5 comments about Osama: The Making of a Terrorist.

1. The self-aggrandizement is downright nauseating. Randal can easily put you to sleep with his "knowledge" and "insight". The title is a little misleading since you dont even hear a thing about Bin Laden till the sixtieth page practically. All you get from this is how the Bush administration is comparable to the Nazi propaganda machine with it's "Big Lies" and that Israel is the Great Oppresor. His constant chastizing of the Bush administration as simpletons toward their policy on Terror is quite comical since his grand idea is appeasement/containment. Wow , do you think he thought that one up all by himself. Bold thinking I'll tell ya. His blather is extremely numbing anchored by his favorite word, comeuppance. I would give it a negative star if I could



2. A well researched book, balanced and objective, informative and engrossing.
   
   I am very sad that the people who gave it one star are writing as if they have to prove something.



3. Randall spoke in London in October, 2005. I was there and brought the book back with me. This new (2005 paperback) edition is dramatically improved from the first, as it is informed by a mountain of data drawn together by the 911 Commission, whose report came out after Randal's first book went to press.
   
   Insights can be hard to glean, but a careful reader will see how the terrorists now striking from small to large scales around the world got underway. And it is only too clear how hard it will be to stop them as they operate in unstructured cells in scores of countries.
   
   One of most critical points Randal makes is that Osama's gathering and training, partly underwritten by the US backing for Afghans against the Soviets in the nineties, brought together for the first time scores of disenchanted, religiously passionate people from across Islam. Randal notes that these people, gathered to train and fight by Osama, had little knowledge of fellow thinkers outside their villages in countries scattered across the world.
   
   Now, in the band from Morocco to the Philippines, there are trained, experienced terrorists who know they are part of a global force. This is Osama's real legacy. His killing or capture becomes a small historic fact. As Randal clearly shows, it was Osama at work in the nineties -- long before 911 -- that flows on. There are many lessons to be taken away and they are well illuminated in the new version of OSAMA.



4. Jonathan Randal's obviously has a lot of information to work with in light of his decades of work in the Middle East. Due to his vast experience, his book is useful. Unfortunately, it does not contain much information about Osama bin Laden. If the book had been titled something else it would have been fitting as the book was more about terrorism in general and al-Qaeda and Osama more specifically. He has obvious political leanings towards France and is definitely not an alarmist like many that write about terrorism today. Sometimes his anti-American political jibes can be irritating and even irrational. He paints Osama as more or less a good Muslim and never points out where he is not a good Muslim. If he believes that, that's fine. It's a little hard to swallow that he then finds it wrong that the US is in a war against Islam. It seemed to be a major philosophical jump in my mind. If you want to read an interesting book about terrorism and someone's opinion about Middle East politics this is a decent book. If you are looking for a book about Osama find another one.



5. I have gone through half of the book (intend to read the other half as well) but its not the book I thought it would be. Its more of a story of the middle east politics over the past twenty years, the afhgan war and pakistan's involvement in it. Tonnes of information from personal encounters of the author and through his friends and acquaintances. Not your typical bed time book, a bit difficult to digest.

No comments about Inside Terrorist Organizations (Cass Series on Political Violence).

3 comments about Landscapes of the Jihad: Militancy, Morality, Modernity.

1. How did Islam become a global phenomenon in Al-Qaeda's Jihad? This is the question that Faisal Devji seeks to address in his Landscapes of the Jihad. Devji argues that while violence is certainly the most visible part of Al-Qaeda's jihad, it should be taken into consideration with a "world of ethical, sexual, aesthetic, and other forms of behaviour" (xvi). Devji avoids attempting explaining contemporary Jihad as the result of political or nationalistic motivations. Instead, he argues that while Jihad is indeed meant to accomplish certain ends, it has become more ethical that political in nature. For example, Al-Qaeda, unlike the image portrayed by media in the west, actually has no "coherent vision or plan for the future" (4). Thus, it is absurd to suggest that Al-Qaeda's motivations stem from oppressive or disturbed conditions in the Muslim world. Indeed, most of the fighters in Al-Qaeda are actually privileged and inexperienced middle-class youth, who never had any experience of such conditions, choosing instead to "battle in more exotic locations like Bosnia, Chechnya, and Afghanistan" (4).
   
   Devji believes it is high time scholarship began to distinguish global Jihad from local struggles. For Devji, Jihad today has become so globalized that it can be compared to environmental groups, supporters of disarmament, anti-abortion groups, etc. (12). Furthermore, contrary to popular views that all members of Al-Qaeda espouse a single school of Islamic law or thought, Devji shows that there instead exists a kind of pluralism, one that is accepting of "Arabs and non-Arabs, including even the Chinese" (16). Thus, some of the hijackers on September 11 were not averse to consuming alcohol, gambling in Las Vegas, or even attending lap-dances in clubs just a few days before their suicide missions (17). Devji explains such behaviour not as "schizophrenic" or "incongruous," but as "yet another sign of the disintegration of old-fashioned distinctions, whether religious or political, in a universe of global effects that is best represented by the mass media"-a theme that is repeated throughout the book (91). In addition, despite claims made by the popular media, Al-Qaeda has "no formal procedure of recruitment or indoctrination, not even by way of sleepers who supposedly lurk in mosques to trap the unwary martyrs of tomorrow" (20). As a result, the new Jihad is a series of global effects that subverts traditional forms of Islamic devotion.
   
