks information the government considers too important for public airing." But most importantly, Operation Dark Heart remains a stirring indictment against military bureaucracy and a culture of cover-ups.
Customer Reviews
Too much redacted, but still very good
The redacting is distracting, but still a good read. It's an insider's view of black ops in the war on terror. It is so telling that the military et al bought up all the unredacted copies..
This is not truly redacted, because words are replaced with the asterisks and can still be interlaced by the careful reader as a result.
Don't let the pseudo redacting stop you from buying this. It is still a fantastic read. It is well written and the author not only tells the truth, but also his musings about the bureaucracy. It is written from the point of a do-er, not a staff officer. This guy gets his hands dirty, but in a case officer way, not a special ops operator door-kicking way.
It is not about on operation, but about a series of them, in memoir form. It's a must read for anyone in the military, intelligence and yes, even analyists. In fact, the latter should be physically forced to read this.
The genal public might be frustrated with heavy handed editing
Rip Off
There are so many parts of this book that are blacked out that the publishing company should be ashamed to sell this book. This crap. DO NOT PURCHASE THIS BOOK!!!!
Good read, not a great read
The blackouts kill the book, is does bring to light the political game being played, and how we as a nation didn't focus enough on the afghan war