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Generation Kill

By Evan Wright

(26)

| eBook | 9781448126293

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Book Description

Generation Kill is about the young men sent to fight their nation's first open-ended war since Vietnam. Despite the flurry of media images to come of the recent wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, you have never really met any of these people, who serve as front-line troops. For whatever reason,Continue

Generation Kill is about the young men sent to fight their nation's first open-ended war since Vietnam. Despite the flurry of media images to come of the recent wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, you have never really met any of these people, who serve as front-line troops. For whatever reason, the media simply doesn't get them. As we all know, news accounts of the last two wars focused almost exclusively on battlefield imagery of high-tech weapons wreaking astounding destruction, comply with analysis from retired army grandees and other experts, punctuated by the odd heart-warming patriotic sound-bite. The troops themselves play a role in the media's presentation of recent wars rather like extras in The Triumph of the Will. They are everywhere yet somehow invisible. When they speak you get the sense that what they are saying has been carefully scripted. Now Generation Kill tells the soldiers' story in their own words.



The narrative focuses on a platoon of 23 marines, many of them veterans of Afghanistan, whose elite reconnaissance unit spearheaded the blitzkrieg on Iraq. This is the story of young men that have been trained to become ruthless killers. It's about surviving death. It's about taking part in a war many questioned before it even began.



Evan Wright was the only reporter with First Recon, which operated well ahead of most other forces, usually behind enemy lines. They were among the first marines sent into the fight and one of the last units still engaged on the outskirts of Iraq, even after the city centre fell. Generation Kill is not just a combat chronicle but an inside look at how people fighting in war actually experience it. It is both an action narrative like Black Hawk Down and a detailed portrait of a generation at war along the lines of Band of Brothers. It is not a book you are going to forget in a hurry...

Critics

  • On War

    The vanquished know war. They see through the empty jingoism of those who use the abstract words of glory, honor, and patriotism to mask the cries of the wounded, the senseless killing, war profiteering, and chest-pounding grief. They know the lies t ... (read full critics)

    nybooks published on Mon, 23 Aug 2010

2 Reviews

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  • 13 people find this helpful

    Somehow misleading Catch-Reader title: CHECK THIS OUT!

    Author, Rolling-Stone journalist, reports forty days of Iraq invasion from it's start, while embedded in 1st Recon Marine Battalion.

    He shared Marine life and fighting, from MRE to sleep deprivation to taking rounds. Fallaci in Viet-Nam was granted Major-equivalent rank being a journalist, thus ... (continue)

    Author, Rolling-Stone journalist, reports forty days of Iraq invasion from it's start, while embedded in 1st Recon Marine Battalion.

    He shared Marine life and fighting, from MRE to sleep deprivation to taking rounds. Fallaci in Viet-Nam was granted Major-equivalent rank being a journalist, thus enabled to command an helicopter to get her into action, but nothing like that was possible there, so he entered action in the beginning.

    This way he suffered banning from day-by day communication, as like as being disallowed from autonomous wandering, a serious limitation for a journalist (he thought before) but a lifesaving measure as has been very clear after.

    "Recon" means going into search for enemy.
    Surprisingly 1st Recon was used instead as "spear tip" into fight. Hopefully it could have lured hidden Iraqi forces into battle. Suicidal task, unless proven Iraqi were already softened to residual random fighting forces only.

    Not surprisingly were the SNAFU and TAFUBAR happening in every battle since centuries, no matter how much technology is available. Lube lacks, rifles stucks, nightvision without batteries, food lacks, trucks lost and impaired hygiene as NBC overall was compulsory.

    This proves Mass Destructions Weapons still believed within into Saddam possibilities, as fighting and living inside rubber clothing into hot desert is a hell of a life.
    Then they were ordered not to use, when was clear there were no dangers of being poisoned.

    Techno-fighting is perfect into wargames. Sandstorm, comms encrypting mess and other disappointing mishaps, makes old fashioned artillery more reliable than close air support, unless called for by a moron asking for close fire without checking friendly troop position. Three cases of total madness. In two, refusal to obey went smooth. Extensive use of unprotected field artillery proves (again) that Iraqi were already without aviation and tactical support.

    The overwhelming majority of Marines is not trigger happy, Iraqi civilian casualties were exceptions unless generated by a war criminal (happened), but it is clear the absence of a recovery plan for civilians, like Allied Army pursued during Italian WW2 campaign. Even CIA is frankly disappointing, showing absolute ignorance on how about deal with civilians.

    At the end was proven that "Even though their Commander in Chief tells them they are fighting today in Iraq to protect American freedom, few would be shaken to discover that they might actually be leading a grab for oil. In a way, they almost expect to be lied to".

    Lots of other useful info here, (available on request) maybe if our newspaper journalists could have read it, they may have been able to avoid confusing Cruise (missiles) with Cruiser (big warship).

    Soundtrack:
    Lee "Scratch" Perry - Arkology 3CD
    Reel I: Dub Organiser
    Reel II: Dub shepherd
    Reel III: Dub Adventurer
    The Upsetters - Dub Blackboard Jungle
    Amp Fiddler + Sly & Robbie - Inspiration Information.

    Don't waste innuendos, I like that while straight and sober.

    Is this helpful?

    Procyon Lotor said on Mar 22, 2011 about the Softcover edition | 3 feedbacks

  • A really interesting view on the iraq war.
    A great account of the life of young men called on to take life-or-death decision.

    Is this helpful?

    Echomrg said on Dec 17, 2009 about the Paperback edition | Add your feedback

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