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Summary: Fun and Learning!
Review: I only bought this book at the behest of a friend. She said that I must read, "House of Bush, House of Saud."I am politically moderate. I vote both ways. This book is an incredible read. I thought that I knew the Bush/HoS story pretty well. I expect that I did have far more knowledge than the greater portion of the U.S. populace prior to reading this book. It confirms in great detail what I already knew, and
adds tremendously to my knowledge of this sometimes sordid affair. If you read one political book this year, this should be the one. It is admittedly early in the year, but this is an important bit of U.S. - Saudi history. History that many commentators would like to wish away. Unger manages to turn what might otherwise be just a highly illuminating body of facts into a highly readable form. If you miss this, you're missing a great deal.
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Summary: The "Official Story" ends here
Review: A damaging critique and analysis, all duly notated, presents an unflattering image of the Bush Admin.
Why didn't the 'liberal media' tell us about this earlier? Oh, yea, what 'liberal media?'
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Summary: Amazing
Review: Definitely a must read for those who are clueless about the Saud/Bush connection. It makes current puzzing events clear. Like why did we let Osama Bin-Ladin relatives fly home free and clear when all other aircraft was grounded? Why didn't we follow Richard Clarke's (the nation's first counterterrorism czar of the NSC appointed by father Geo H.W. Bush) plan for forceful preventive confrontation of Al Queda? Why did we wait soo late in taking steps to mitigate the 9/11 disaster? This book answers those questions and reveals more of what every American needs to know about the new age of global terror.
One scary premise is that Americans in Iraq are not winning this war as we falsely asume, but are instead being encircled by hostile Islamic forces emanating from Iran in increasing numbers. Another scary part concerns the overpopulation of Saudi citizens and how their per capita income has dwindled. This pressure makes iffy the cointinued existence of the House of Saud! Islamic terrorists could topple the Saudi's and wind up controlling most oil reserves in the region. (40% of all known reserves ane in the region). How futile an American military presence would be in guarding these reserves when all it takes is a single match from a single terrorist to shut us down. It's a war that America even by throwing in its multi-Billions cannot possibly hope to win. Meanwhile most unaware, uninformed Americans sit in SUVs clogged in traffic in a haze of smoggy illusion and false self-assurance. This is a shocking read. Well-researched. Easy to understand in spite of all those comprehensive details and footnotes.
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Summary: Previous Reviewer
Review: The last reviewer is a shining example of those who will be voting for the BUSH cartel in November.
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Summary: it was about time
Review: Finally, the truth! Highly recommended for those who want to know a little more about terrorism and the Bush administration.
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Summary: An eye-opening examination of US/Saudi relations
Review: While this book was imporant reading after 9/11 for those interested in current events such as the war in Iraq, this book has in many ways become absolutely essential reading now that the situation in Saudi Arabia seems to be rapidly detoriating and the entire Middle East region threatens to plunge into complete chaos. For those with a black & white/ good & evil view of the Iraq War this book will serve as a wake up call as to the extremely complex, byzantine, and brutal politics of the Middle East. It seems as if everyone involved has at one time been allied or opposed to each other and hardly a government involved, including the U.S., doesn't have some incidents from the past that they would rather have not seen the light of day. The book begins by revisting the surreal evacuation of Saudi officals and citizens (the majority of them belonging to the bin Laden family) from the U.S. days after 9/11, when commerical and private air traffic were still officially grounded. Such a flight could only have been authorized at the highest levels of government and not only was this authorization given, but these Saudis were allowed to leave the U.S. without even being interrogated by the FBI or any other federal agency. According to author Craig Unger the above incident was not spectacular in anyway but proved quite representative of the relationship between the House of Saud (which includes Saudi ruler Crown Prince Abdul Aziz, Prince Ahmed bin Salem, Saudi billionaire Khalid bin Mahfouz, the billionaire bin Laden family considered to be the most powerful family in Saudi Arabia behind the royal family, & U.S. ambassador Prince Bandar bin Sultan) and the House of Bush (which includes the Bushes, former secretary of state James Baker III, former secrtary of defense Frank Carrlucci, Cheney, Rumsfeld, & the private investment firm, The Caryle Group - to which all of the House of Bush currently or have once belonged). What Unger sets out to prove is that the mutually beneficial relationship between Saudi Arabia and the United States, one primarily forged by members of the House of Saud & the House of Bush, has contributed to the rise of Osama bin Laden and Al Qaeda , 9/11, and to much of the current war on terror. The main reason why