   Devji dismisses Osama Bin Laden's statements about Americans having a "government within the government," as conspiracy theories-something that Osama could have picked up while watching "a television show like the X-Files or a film by Oliver Stone" (6). However, it might be erroneous to dismiss Osama so simply since covert and surreptitious operations by the Americans to overthrow regimes, to cover up "blowbacks" or to support other unsavoury operations have been quite well documented. Furthermore, Devji points out that while most scholarship, and even the media, remains fixated specifically upon Sunni Islam and Middle East, "the most successful examples of political Islam have been revolutionary Iran and the Hezbollah in Lebanon, both [of which are] Shia movements" (21). Similarly, Devji criticizes scholars for not noticing that most Jihad today "happens to be based fore the most part outside the Middle East...among populations that have barely an inkling of Salafi or Wahhabi conditions" (21). The fact that they have Arab fighters or funding from Salafi or Wahhabi groups is not sufficient to convince Devji of the resulting nature of the Jihad there: "That the reverse might be true, with Arab fighters and financiers importing the jihad from these regions to the Middle East, is not seriously considered" (22). Despite these criticisms, Devji provides little convincing evidence to prove otherwise, mentioning insignificant movements such as the Tablighi Jamaat and the fundraising activities of Ayatullah Sistani in Iraq.
   
   Another popular notion that Devji addresses in his work is the idea that Al-Qaeda is a puritan organization, inspired by Salafi and Wahhabi principles, and is therefore vehemently against Sufi or Shia practices. Instead, Devji shows that within Al-Qaeda such genealogies and structures have broken down, and that there exists a synthesis of various practices. For example, certain practices in the Al-Qaeda compare favourably with Sufi or mystical brotherhoods, "even if these happen to be disapproved by members of the movement itself" (42). There are also elements of mysticism that are frequently invoked, as well as Shia practices venerating the Prophet and his family. Devji points that there even is a tradition of the mahdi or messiah, as evidenced by Juhayman al-Utaibi's claim when he captured the Grand Mosque in Mecca in 1979 (48). Devji also explains why Hollywood movies (such as the Long Kiss Goodnight) are accepted as fact against news reports-"simple political intentions no longer suffice to explain events in a global landscape" (89).
   
   The last half of Devji's book draws heavily from letters by Bin Laden, which present him as an erudite and well-informed man, not a radical and misinformed terrorist. For example, Bin Laden clearly explains Islam's right to Palestine based upon the faith's universality while making Muslims true heirs of the Jewish and Christian traditions (85). Indeed, there are even echoes to Michael Moore's Fahrenheit 9/11 in one of Osama's statements. Ultimately, Devji's book offers fresh and new insights towards understanding Jihad today. A sorely needed book, it breaks the vicious cycle of tired and hackneyed arguments that one so often reads in the common media today while providing compelling insight into what is rightly now a global phenomenon.



2. Since the previous reviewer has done an excellent job summarizing this complex, dazzling, often exhilirating book, I should just say that I was really struck by Devji's writerly gifts that make layered arguments accessible to a lay reader such as myself.



3. This is a pretty good book with a few flaws. It has four main points.
   
   1. Islamic terrorism is done as an ethical end in itself with vague political intentions.
   
   2. Jihadists have failed to change politics in their home countries, so they get the international media's attention with violent attacks, and thus try to project responsibility for these local failures onto foreign (democratic) people that it is their responsibility to address the local political problems the jihadists have failed at.
   
   3. Islamic terrorism is a disorganized movement that spreads organically--new cells are created by small, inspired groups...there is no hierarchy and no dogma...only the belief in suicide bombing against Westerners and secularists as a good deed.
   
   4. Jihadism is historically divorced from other Islamic movements because it scorns the authority of ulama and because the individual terrorists have vastly differing individual beliefs. Its message is, in part, that each Muslim can interpret doctrine his own way, without a Qadi or other official to direct his beliefs.
   
   However, there are a few problems with the book.
   
   1. First of all, 75% of Devji's sources are interviews with bin Laden and al-Zawahiri from 1998, or 2001 interviews. He needs to interview a greater variety of jihadists in order to have a better picture.
   
