The Devil We Know
Dealing with the New Iranian Superpower
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Narrated by:
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Ted Barker
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By:
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Robert Baer
About this listen
Over the past 30 years, while the United States has turned either a blind or dismissive eye, Iran has emerged as a nation every bit as capable of altering America's destiny as traditional superpowers Russia and China. Indeed, one of this audiobook's central arguments is that, in some ways, Iran's grip on America's future is even tighter.
As ex-CIA operative Robert Baer masterfully shows, Iran has maneuvered itself into the elite superpower ranks by exploiting America's false perceptions of what Iran is - by letting us believe it is a country run by scowling religious fanatics, too preoccupied with theocratic jostling and terrorist agendas to strengthen its political and economic foundations.
The reality is much more frightening - and yet contained in the potential catastrophe is an implicit political response that, if we're bold enough to adopt it, could avert disaster.
Baer's on-the-ground sleuthing and interviews with key Middle East players - everyone from an Iranian ayatollah to the king of Bahrain to the head of Israel's internal security - paint a picture of the centuries-old Shia nation that is starkly the opposite of the one normally drawn. For example, Iran's hate-spouting President Ahmadinejad is by no means the true spokesman for Iranian foreign policy, nor is Iran making it the highest priority to become a nuclear player.
Even so, Baer has discovered that Iran is currently engaged in a soft takeover of the Middle East, that the proxy method of war-making and co-option it perfected with Hezbollah in Lebanon is being exported throughout the region, that Iran now controls a significant portion of Iraq, that it is extending its influence over Jordan and Egypt, that the Arab Emirates and other Gulf States are being pulled into its sphere, and that it will shortly have a firm hold on the world's oil spigot.
By mixing anecdotes with information gleaned from clandestine sources, Baer superbly demonstrates that Iran, far from being a wild-eyed rogue state, is a rational actor - one skilled in the game of nations and so effective at thwarting perceived Western colonialism that even rival Sunnis relish fighting under its banner.
For US policy makers, the choices have narrowed: either cede the world’s most important energy corridors to a nation that can match us militarily with its asymmetric capabilities (which include the use of suicide bombers) - or deal with the devil we know. We might just find that in allying with Iran, we’ll have increased not just our own security, but that of all Middle East nations. The alternative - to continue goading Iran into establishing hegemony over the Muslim world - is too chilling to contemplate.
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- The Rise of ISIS
- By: Joby Warrick
- Narrated by: Sunil Malhotra
- Length: 13 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
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In a thrilling dramatic narrative, awarded the 2016 Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction, Joby Warrick traces how the strain of militant Islam behind ISIS first arose in a remote Jordanian prison and spread with the unwitting aid of two American presidents.
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So much learned
- By mike flavin on 02-11-16
By: Joby Warrick
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The Road to Fatima Gate
- The Beirut Spring, the Rise of Hezbollah, and the Iranian War against Israel
- By: Michael J. Totten
- Narrated by: Steven Roy Grimsley
- Length: 11 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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The Road to Fatima Gate is a first-person narrative account of revolution, terrorism, and war during history's violent return to Lebanon after 15 years of quiet. Michael J. Totten's version of events in one of the most volatile countries in the world's most volatile region is one part war correspondence, one part memoir, and one part road movie.
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Excellent
- By Coach Mark on 03-13-15
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The Burning Shores
- Inside the Battle for the New Libya
- By: Frederic Wehrey
- Narrated by: Paul Boehmer
- Length: 10 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
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The death of Colonel Muammar Qadhafi freed Libya from 42 years of despotic rule, raising hopes for a new era. But in the aftermath, the country descended into bitter rivalries and civil war, paving the way for the Islamic State and a catastrophic migrant crisis. In a fast-paced narrative that blends frontline reporting, analysis, and history, Frederic Wehrey tells the story of what went wrong.
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amazing yet painful book
- By Ghassan Tranesh on 09-20-18
By: Frederic Wehrey
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Fractured Lands
- How the Arab World Came Apart
- By: Scott Anderson
- Narrated by: Scott Anderson
- Length: 5 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
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In 2011 a series of antigovernment uprisings shook the Middle East and North Africa in what would become known as the Arab Spring. Few could predict that these convulsions, initially hailed in the West as a triumph of democracy, would give way to brutal civil war, the terrors of the Islamic State, and a global refugee crisis. But, as New York Times best-selling author Scott Anderson shows, the seeds of catastrophe had been sown long before. In this gripping account, Anderson examines the myriad complex causes of the region's profound unraveling.
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Timely and a must to listen to!
- By becky robbins on 05-05-17
By: Scott Anderson
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Confront and Conceal
- Obama's Secret Wars and Surprising Use of American Power
- By: David E. Sanger
- Narrated by: Robertson Dean
- Length: 15 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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Three and a half years ago, David Sanger’s book The Inheritance: The World Obama Confronts and the Challenges to American Power described how a new American president came to office with the world on fire. Now, just as the 2012 presidential election battle begins, Sanger follows up with an eye-opening, news-packed account of how Obama has dealt with those challenges, relying on innovative weapons and reconfigured tools of American power to try to manage a series of new threats.
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Sobering reminder on what the presidency requires
- By Marilyn on 09-03-12
By: David E. Sanger
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Our Last Best Chance
- The Pursuit of Peace in a Time of Peril
- By: King Abdullah II of Jordan
- Narrated by: Nadim Sawalha
- Length: 14 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
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A news-breaking memoir revealing the secret, high level negotiations that could soon transform the map of the Middle East. Why would a sitting head of state choose to write about the most explosive issues he faces? King Abdullah does so now because he believes we face a moment of truth: a last chance for peace in the Middle East. The prize is enormous; the cost of failure far greater than we dare imagine.
