New at CARL: The Bin Ladens : an Arabian family in the American century

Check our holdings - The Bin Ladens : an Arabian family in the American century by Steve Coll

From publisher description: "The Bin Ladens rose from poverty to privilege; they loyally served the Saudi royal family for generations--and then one of their number changed history on September 11, 2001. Journalist Steve Coll tells the story of the rise of the Bin Laden family and of the wildly diverse lifestyles of the generation to which Osama bin Laden belongs, and against whom he rebelled. Starting with the family's escape from famine at the beginning of the twentieth century, through its jet-set era in America after the 1970s oil boom, and finally to the family's attempts to recover from September 11, this book unearths extensive new material about the family and its relationship with the United States, and provides a richly revealing and emblematic narrative of our globally interconnected times.--From publisher description."

Check availability in other libraries near you

Library Thing entry - see other book recommendations

Iraq: Five Years of War

Watch this presentation hosted by the Council on Foreign Relations: Iraq: Five Years of War (Video)

Barry R. McCaffrey, General, U.S. Army (Ret.); Adjunct Professor of International Affairs, United States Military Academy March 13, 2008

Barry McCaffrey, a retired U.S. army general and adjunct professor of international affairs at West Point, discusses past failings and future options for success in Iraq five years after the war began. McCaffrey, an early critic of the war’s initial planning, says “if you look at the totality of our experience in Iraq, it’s been a major disaster.” He says increasing costs, diminishing assets, and a rising death toll continue to jeopardize long-term stability. And yet progress has been made, the general says....

Related article from Newsweek: Cover Story Iraq

Recently added documents to the Terrorism MiPAL

The following documents were recently added to MERLN's Terrorism MiPAL:

• [14 Feb 08] Six Years Later (Part III): Innovative Approaches to Combating Terrorists Hearing before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Subcommittee on National Security and Foreign Affairs
• [14 Feb 08] Who Was Imad Mughniyeh? Matthew Levitt and David Schenker. Washington Institute for Near East Policy
• [13 Feb 08] Looming Challenges in the War on Terror Remarks by Michael Leiter, Acting Director, National Counterterrorism Center, to the Washington Institute for Near East Policy
• [11 Feb 08] DoD News Briefing with Brig. Gen. Hartmann from the Pentagon Brig. Gen. Thomas Hartmann, Legal Advisor to the Convening Authority in the DoD Office of Military Commissions
• [8 Feb 08] Combating Enemies Online: State-Sponsored and Terrorist Use of the Internet James Jay Carafano and Richard Weitz. Heritage Foundation

Praeger Security titles available online

In addition to checking out our print copies you can also view nearly all of Praeger Security International's book titles online in fulltext. Click on this link to browse our holdings. Book titles from 2007 include:

• Understanding and addressing suicide attacks by David Cook
• Americans and asymmetric conflict : Lebanon, Somalia, and Afghanistan by Adam Lowther
• Expendable warriors : the Battle of Khe Sanh and the Vietnam War by Bruce Clarke

New at CARL - Wars of blood and faith

Check our holdings: Wars of blood and faith : the conflicts that will shape the twenty-first century

Summary: Bestselling author and strategist Peters confronts the crucial security issues of the modern era. He argues that the world has entered a violent, rather than ideological, period that will continue to be the source of ferocious rebellions, genocide, and global terrorism.

Related podcast:

Author Ralph Peters at the Pritzker Military Library - Strategist and author Ralph Peters returns to the library to discuss his new book, Wars of Blood and Faith: The Conflicts That Will Shape the Twenty-First Century. Originally aired 11/29/07.

New at CARL: The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy

Check CARL Holdings: The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy

(this title also available at CARL as an audio book)

Summary: "The Israel Lobby," by John J. Mearsheimer and Stephen M. Walt, was one of the most controversial articles in recent memory. Originally published in the London Review of Books in March 2006, it provoked both howls of outrage and cheers of gratitude for challenging what had been a taboo issue in America: the impact of the Israel lobby on U.S. foreign policy." They describe the remarkable level of material and diplomatic support that the United States provides to Israel and argues that this support cannot be fully explained on either strategic or moral grounds. This exceptional relationship is due largely to the political influence of a loose coalition of individuals and organizations that actively work to shape U.S. foreign policy in a pro-Israel direction. Mearsheimer and Walt provocatively contend that the lobby has a far-reaching impact on America's posture throughout the Middle East - in Iraq, Iran, Lebanon, and toward the Israeli-Palestinian conflict - and the policies it has encouraged are in neither America's national interest nor Israel's long-term interest. The lobby's influence also affects America's relationship with important allies and increases dangers that all states face from global jihadist terror."--BOOK JACKET.

Related Podcast: University Channel - From Columbia University John J. Mearsheimer (University of Chicago) and Stephen M. Walt (Kennedy School of Government, Harvard) discuss their new publication `The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy`.

The Threat of Bioterrorism

Browse these CARL titles related to the subject of Bioterrorism

Listen to this Princeton University Channel podcast: The Threat of Bioterrorism: Private Sector Coordination with Governments

"There are deep flaws in the structure of global regimes designed to control access to WMD technology and sharp disagreement among major powers over the use of sanctions and military force to address potential threats. Often overlooked is the role of the private sector in issues surrounding WMD proliferation and responding to the threat of bioterrorism. Distinguished leaders from business and the United States government join Columbia and EWI experts to explore how the private sector can collaborate with governments in devising an effective response to these threats."

