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BOOK REVIEW Ð
Horse Soldiers - Doug Stanton - this is a history of the
US Special Forces who fought what I call the first Afghan war, right after 9/11. This is the phase of the war that America won quickly by
using a small group of superbly trained men who had a great deal of imagination, sensitivity to the situation and resourcefulness. This
was the first American unconventional warfare operation since WWII.
It succeeded brilliantly and then the politicians and brass got bogged down in now what - nation building leading to the next 9 years
of hard and basically, I hate to say it - unsuccessful slogging. The story is well told. The individual soldiers come to life and
their amazing campaign using horse-mounted locals and modern air
power defeated the Taliban.
This epic story Horse Soldiers is extremely well written, an intimate portrait of the men and women who lived the battle on the fields of
fire - at their at home, lives, too. This is an outstanding account of their war and provides invaluable insight on how to fight an
asymmetrical war.
This book is in the same vein as Blackhawk Down and Flags of Our Fathers, but it is the story of a successful campaign. Reading it I
was reminded of the aftermath of 9/11 and then the euphoria of the US & Brits defeating the Taliban with all that these best & bravest of
men did.
I find it is always worth reading a historical book in retrospect as one has a kind of perspective to use. Albeit, it is often way to soon
to judge a historical event until a few decades after it occurred.
But in this case it is well worth reading now, or again if you haven't read it previously.
Best Maxim
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