Max S. Dunn

Book - Sleeping with the Devil

Posted by: Max Dunn on April 1, 2008 15:02:09

Sleeping with the Devil: How Washington Sold Our Soul for Saudi Crude
by Robert Baer

Let's say the CIA had no inside contacts in Middle East terrorist organizations. Then if a book was written by a former CIA operative about this, it would say they didn't have inside agents. But now let's assume that the CIA did have people planted inside these groups. Then if the book was edited by the CIA, it would still say that they didn't have any inside agents because the CIA certainly wouldn't want the terrorist organizations to know that they did. So the fact that Robert Baer in "Sleeping with the Devil" laments about how little inside information they have on Middle East radical organizations doesn't really mean that that is the case. But given how little our country expected the Iraqi resistance after we "liberated" the county and how we had no clue about the 9/11 attacks, his testimony seems likely.

Baer goes into great detail on how Saudi Arabian money has permeated our government and causes us to overlook the abuses and corruption in that country in exchange for the continued flow of oil and financial support. But what is truly frightening about this book is his contention that the Saudi people hate their spoiled and corrupt ruling class and would like nothing better than to overthrow them. And if that happens, it would likely mean a curtailing of oil exports to the West which would cause devastating economic consequences for us.