America's "Shadow Warriors" on a Mission to "Kill Pablo": Focus on Special Operations Forces in Light of Afghanistan
Abstract
The rout in late-2001 of Afghanistan's Taliban regime brings a timely relevance to two new books about U.S. Special Operations Forces (SOF) by two prominent American authors. Both make for crisp, fast and fun reading. Both books are likely to be revealing in a voyeuristic sense for overly-sensitive liberals, gratifying for might-makes-right knuckle-draggers&and informative while entertaining for the great majority of us between. Shadow Warriors is Clancy's third in his "Commanders" series of non-fiction books. It is a follow-up to Into the Storm (published in 1998) about the Army and Every Man a Tiger (2000) about the Air Force. While each of the three is a love letter to the military-industrial complex, each also offers a winning blend of technology, history, biography and well-told war stories. Each is co-authored by Clancy and a retired general. As is the heroic CIA official Jack Ryan in Clancy's fictional series, SOF leaders in Shadow Warriors are portrayed in an ideal light. Not surprisingly, General Stiner, with whom Clancy co-authored the book, never makes a significant blunder and is portrayed as an all-knowing visionary of humble origins from a farm in Tennessee. He is depicted almost as a real life Jack Ryan.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Apr 19, 2002
- Accession Number
- ADA442429
Entities
People
- Hugh M. Neighbour
Organizations
- National War College