this relationship has proven so destructive in recent years is because the Saudi Arabian government has allowed the fermentation of an extreme form of Islamic Fundamentalism called Wahhabism to occur within their borders. Wahhabism, which includes Osama bin Laden as a follower, is strongly anti-Western and wishes to the Middle East purged of all Western Influence. Not only has the Saudi Arabian government allowed this movement to grow within it's borders, but they in many ways depend upon it for their political survial. Instead of forcing the Saudi Arabian government to confront this problem, the House of Bush has instead pursued strong relations with Saudi Arabia primarily due to the region's vast oil reserves. Unger covers much territory in "House of Bush, House of Saud" ranging from the beginning of modern Saudi/U.S. relations in Houston via Bush sr. friend, businessman James Bath, the contradictory nature of Saudi elites who appear to have one foot in the West and the other in fundamentalist Muslim traditions, the co-operation of Saudi Arabia and the U.S. during the Afghanistan War, and Saudi Arabia's role in 9/11 and the ensuing war on terror. This book doesn't blame 9/11 on Bush or the House of Bush or even the House of Saud for that matter. 9/11 was the work of Al Qaeda, not the House of Bush or House of Saud but the actions or omission of action by these two powerful dynasties undoubtably make the work of Al Qaeda far easier... For those Americans who still believe Bush is a strong leader in regards to national security I urge you to read this book and ask yourself whether or not George Bush, in light of the many arguements of this books, has truly done all that he can to make both America and the world a safer place?
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Summary: White House of Bush, White House of Saud
Review: I can't add much to the other reviews already given here, except to say that this is an excellent read and that I highly recommend this book.
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Summary: Everybody needs to read this, to know what is going on!
Review: I read this book with an open mind, which I think is especially necessary when it comes to this book, and the information that I learned startled and deeply saddend me, but it also left me feeling empowered, because it opened my eyes and I hope you will want to open yours too!
The book is based on facts, the author includes his sources and also, since I finished reading the book I have found numerous articles, in "The Chicago-Sun Times" supporting facts from the book. I also know that the movie "Farenheit 9/11", by Michael Moore, discusses some of the issues brought up in the book and even the 9/11 commission has reviewed issues brought up in the book, such as the evacuation of all Saudi Arabians after 9/11, with the permission of the White House, when all flights were supposedly grounded.
It is a VERY important thing to note that, the book's author backs up everything that is talked about in the book, so it is not a "Bush-bashing" book!!! The book is written to inform the American people about the, very real, secret relationship between the Bush family and the House of Saud, that basically run Saudi Arabia, and how this relationship has effected the American people and the U.S's relationships with other countries; fortunately this relationship is now slowly being exposed, through this book and the media.
It really does not matter whether you love or hate the book, what is important is that you read it and pass it on, because it is our responsability as Americans to stay as informed as we possible can, so that we can make the best decisions we can for ourselves, our loved ones and for our future generations.
You will take what you want from the book and leave the rest, but I promise you that you will never forget reading it and it will change the way you look at the world of politics and the people who run this country.
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Summary: best book so far this year
Review: where farhenheit 9/11 got a lot of stuff from. real easy read, easy to understand, PLENTY of info that will shock you.
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Summary: Best Non-Fiction Since "All the President's Men"
Review: What a remarkable job Craig Unger does of pulling together disparate threads into what becomes the easily identifiable quilt that is the Bush-Saud relationship. I cannot think of a more important work of non-fiction written over the past thirty years. In part because of the conservative criticism they drew, my last three reads were Plan of Attack (Woodward), Against All Enemies (Clarke), and The Price of Loyalty (Suskind). I'd heard of House of Bush, but it didn't seem to be drawing much ire from the right. Now I see why: It's footnoted and chapter-noted to the extreme; its facts beyond reproach. There are simply precious few (if any) chinks in Unger's armor for the right to attack. I've yet to see any serious criticisms of Unger's work. (You can bet the book's been picked apart, yet I've not seen anyone publicizing factual inaccuracies. There's simply no spin to use against Unger's masterful marshalling of the facts.) This book -- and Michael Moore's movie -- should be made available free of charge to Republicans and Independents in battleground states. You can't read the one or see the other without being profoundly bothered (though I'll concede that Moore can be a tad over-the-top). In years to come, this book should be required reading in history classes worldwide. My thanks to Craig Unger for setting the record straight.
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