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Meet the fourth King of Jordan ,
- By katie on 06-29-16
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Sleeping with the Devil
- How Washington Sold Our Soul for Saudi Crude
- By: Robert Baer
- Narrated by: Robert O'Keefe
- Length: 5 hrs and 59 mins
- Abridged
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Former CIA operative Robert Baer examines the dangers behind America's collaboration with Saudi Arabia. Nominally based on a "harmony of interests" - the Saudis sold their oil to the American government very inexpensively - what we offered in exchange has damaged our position in the Middle East and left our country vulnerable to economic and terrorist threats. Baer goes behind the scenes to show how the US willingly overlooked the corruption of the Saudi royal family, its financing of violent Islamic fundamentalist groups, and its bribery of American officials.
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Ouch. The truth hurts.
- By Kevin Christy on 07-28-03
By: Robert Baer
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Reset
- Iran, Turkey, and America's Future
- By: Stephen Kinzer
- Narrated by: Alan Sklar
- Length: 9 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
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What can the United States do to help realize its dream of a peaceful, democratic Middle East? Stephen Kinzer offers a surprising answer in this paradigm-shifting book. Two countries in the region, he argues, are America's logical partners in the 21st century: Turkey and Iran.
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challenges stereotypes
- By R.S. on 06-14-10
By: Stephen Kinzer
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The American War in Afghanistan
- A History 1st Edition
- By: Carter Malkasian
- Narrated by: Jonathan Todd Ross
- Length: 27 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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The American war in Afghanistan, which began in 2001, is now the longest armed conflict in the nation's history. It is currently winding down, and American troops are likely to leave soon - but only after a stay of nearly two decades.
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A superb summary of the Afghan war
- By Charles Olmsted on 06-18-22
By: Carter Malkasian
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Syria Burning
- ISIS and the Death of the Arab Spring
- By: Charles Glass
- Narrated by: Joe Barrett
- Length: 2 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
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Glass has reported extensively from the Middle East and travelled frequently in Syria over several decades. Here he melds together reportage, analysis, and history to provide an accessible overview of the origins and permutations defining the conflict, situating it clearly in the overall crisis of the region. His voice, elegant and concise, humane and richly informed, is a vital antidote to the sloganizing that shapes so much commentary and policy concerning the civil war.
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The authors bias is insufferable.
- By Dan on 01-02-16
By: Charles Glass
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What listeners say about The Devil We Know
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall
- Jean Le Lupi
- 11-16-09
Baer at his best
Unprecedented insight in the middle east power politics from the man who knows it the best. I wish the guys at the State Department had half the brains of Baer, we'd be in much better shape in Iraq by now.
Must read for anyone with an interest in World affairs.
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3 people found this helpful
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- NC/UK/TH Buyer
- 12-14-18
Blueprint for Middle East solutions
Baer illuminates with steely reality the dead end we are at now, and a road map to restoring some sanity to the Middle East by putting rational actors at the forefront.
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- mary shaya
- 08-20-18
Conclusions
Great objective assessment of the overall situation of Iran in the Middle East. Disagree with the conclusion and approach to solving the Iran predicament. A better approach would be to take away Iran’s banner aka fighting for the Muslim oppression by resolving the Palestinian crisis for example with the help of the Saudis. Open up the Arabic world to Israel. The Saudi’s would rather do that then let the Persians take over the Arabic world. I don’t think dealing with Iran as another super power is beneficial for America. They will continue to fight America by proxy wars just exactly as China is using North Korea. We’re only going to get more rogue nations out there.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Dave
- 05-14-21
Great read
Filled with lots of great information to help the reader see the vast complexities of the Middle East. Author seems to be very pro Iran with a lot of experience in the region.
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- ABDULHAKK
- 11-07-16
shocking
the book is an eye-opener on what's happening in the Middle East in the past 30 years .
yet a former CIA is a man that has blood on his hand and he talks about it even.
it'll give you an idea about how does the US looks at other countries. and how the u.s. is only interested in what is good for the u.s. not what is good for the world as they claim.
the Arthur looks at the Arabs and Sunni Muslims as trash . and that the u.s. should collaborate with Iran for the best of the u.s.
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- Luis Lara
- 03-06-18
Insightful by someone who's been there...
The author provides first-hand experience from living, working and absorbing the intricacies of Iran and the region. Of particular interest, the author provides nine recommendations on how to best engage Iran and influence the region.
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- Miles
- 04-04-10
Another outstanding effort by Baer.
Robert Baer, an author that speaks with an authority on the subject of Iran that few possess, presents a completely new point of view of this nation. Highly enlightening.
The book is also well narrated.
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3 people found this helpful
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- DS
- 02-03-13
RETHINKING IRAN
Do our politicians read? They should read this book. We really do have to rebalance our Middle East policy. Read this. What do you think?
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall
- JerryL
- 02-15-09
Great book but...
Robert Baer does a great job discussing the history of the region...but he (Baer) proposes some 'unique' and uncomfortable solutions to a very dangerous situation. Much as I enjoyed the history lesson, I'm not completely 'sold' on his recommendations to end the bloody stalemate in Iraq and Afghanistan.
I do recommend this as a 'must read' for anyone interested in a very real view of Middle East events.
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7 people found this helpful
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- Fred B
- 12-13-19
Smashing
The depth and breadth of Mr. Baer’s knowledge of Iran in general and Persians in particular is almost frightening. If Mr. Baer were a “marjah-eh taghleed”, I would gladly follow him. I wonder if he is working on a follow-up book focusing on the Trump administration’s behavior towards Iran and the behind-the-scene dynamics driving that policy or the lack-there-of.
بسیار کتاب عالیست.
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1 person found this helpful