Speakers: Dr. Mark Chandler, Chairman and CEO, Biophysical; Brandon D. Declet , Counsel to the US House of Representatives, Committee on Homeland Security; Stuart Gottlieb, Lecturer in the Discipline of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University; Dr. Greg Austin, Vice President at the East-West Institute and Director of EWI's Global Security Program and Policy Innovation.

World War IV : the long struggle against Islamofascism

Coming soon to CARL: World War IV : the long struggle against Islamofascism by Norman Podhoretz

A leading conservative thinker discusses the war against the global terrorist network, arguing that this is a legitimate and essential battle while defending the Bush administration's policies, and examines the threat of Islamic extremists to world peace.

Related podcast: C-Span interview of the author from About the interview "

Norman Podhoretz argues that the "war against Islamofascism" currently being waged by the Bush administration is as important for our country to engage in as World War I, World War II, and the Cold War. He defends the Bush administration's dual policies of preemption and democratization and says that past presidents of both parties have failed to recognize the importance of going on the offensive in the battle against Islamic extremism. "

Islamic Republic of Pakistan Online Information resources

The CARL's classified services division has put together a gateway to open source information on the Islamic Repuplic of Pakistan. (If you access off-post some of the resources will require a CARL login).

Senior Officer Professional Digest (SOPD) August Issue : Australian Army

This month the editors of the Australian Army's Senior Officer Professional Digest recommend ten articles drawn from professional and academic journals on the subjects of capitalist-authoritarian powers, China, India, Pakistan, counterinsurgency, terrorism, regime change, Eastern and Western ideas of conflict and civil-military relations.

From the SOPD: "Reading is an intellectual force multiplier for the military profession. Apart from practical operational experience, which is our chief instructor, no other information source can compare with the material to be found in books and professional journals. As far as issues of contemporary importance are concerned, the many high quality professional journals from around the world can provide a small service, such as ours, with many different and valuable points of view."

SOPD Issue No. 52, August 2007 Full text PDF

Contents:

• The Return of Authoritarian Great Powers
• Securing Borders
• China’s Rise in Historical Perspective
• A Friend Indeed
• A False Choice in Pakistan
• Counterterrorism: A Professional’s Strategy
• The Role of Safe Havens in Islamist Terrorism
• Terrorism, Regime Change and Just War
• Good Anthropology, Bad History

counterinsurgency australia warfare

War by other means by John Yoo

War by other means : an insider's account of the War on Terror by John Yoo

Book summary from the publisher: "John Yoo, the key legal architect of the Bush administration’s response to 9/11, delivers a fascinating insider account of the War on Terror. While America reeled from the cataclysmic events of September 11, 2001, Yoo and a skeletal staff of the Office of Legal Counsel found themselves on the phone with the White House. In a series of memos, Yoo offered his legal opinions on the president’s authority to respond, and in the process had an almost unmatched impact on America's fight against terrorism. His analysis led to many of the Bush administration’s most controversial policies, including detention at Guantanamo Bay, coercive interrogation, military trials for terrorists, preemptive attacks, and the National Security Agency’s wiretapping program. In fascinating detail, Yoo takes us inside the corridors of power and examines specific cases, from John Walker Lindh and Jose Padilla to an American al-Qaeda leader assassinated by a CIA pilotless drone in the deserts of Yemen."

Book review: published in the New York Times/International Herald Tribune

Book review : published in the New Republic magazine

Audio: Milt Rosenberg WGN radio interviews John Yoo on his book War by other means. (Real player audio)

John Yoo War on Terror

New at CARL: The Pentagon - A History

Find at the CARL- The Pentagon : a history : the untold story of the wartime race to build the Pentagon--and to restore it sixty years later

Find at another library near you.

From the publisher: The creation of the Pentagon in seventeen whirlwind months during World War II is one of the great construction feats in American history, involving a tremendous mobilization of manpower, resources, and minds. In astonishingly short order, Brigadier General Brehon B. Somervell conceived and built an institution that ranks with the White House, the Vatican, and a handful of other structures as symbols recognized around the world. Now veteran military reporter Steve Vogel reveals for the first time the remarkable story of the Pentagon’s construction, from it’s dramatic birth to its rebuilding after the September 11 attack.

Book review: Christian Science Monitor - July 10, 2007

Read an excerpt

Related podcast

Listen to this NPR books interview with the author Steve Vogel

pentagon Steve Vogel National Security

New at CARL- Legacy of Ashes by Tim Weiner

Find at the CARL- Legacy of ashes : the history of the Central Intelligence Agency by Tim Weiner

Is this book already checked out?

Learn here on how to place a hold.

Summary from book jacket: For the last sixty years, the CIA has managed to maintain a formidable reputation in spite of a terrible record. Its inability to understand the world has started wars and undermined the White House. It has spun presidents, policymakers, and the American people in order to preserve its own power. LEGACY OF ASHES is the definitive history of the CIA, from the end of World War II to the battle for Baghdad. It is based on more than 50,000 documents, primarily from the archives of the CIA, and a decade of interviews with hundreds of CIA officers, including every living Director of Central Intelligence. Everything in this book is on the record. There are no anonymous sources, no blind quotations.

Related podcast:

C-Span Book TV Interview- After Words: Tim Weiner author of "Legacy of Ashes: The History of the CIA" interviewed by David Ignatius

Tim Weiner Legacy of Ashes CIA