Gray Work: Confessions of an American Paramilitary Spy
The first ever, first-person story of America's private, paramilitary contractors at work around the world-from a man who performed these missions himself and has decades of stories to tell. This is a fascinating tale-and potentially the first-to describe the work of American contractors, men who run highly dangerous missions deep inside foreign countries on the brink of war. It will lift the veil and detail the ultimate danger and risk of paramilitary operations (both officially government-sanctioned and not) and show us in very intimate terms exactly what private soldiers do when the government can't act or take public responsibility. GRAY WORK combines covert military intelligence with boots-on-the-ground realism, following Jamie Smith through his CIA training and work as a spy in the State Department, to his co-founding of Blackwater following 9/11, to his decision to leave that company. As the founder and director of Blackwater Security, Smith's initial vision has undeniably shaped and transformed a decade of war. He argues that this gray area-and its warriors who occupy the controversial space between public and private-has become an indispensable element of the modern battlefield.

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Gray Work: Confessions of an American Paramilitary Spy
The first ever, first-person story of America's private, paramilitary contractors at work around the world-from a man who performed these missions himself and has decades of stories to tell. This is a fascinating tale-and potentially the first-to describe the work of American contractors, men who run highly dangerous missions deep inside foreign countries on the brink of war. It will lift the veil and detail the ultimate danger and risk of paramilitary operations (both officially government-sanctioned and not) and show us in very intimate terms exactly what private soldiers do when the government can't act or take public responsibility. GRAY WORK combines covert military intelligence with boots-on-the-ground realism, following Jamie Smith through his CIA training and work as a spy in the State Department, to his co-founding of Blackwater following 9/11, to his decision to leave that company. As the founder and director of Blackwater Security, Smith's initial vision has undeniably shaped and transformed a decade of war. He argues that this gray area-and its warriors who occupy the controversial space between public and private-has become an indispensable element of the modern battlefield.

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Gray Work: Confessions of an American Paramilitary Spy

Gray Work: Confessions of an American Paramilitary Spy

by Jamie Smith
Gray Work: Confessions of an American Paramilitary Spy

Gray Work: Confessions of an American Paramilitary Spy

by Jamie Smith

Paperback(Large Print)

$29.99 
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Overview

The first ever, first-person story of America's private, paramilitary contractors at work around the world-from a man who performed these missions himself and has decades of stories to tell. This is a fascinating tale-and potentially the first-to describe the work of American contractors, men who run highly dangerous missions deep inside foreign countries on the brink of war. It will lift the veil and detail the ultimate danger and risk of paramilitary operations (both officially government-sanctioned and not) and show us in very intimate terms exactly what private soldiers do when the government can't act or take public responsibility. GRAY WORK combines covert military intelligence with boots-on-the-ground realism, following Jamie Smith through his CIA training and work as a spy in the State Department, to his co-founding of Blackwater following 9/11, to his decision to leave that company. As the founder and director of Blackwater Security, Smith's initial vision has undeniably shaped and transformed a decade of war. He argues that this gray area-and its warriors who occupy the controversial space between public and private-has become an indispensable element of the modern battlefield.


Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780062326478
Publisher: HarperCollins
Publication date: 04/07/2015
Edition description: Large Print
Pages: 704
Product dimensions: 5.90(w) x 9.00(h) x 1.60(d)

About the Author

Jamie Smith served in the CIA before becoming the founding director of Blackwater Security. After earning a graduate degree, he went on to postgraduate studies at Boston University. In 2002, he started his own defense contracting company and has planned, led, and executed missions throughout the world from Africa to Asia and the Middle East.

Table of Contents

Prologue 1

I The Rise of the Rebels

Chapter 1 Libya 27

Chapter 2 Meeting Ambassadors 43

Chapter 3 Cairo 73

Chapter 4 Travel to Benghazi 92

Chapter 5 Meeting the Rebels 104

Chapter 6 How Much Is This Going to Cost Us? 121

Chapter 7 Spying on the State Department? 129

Chapter 8 Escaping Saddam 153

Chapter 9 Plan B 167

Chapter 10 To the Shores of Tripoli 196

II The Fall of a Dictator

Chapter 11 Inside the Militia 207

Chapter 12 Shoot 'Em in the Teeth While They Sleep 242

Chapter 13 Building a Spy: The Foundations 267

Chapter 14 The Battle for Sirte 299

Chapter 15 Dogs, Cans, and Dead Snipers 316

Chapter 16 Creating an Operator 328

Chapter 17 Old Meat in the Locker 359

III Afghanistan

Chapter 18 Blackwater 371

Chapter 19 Going to War 400

Chapter 20 Eight Miles to Go 429

Chapter 21 "Loading!" 468

Chapter 22 Bad Contractors 484

IV Syria, Iran, Mali

Chapter 23 The Iranian Operation 503

Chapter 24 Rendition 546

Chapter 25 Syria 564

Chapter 26 Targeted Killing 604

Chapter 27 MANPAD + Bad Guy + Jet = Bad Day 616

Epilogue 640

Acknowledgments 659

Glossary 662

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