Ghost: Confessions of a Counterterrorism Agent | Fred Burton

Ghost: Confessions of a Counterterrorism Agent | Fred Burton | Counterterrorism school of hard knocks

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Ghost: Confessions...

	Ghost: Confessions of a Counterterrorism Agent Fred Burton Random House, 2008 - 288 pages average customer review:based on 43 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

For decades, Fred Burton, a key figure in international counterterrorism and domestic spycraft, has secretly been on the front lines in the fight to keep Americans safe around the world. Now, in this hard-hitting memoir, Burton emerges from the shadows to reveal who he is, what he has accomplished, and the threats that lurk unseen except by an experienced, world-wise few.

In the mid-eighties, the idea of defending Americans against terrorism was still new. But a trio of suicide bombings in Beirut?including one that killed 241 marines and forced our exit from Lebanon?had changed the mindset and mission of the Diplomatic Security Service (DSS), the arm of the State Department that protects U.S. embassy officials across the globe. Burton, a member of DSS?s tiny but elite Counterterrorism Division, was plunged into a murky world of violent religious extremism spanning the streets of Middle Eastern cities and the informant-filled alleys of American slums. From battling Libyan terrorists and their Palestinian surrogates to having facing down hijackers, hostages, and Hezbollah double agents, Burton found himself on the front lines of America?s first campaign against Terror.

In this globe-trotting account of one counterterrorism agent?s life and career, Burton takes us behind the scenes to reveal how the United States tracked Libya-linked master terrorist Abu Nidal; captured Ramzi Yusef, architect of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing; and pursued the assassins of major figures including Yitzhak Rabin, Meir Kahane, and General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, the president of Pakistan?classic cases that have sobering new meaning in the treacherous years since 9/11. Here, too, is Burton?s advice on personal safety for today?s most powerful CEOs, gleaned from his experience at Stratfor, the private firm Barron?s calls ?the shadow CIA.?

Told in a no-holds-barred, gripping, nuanced style that illuminates a complex and driven man, Ghost is both a riveting read and an illuminating look into the shadows of the most important struggle of our time.

Praise for GHOST
?With spy thriller suspense and the clarity of a police report, former special agent Burton?s State Department saga reads like a brewing-storm prequel to the current war on terror ... Of obvious interest to anyone with an eye on world affairs.... Most striking is the material?s relevance twenty years later; Burton?s clashes with Hezbollah in Beirut and prickly diplomacy with Iran could almost be pulled from present-day newspapers??Publisher's Weekly

?In many ways, this book reads like a le Carré spy novel: it?s not flashy, not filled with pyrotechnics, not full of chase scenes and derring-do. Rather, it?s the story of a working man whose job involved trying to prevent people from attacking his country. Shorn of ideological rights and wrongs, it?s a fascinating look at what counterterrorism really means on a day-to-day level.? ?Booklist

?The world of counterterrorism is like that old jigsaw puzzle in the back of the closet: its many missing pieces and extra parts jumbled in from other puzzles make it almost impossible to assemble. But in Ghost, Fred Burton manages to join together enough pieces to give us a discerning look at that world. This is a story, told in human terms, that will help make sense of the great puzzle of our times.? ?Eric L. Haney, author of Inside Delta Force and executive producer of The Unit

?Burton?s memoir of fighting the defensive fight against the burgeoning terrorist threat in the 1980s and beyond is a revealing personal journal of the stress and boredom involved in putting the pieces of the puzzle together to obtain justice. Fred Burton was there, and you will be as well.? ?Bobby R. Inman, admiral, United States Navy (retired), former director of National Security Agency and former deputy director of the Central Intelligence Agency

"This memoir is all at once hard-hitting, well-researched, and an easy read. Organized into thirty-six chapters, with thoughtfully-placed transitions between each, Ghost becomes ones of those books that is easy to put down and return to in a few days." ?SmallWars Journal.com

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True American Heroes

Very much enjoyed reading this book, no it is not like a Robert Ludlum or John LeCarre novel. It is a true testament to the real American Heroes who tread into dark and dangerous places and situations that most of us would fear to go. What stands out here is the dedication and patriotism of these men and woman, who, though obviously highly skilled and intelligent choose a life of sacrifice and service over money and fame. They seek to protect the rest of us from horrors that we can barely appreciate, while often suffering the criticism from the ill informed. The big payoff if they are killed in the line of duty is an anonymous gold star on a wall at Langley. I would hope more people read this book if only to understand that it is a dangerous world in which we live, and perhaps, if only for a moment, take a break from American Idol and Monday Night Football to appreciate these American public servants.

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Counterterrorism school of hard knocks

Great book and classic story about learning "what you do not know". For those who do not understand what it is like to build a program without any guidance, Fred Burton gives a great insight into his personal school of hard knocks. This book is an in depth look at how the USA developed Counter-terrorism (CT) operations complete with failures and successes. You can feel the emotion, the challenges, and the personal toll it takes on normal people. He also gives some insight into the difference between "serving the country" and "being a politician." Fred is an American hero who stepped up to the plate when his country needed him.

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Spooked by Ghost!

I found this book hard to put down. The pages turned rapidly as I gleaned behind the scenes insights into events to which I had been exposed to via electronic and print media in the past. As I put down the completed book, I experienced two strong feelings: 1. I am very glad that I was able to experience a microscopic view into the activities of people working behind the scenes, with little or no publicity, to protect our nation all hours of all days 2. I am concerned that our intelligence community may still be hindering itself through a lack of cooperation between the various agencies; even with the advent of Homeland Security. I highly recommend this book to all concerned citizens.
As an aside, I wouldn't be at all surprised if this book becomes a successful movie.

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