
Code Over Country
The Tragedy and Corruption of SEAL Team Six
PublicAffairs · Print & ebook · February 22, 2022
A “searing” (Jeremy Scahill) exposé of SEAL Team 6, the US military’s best-known brand, that reveals how the Navy SEALs were formed, then sacrificed, in service of American empire.
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- Who it’s for
- A sober look at elite-unit mythmaking, corruption, and the costs of loyalty.
- Genres
- Special Forces History, Iraq War (2003-2011), Afghan War (2001-)
- Published
- PublicAffairs, February 22, 2022
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For younger readers: Honor Bound (tides of War #2)
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Start with this bookAbout this book
A “searing” (Jeremy Scahill) exposé of SEAL Team 6, the US military’s best-known brand, that reveals how the Navy SEALs were formed, then sacrificed, in service of American empire. The Navy SEALs are, in the eyes of many Americans, the ultimate heroes. When they killed Osama Bin Laden in 2011, it was celebrated as a massive victory. Former SEALs rake in cash as leadership consultants for corporations, and young military-bound men dream of serving in their ranks.
Continue reading
But the SEALs have lost their bearings. Investigative journalist Matthew Cole tells the story of the most lauded unit, SEAL Team 6, revealing a troubling pattern of war crimes and the deep moral rot beneath authorized narratives. From their origins in World War II, the SEALs have trained to be specialized killers with short missions. As the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan became the endless War on Terror, their violence spiraled out of control. Code Over Country details the high-level decisions that unleashed the SEALs’ carnage and the coverups that prevented their crimes from coming to light. It is a necessary and rigorous investigation of the unchecked power of the military—and the harms enacted by and upon soldiers in America’s name.
Hard Look
A sober look at elite-unit mythmaking, corruption, and the costs of loyalty.
Come here for
- SEAL Team Six under a hard, unsentimental lens
- rigorous, classroom-friendly military history
Expect
- close reading of a troubled institution
- steady, analytical prose
Where it sits
| Special Forces History | 79% |
|---|---|
| Afghan War (2001-) | 50% |
| Iraq War (2003-2011) | 30% |
Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.
Publisher categories
- Special Forces History
- Genocide & War Crimes
- Corruption & Misconduct
- Military Policy & Defense
- Authors
- Braden Wright, Matthew Cole, Bold Type Books
- Publisher
- PublicAffairs
- Published
- February 22, 2022
- Format
- Print & ebook
- Reading lane
- Special Forces History