Book Review: Gentlemen Bastards On the Ground in Afghanistan with America's Elite Special Forces

Book Review: Gentlemen Bastards On the Ground in Afghanistan with America's Elite Special Forces

Author: Kevin Maurer

ISBN-10: 0425253597

ISBN-13: 978-0425253595

This books looks into the war on terror being fought by a group of elite American Green Berets in Afghanistan through the eyes of an embedded journalist .It brings out the respect and admiration of the journalist for America’s finest and the grudging trust and comradeship that is built up between the author and the soldier during his time with them. 

If you are looking for a nail biting, on the edge action packed book then this book will look you disappointed. This book is not about elite troops rappelling down helicopters in the middle of the night

To take out a Taliban HVT (high value target). Nor is it about intense fire fights or hair raising missions to capture or kill terrorist.

It  is more  about  the training of the Afghan National Civil Order Police (ANCOP) by American Green Berets , the efforts by the Green Berets to win the hearts and minds of the Afghan people  and the myriad problems that they encounter from bureaucracy to rampant corruption during their deployment.

The Afghan troops are not always projected in good light, while the Afghan interpreters working with the Green Berets are solid and brave soldier’s the ANCOP are often shown as poorly disciplined and corrupt.

Another interesting fact that is brought about in the book is the friction between the conventional soldiers of the US Army and the non- conventional/special forces Green Berets.

The author also does a decent job of bringing to light the personal traits and the background of the individual operators of the unit who are there to fight America’s war on terror being thousands of miles away from their beloved homeland! Their courage, sacrifice, steely determination and never say die attitude in a foreign land is well captured in this book.

Overall a good read which gives a fascinating account of how a journalist becomes part of the story

I would give it a 6 on a scale of ten.

The Datsun redi GO

Tell me a person who is not crazy about cars? I don't know anyone who isn't. My wife a big car enthusiast though. Not just for riding, for driving, in fact. But you know, Ferraris and Lamborghinis remain a dream most of the time! My current car is going good but sometimes I think I settled for less. It’s almost six years that I am driving my hatch back. But what I want now is something different, something that will give me power, will look sporty yet I’ll have room to park it almost anywhere!

I was going through several sites for checking on the new cars that are getting launched in India. A lot of them are promising power, some promising good sleek looks. But it’s important to have all of it together.

The Datsun redi-Go is looking promising at this moment. It’s an urban cross – a bit of the both worlds. I like how sporty and wide it looks – almost gives a feeling of driving a SUV. It looks like it is going to provide a unique combination of style and comfort with the best of technology for the land of Japan.

I like the YUKAN DESIGN.  It’s smooth and sleek, the dynamic side character lines gives it just that necessary edge over others in the same class. The best part though is the GROUND CLEARENCE. If you are driving in India you know how bad the roads are so good road clearance is what you need in a car. The Safety features look cool too. A reinforced crash protection shell, which means the strengthened Datsun body structure, is optimized for Torsional Rigidity and stiffness and better Frontal Offset Crash performance. The H shaped Suspension System is also pretty good. It has double pivot arms to give high stability and cornering performance. A car that looks good and feels good and you also know at the back of your mind that it is going to keep you safe.

Feature wise this car looks power packed. It has the front airbags, power windows, sporty interiors, good legroom space. I like how the exterior looks – wide and sturdy – pretty much a man’s car. I think it will be quite spacious for the family as well.  

If I had the choice I will straight away take it to Mumbai Pune highway and drive for a few hours. It’s just pathetic to drive in the city these days specially with all the traffic and the auto rickshaws and bicycles who do not maintain their lanes nor any traffic rules. And I simply hate the traffic lights. Some elevated roadways in Bangalore gives you that peace of driving traffic lights free – but still Mumbai Pune Expressway is a dream to drive on. I should try and get a test drive at least to see how it feels and performs. That will boost my deciding factor. I’ll keep you guys posted.

Fun. Freedom. Confidence. The ultimate Urban Cross - Datsun redi-GO - the capability of a crossover with the convenience of a hatchback.