Something to Die For

The junior Senator from the Commonwealth of Virginia has been in the news as a potential VP candidate to share the Democratic ticket with Senator Obama. So this seems like an opportune time to write about another of his outstanding works of fiction. (I am not referring to the Federal budget, but one of the novels he has penned over the years!) I found his writing so compelling that I am committed to reading all of his published works. "Something To Die For" is not only well written; it is timely. Webb, the much-decorated Marine who fought in Vietnam, wrote this novel back in 1991. The subject matter involves an ex-Marine who has to choose whether or not to stand for election to Congress from Virginia. How prescient! I agree wholeheartedly with the comments made by the Washington Post Book World when this novel was first published: "Webb is not only a writer of war thriller; he is a genuine novelist of ideas. . . A century hence, James Webb will be studied for the light he sheds on military life and civil-military relations at the climax of the American Century." As we struggle with how to help veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan to re-integrate into civil society, Webb's book becomes even more relevant to the mainstream of American life than it was when it was first published in the `90's. This exchange early in the book reflects the sensibilities of a warrior who watched too many of his comrades die needlessly in the steaming jungles of Southeast Asia: "As they discussed future needs for amphibious sealift, General Betti had begun to disagree with a young assistant secretary of defense on the likelihood of Third World conflicts in the near future. General Betti had begun, `Mr. Secretary, I disagree. I think -` And the Young man with the round lawyer's glasses and the pink shirt with its yellow power tie had cut the career infantryman off with a wave of the hand. `Well, that's the problem, General. You are not paid to think.' And neither am I, thought Fogarty as he finally answered the Admiral. `Of course I'm on board, sir. I'm a professional, you know that. But if we fight an armored column of Cubans in the desert it's going to cost us. And I'd like to be able to tell my men that the price they're going to pay is worth it. That it's important to the country. Vital. Something to die for.'" (Page 72) A quotation near the end of the novel provides some fascinating insight into the views of the future Senator into the workings of Washington machinery: "You may wonder why the President keeps listening to someone like Rowland, when he behaves so obscenely. That's easy. It's because Rowland has answers, and he knows how to get things done. Even when, sometimes, the wrong things get done, or the right things get done for the wrong reasons. Government requires motion, perhaps even more than wisdom. And there is a constant temptation to depend on those who know how to keep it moving, rather than demanding that it stay on any particular cou

This is an outstanding book by someone who has "been there, done that" from the battlefield to the Pentagon, to the U.S. Senate. The novel reads like something right out of today's headlines even though it was written in 1990. In this book we have a detached President who lets his arrogant Secretary of Defense start a minor war to distract attention from a brewing scandal. We have defense contractors who care more about profits than patriotism. And as with Iraq, the war doesn't go as smoothly as the Sec Def thought it would and a lot of young marines get killed. The administration then does what they do best, blame shifting, spin control, covering up, etc. It will be interesting to see what Senator Webb does now that he has to be a politician instead of just depicting them in works of fiction.

Yep, you need to get this one. It's an excellent story about a battle that may very well happen - although the players may not be the same - the ground will be.Well written - as usual.

Webb is one of the best military authors out there. This book combines both the soldiers' view of life, as in Fields of Fire, with the seamy side of military life; our senior military and political leadership. If you enjoy any of the Clancy-type military/political thrillers you will enjoy this book and realize Webb actually inserts some thought and insightful commentary while giving a good read.

I FIRST READ SECRETARY WEBB'S "SOMETHING TO DIE FOR" AS A HIGH SCHOOL FRESHMAN IN 1992. AT THE TIME, NOT UNDERSTANDING THE REAL MEANING OF THE NOVEL, I SIMPLY THOUGHT IT WAS A COOL ACTION-PACKED THRILLER. NOT UNTIL I READ MR. WEBB'S "A SENSE OF HONOR," AND TOOK HEED TO COL.DAVID HACKWORTH'S HIGH REGARD FOR THIS NAVY CROSS WINNING WARRIOR, DID I UNDERSTAND WHAT HE WAS ALL ABOUT. THUS, I TOOK THE TIME OVER CHRISTMAS TO RE-READ "SOMETHING TO DIE FOR," AND REALIZED THAT IT WAS BITTER STINGING SATIRE AND WARNING ABOUT TODAY'S SOMALIAS,BOSNIAS AND MANY SO-CALLED "OPERATIONS OTHER THAN WAR." HAD THIS BEEN READ AS A CAUTION TO THE PENTAGON TICKET-PUNCHERS AND POLITICIANS AT THE WHITE HOUSE, WE WOULD NOT BE IN SUCH HOT WATER TODAY. COLONEL "WILD BILL" FOGARTY REPRESENTS THE CREAM OF TODAY'S WARRIOR. HAVING FOUGHT AND BLED IN VIETNAM AND OTHER DISTANT LANDS, HE KNOWS WHAT IT MEANS TO SEND HIS MEN OFF TO DIE. WHILE HE IS MORE THAN WILLING TO DIE FOR HIS COUNTRY,HE DOES NOT WANT TO SEE HIS MEN DIE IN VAIN. "THAT'S VITAL. SOMETHING TO DIE FOR." ADMIRAL "MAD DOG" MULCAHY REMINDS ME A LOT OF GLORY-SEEKING AND POLITICALLY CORRECT JCS CHAIRMAN SHALIKASHVILLI. DYING TO FEEL THE GLORY SIMILAR TO THE MIDWAYS, THE CORAL SEAS AND THE LIKE BEFORE RETIRING, HE DECIDES TO RUN HIS LITTLE WAR WITHOUT THE AUTHORIZATION FROM THE TOP. HOWEVER, HIS GRANDIOSE CAMPAIGN ENDS IN DISASTER, KILLING SCORES OF MARINES, INCLUDING FOGARTY. OF COURSE, THE IRONY OF IT ALL IS THAT WHILE SHALIKASHVILLI GETS AWAY FROM THE DEBACLE IN SOMALIA, MULCAHY IS RELIEVED FROM HIS POST. SO MUCH FOR HIS GLORY. SELF-SERVING POLITICIANS LIKE HOLCOMB, LODGE AND "DOC" ADD TO THE STORY ANOTHER DIMENSION. IT IS THEY WHO COMPROMISE THE WARRIORS FOR THEIR OWN INTEREST. JUST AS CLINTON "HONORABLY" WITHDREW FROM SOMALIA, THEY DUB THE FIASCO "OPERATION JUSTIFIABLE ANGER," AND ATTEMPT SHUT IT FROM THE PUBLIC MEMORY. WHILE THE WARRIORS GOT LITTLE MORE THAN A HAND OF ASHES, DRAMATIZED BY POST-HUMOUS MEDAL OF HONOR CEREMONY FOR FOGARTY, THE GREEDY POLITICIANS TRIED TO TURN THIS FIASCO INTO GLORY. IF YOU WANT TO LEARN WHAT'S REALLY HAPPENING IN THE WORLD OF WARRIORS, SHUT OFF THE MEDIA BULLSHIT ABOUT THE DESERT STORM AND READ JAMES WEBB. THE MILITARY TODAY ISN'T ABOUT WHAT TOM CLANCY AND THE MEDIA SAY IT IS.