   2. Second, he completely ignores the situation in Iraq. Since 2003, the number of suicide attacks in Iraq has been vastly greater than those anywhere else in the past 10 years. And I would guess that the majority of those attacks have a specific goal--an Islamic state in Iraq. It's suspicious and statistically ridiculous to overlook Iraq.
   
   All in all, he explains international terrorism well, but not local terrorism in places like Iraq or Palestine--which have specific political aims.

5 comments about Brotherhood.

1. I was moved to tears reading this, not only having witnessed the 9-11 atrocities firsthand but as a widow I know the pain suffered by the widows of those brave firemen that perished that day. This book is a must-read along with the others that are listed. I cannot say enough about it, God Bless Those Brave men.



2. As you are reading though the tribute to the fallen, you see thenamesof each of the lost Firefighters scrolled across the bottom of the pages. Each page left me more and more with a sense of loss. I did not lose anyone that fateful day, yet, we all lost. The words you read are quite moving, the pictures mean more than the words and poems. Yet i am most moved by the names of those precious and brave firefighters name across the pages from the front cover to the back cover.



3. Outstanding It shows the amazing grief and resolve of New York and its firefighters. It is is visual history of the Sept.11 attacks and their aftermath



4. Simple and to the point, yet poingint and touching, this book shows like no other how the world's greatest fire department dealt with the aftermath of tragedy.



5. Thought it would have more written by Frank McCourt. Even though, I still appreciate great photographs, especially having to do with 9/11.

No comments about Deconstructing Pierre Bourdieu: Against Sociological Terrorism from the Left.

1 comments about The Algebra of Freedom.

1. A sharp, soulful intelligence is worked throughout this topical and very relevant play. Issues like 'Why terrorism?'and 'Where do we go from here?'tackled here with a careful and poetic hand. Excellent drama. This playwright is also an immensely readable poet - checkout: Lovers, Liars, Conjurers and Thieves and A Choreographer's Cartography

1 comments about Full Metal Panic! Volume 4.

1. Sosuke, while not admitting any romantic feelings for Chidori, finds himself disconcerted when Kawa, an old flame of hers from junior high shows up on the scene. Sosuke decides to follow them on a date to an entertainment park to see if Kawa is on the level or just an enemy terrorist trying to get close to Chidori. Things get more dramatic when Capt. Tessa appears at Sosuke's apartment with a prisoner in tow, on the run from A-21, a terrorist organization that has acquired an Arm Slave and needs the prisoner because he can activate the "Lambda Driver". Did I also mention that the prisoner is slightly psychotic due to mind-altering drugs administered during his training?
   
   This volume of Full Metal Panic was a complete success because it melded comedy and action together effortlessly. The scenes where Sosuke fights some yakuza harrassing Chidori is especially funny as he takes them on wearing a giant hamster costume to hide his identity! There was also a little more romance instead of the usual hitting Sosuke over the head bits. The art is great. Just don't expect any profound character development here.
   
   Check out the original Full Metal Panic anime and its sequel Fumoffu for more adventures and comedy.

2 comments about Toxic Terror: Assessing Terrorist Use of Chemical and Biological Weapons (BCSIA Studies in International Security).

1. Tucker's collection brings together analyses of all known historical usages of chemical and biological weapons (including toxins) by terrorists, as well as debunkings of three popular but apocryphal stories of such use. The book is absurdly thorough, and an invaluable historical resource, whether one agrees or not with the conclusions the editor draws from the collection.



2. Tucker's collection of case studies involving the use or attempted use of chemical or biological weapons is truly excellent. It not only gives in-depth histories for each of the cases, but it also presents an analytical approach to their interpretation. The book is concluded by comparing all of the case studies in order to determine potential patterns and characteristics that would be useful in identifying potential terrorists and thwarting their efforts before they could come to fruition. Each case profiles the people that are involved, including the personalities of leaders, technicians, and of the actual cadres. It evaluates where and why successes occurred, and also where failures prevented perfect execution. From this book you will learn what certain groups have targeted, what as led them to violence, and how they attempted to use CBW. The book also examines a few cases where it has been believed that CBW was used, but the evidence has indicated otherwise. This book is perfect for people who desire to study terrorism in-depth, and for the reader who would like to be informed of many cases of terrorism throughout the 20th century.

1 comments about From Pablo to Osama: Trafficking and Terrorist Networks, Government Bureaucracies, and Competitive Adaptation.

1. I've read many books on terrorism and have found many of them well written. This literature is one of the very best. It uses information by practitioners and provides like no other resource. A must for anyone in the terrorism/trafficking field.

4 comments about Prophecy at Ground Zero: From Today's Middle-East Madness to the Second Coming of Christ.

