Beyond Repair: The Decline And Fall Of The Cia - Softcover

Faddis, Charles

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0762761237 ISBN 13: 9780762761234

Publisher: Lyons Press, 2011

Synopsis

NOW IN PAPERBACK—with a new preface by the author



An insider's account of why the CIA is ill-prepared to protect America, and why it must be replaced without delay

*

“A devastating portrait of the agency's culture—with details that only an insider would know.”
—David Ignatius, Washington Post columnist and author of Body of Lies



“Faddis, a career CIA operations officer, pulls no punches in this provocative critique of the iconic and dysfunctional spy agency. . . . In a world where threats are multiplying and becoming more complex, [his] bleak assessment of the CIA should be required reading.”

—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

In Beyond Repair, one of the Central Intelligence Agency's most respected former operatives mounts a scathing cri­tique of the preparedness of today's CIA—and, spe­cifically, the Directorate of Operations at its core—to defend America against the dizzying dangers of the twenty-first century. In a compelling blend of analy­sis and fascinating true-life stories, Charles S. Faddis argues that the CIA has devolved into a low-risk or, often, no-risk bureaucracy of careerists whose mantra might be summed up thus: “Don't fall.” He discusses the birth of the CIA, how the agency works from the inside out, why things have gone awry—and how to build a new entity that will maintain the midnight watch, so Americans can sleep well at night.

About this title

About the Author

Charles Faddis served 20 years in the Central Intelligence Agency as an Operations Officer,
including Department Chief, Central Intelligence Agency's Counter-Terrorist Center, Washington, DC, and Chief of Station – Middle East.

From the Back Cover

An insider's account of why the CIA is ill-prepared to protect America, and why it must be replaced without delay Faddis, a career CIA operations officer, pulls no punches in this provocative critique of the iconic and dysfunctional spy agency. . . . In a world where threats are multiplying and becoming more complex, [his] bleak assessment of the CIA should be required reading.--Publishers Weekly (starred review)Faddis describes the agency as rife with incompetence at every level.--New York TimesOne of the Central Intelligence Agency's most respected former operatives mounts a scathing cri--tique of the preparedness of today's CIA to defend America in the twenty-first century. In a compelling blend of analy--sis and fascinating true-life stories, Charles S. Faddis discusses the birth of the CIA, how the agency works from the inside out, why things have gone awry--and how to build a new entity that will maintain the midnight watch so Americans can sleep well at night.

From the Inside Flap

Once upon a time, the CIA took the risks necessary to protect America. "If you fall," went its mantra, "fall forward." In Beyond Repair, one of the agency's most respected former operatives mounts a scathing cri--tique of the preparedness of today's CIA--and, spe--cifically, the Directorate of Operations at its core--to defend America against the dizzying dangers of the twenty-first century. In a compelling blend of analy--sis and fascinating true-life stories, Charles S. Faddis argues that the CIA has devolved into a low-risk or, often, no-risk bureaucracy of careerists whose mantra might be summed up thus: "Don't fall." "Every senior officer I know in the CIA carries personal liability insurance," writes Faddis, "because of the fear of being sued for actions taken in the line of duty." And, he notes, no operatives who commanded CIA teams in Afghanistan have been promoted to key positions. Why? Because they operate within a system that is no longer built to encourage and reward the risk taking and creativity they excelled at. Faddis discusses the birth of the CIA--then called the Office of Strategic Services--during World War II under "Wild Bill" Donovan, the twentieth-century American father of spy craft. Donovan's daring would not get him far in today's CIA, Faddis observes. Describing how the twenty-first-century CIA works from the inside out, he paints an unsettling picture of an agency that has truly gone awry--recalling, for example, his own experience in a Middle Eastern country as a chief of station without a qualified Arabic linguist on hand. Faddis concludes by setting forth the main points of a plan for building a new entity. He proposes that this agency draw on the best qualities of the OSS (and readopt its name) while adapting to twenty-first-century needs, and that it be staffed by many of the CIA's finest men and women. This new agency would maintain the midnight watch, so Americans can sleep well at night.

Edition details

• Publisher: Lyons Press
• Publication date: 2011
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0762761237
• ISBN 13: 9780762761234
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 224