1. Prophecy at Ground Zero by William T. James, general editor along with top eschatological authorities examine and interpet in detail the present day events that are revealed in the ancient biblical scriptures. Some of these questions that still arise from the decimation of September 11, 2001. The carnage known as Ground Zero gave us a sense that there is ongoing struggle against evil in a troubled future for planet Earth linked to a prophetic destiny. These were revealed by Jesus in His Olivet Discourse written in Matthew 24 & 25, Mark 13, and Luke 21 and by the prophets Daniel, Ezekiel and Revelations.
   

   
   The book has key terms and scriptures throughout that accompany each chapter discussing the future of terrorism and it's involvement in the undertaking of the end-time scenerio. To support these discussions a number of recent national and international news articles are listed along with maps and diagrams to explain where we are now and where humankind will be in the end-time events. As we look around to what's happening everyday in technological advancements and political events are becoming climatic. Super nations are being set up for the most earthshaking campaign in all of history combined.
   

   
   The book features highlights and important dates that have also lead up to what will be Armageddon. In every major prophecy mentioned Israel is at it's center. These prophecies contain warnings of a great caliber and multitude of the fate of humankind. The more devastating events will be according to the scriptures after the Rapture of the Church from the Earth. From here the book identifies the nations that will be invloved in the invasion of Israel.
   

   
   Just as Israel faces perilous times so is America mentioned in the prophecy of the Holy Scriptures. In the fierce world of radical, deadly religions and the progressing of a one-world government lead by the Anti-Christ. We can't deny what is coming that the Bible is certainly real and that the outcome of the events mentioned in this book is real. Many truths are revealed about the global condition and the consequences it will face on the path it takes. The message is clear that evil times are here, but there is hope in Jesus Christ. Faith in Jesus Christ overcomes all fear. The good news is that there will be a new earth without end [Isaiah 45:17; Ephesians 3:21]. I recommend this highly as a study in depth for anyone who is looking for a complete, concise book about end-time prophecy.




2. I've read many End-Times books and I can say this is a good outline. My complaint is that the info here wasn't put together in the best way.



3. 
   
   Some well written chapters, some horribly written chapters. This book is mixed bag. The Editors needed to pay closer attention to the formatting (sloppy errors) and they needed to coach certain authors into getting their ideas out on paper with greater clarity. The "dummies" format just does not cut it with me. Just give us clean paragraphs and chapters. No fluff needed.

   This book may frustrate and disappoint the more advanced reader in eschatology, and it may just plain confuse someone new to the area of study. I say walk before you run with the speculative ideas. Beginners would be better off starting elsewhere.

   If you can't get enough of prophecy studies, go ahead and buy it. But for beginners, let me recommend a book as a substitute, which is similar, as far as being a grand overview: On Prophecy, by J. Vernon Mcgee. This is a great, and thoroughly Biblical overview which even the initiated will find useful.




4. In response to Mr. Newby's review, several things must be pointed out. Prophecy at Ground Zero is the newest installment in a long running series by editor William T. James. Mr. James releases these books every fewsyears to accomplish two things-
   1) To familiarize the uninitiated with basic concepts of eschatology, particularly those of relevance to the pre-trib/pre-millenial position.
   2) To update the 'experts' (of which Mr. Newby obviously considers himself) on new developments in global politics, cultures, technologies, and religions as they relate to escatalogical issues.

   This book is not intended to be read as a novel. Mr. Newby's comparison of this non-fiction work to the story-telling format of Tim LaHaye's Left Behind novels is akin to comparing Da Vinci with Mark Twain. Apples. Oranges.

   I'm schocked that Mr. Newby would even mention a book by Jerry Jenkins in the same review with something to which John Walvoord has contributed. That comparison alone calls into question his credibility and grasp of the nature of non-fiction eschatological writing. Sadly, this is the case for most of the uninformed, sound-byte oriented individuals who have devoured the Left Behind series, but have never heard of Dr. Walvood or Dr. Ryrie. There's eschatology for pop culture, and then there's eschatology for Bible students. This book is for the latter.

   Mr. James intention is not to entertain or develop a gripping plot to retain the attention of Left Behind fans (Thank God!). All of these books are compiled from various sources. Each author writes on a subject that contributes to the overall design of the book, but holds special interest for, or draws on the expertise of said author (many of which Mr. Newby felt qualified to critisize without reading). Given this format, the book is incredibly user-friendly since anyone - amateur or prophey expert can read any chapter independently of the others. The book can also be read from beginning to end, as with all the books Mr. James carefully edits. But be warned - there are no cute flight attendants, savvy news journalists, or stirring romantic relationships to keep the story interesting. This is the nature of a non-fiction, scholarly work on eschatology. It's a book for Grown Ups Mr. Newby.

   That said, I would recommend this book to anyone who is serious about the subject of eschatology, the beginner and the expert.

   For Mr. Newby, I would recommend Left Behind #43 or one of it's knockoffs. I would also recommend a much needed apology to well respected scholars and authors such as the late Dr. Walvoord, Zola Levitt, Dave Breese, William T. James, and others.