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For Lust of Knowing: Memoirs Of An Intelligence Officer
An Arabic scholar and former CIA operative offers an informed perspective of the Islamic world, recounting his career in the intelligence service and the important political figures he has met along the way
500 pages, Hardcover
First published February 1, 1988
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April 5, 2018
Mr. Roosevelt documents that he was an accomplished linguist and patriotic American. He chose to serve his country World War II even if not on the front line. He was on the front line of the intelligence war at the beginning of both the Cold War and America’s military engagement in the Middle East. His insights into both cannot be cast aside as merely politically driven. Unfortunately he also chooses to make this book more of a travelogue, salted with a few character assessments and end with what almost becomes a political diatribe.
Almost, as in to his credit. His opinions are clearly informed and if somewhat bent to serve his view of America and his fear of the Soviet aspirations. I cannot fault the former and cannot refute the latter. There remain valid lessons to be learned by his thoughts.
There are two reason why I blunt my praise by posting only 3 stars to this memoir. Having lead us to believe this would be more about his service as an intelligence officer he draws a shade across all of his service with the CIA. There are some valid reasons for this but they do not entirely excuse him from hinting at or basing later conclusions on information not shared. Given that editors own what is on the cover of a book, the teasing may not have been original to Mr. Roosevelt’s intentions, but as a reader I felt mislead.
A few thoughts on the content.
Mr. Roosevelt grew up during the depression. Family connections and money seemed to mean that his America felt no depression. The term does not have its own entry in the index. In his criticisms of the Americans who allowed themselves to be taken in by the promises of Socialism and even became the dupes of Stalinist propaganda, he has no apparent thought that some of these people had lived through another, as in not the first failure of Capitalism to care about these same people. The foolish deny any of Roosevelt’s thoughts, but his lack of a wider view weaken the strength of his remarks.
Mr. Roosevelt for example, owed his first three jobs to family connections including his commission as an officer in the Army. We are lucky that his skills were not wasted on the battle field but fortunately for us he was taken into the Army as a translator and member of a nascent intelligence community. Still his was not luck of the day, but the application of connections.
Mr Roosevelt was an Arabist. That is he was a mostly a self-educated linguist in many of the Middle Eastern languages. Apparently at his own initiative he became learned in the various communities we tend to think of under the badly spread tent of Arabs. He knew not only Shi’a from Sunni and Turk from Persian but could speak to many of the divisions between and among the tribes and nations from Morocco to Iran. I have no doubt that America benefited from his determination to learn from being in the tents, rather than the classroom. I am not sure he fully grasped the root of some of the lessons.
Much of Occidental command and influence in the Middle East came from a combination of raw military and economic power, and direct colonial control. Where this had not been sufficient, some colonial powers learned to play tribal leaders against each other. America as the newest entrant into this geography apparently never became fully adept at this last skill and was never consistent in its will to apply the first two. Further building on Russia’s Imperial legacy, Soviet Russia was seeking to expand its influence and control where it could and demonstrated little nuance in its willingness to expend Middle Eastern Blood.
Lust For Knowing tells us little of Mr. Roosevelt’s role in countering Russian expansionist plans. In speaking as a Cold Warrior he expresses little in the way of original thought.
By casting the problem in terms of US (West) versus Russia, an important point is lost. To the citizen, including the small business men of the various Middle Eastern Markets (Roosevelt makes a major case for the POV and power of these men) his misses a critical point. For many of these people and perhaps all but the immediate beneficiaries of what was usually a tribal based political system the overriding concern was for the provision of services and stability.
Unless you are in the tribe in power, or on the verge of taking power, people want peace and they want an even chance. Courts that are relatively honest, a reasonable hope that their homes will get electricity and clean water. Hospital services and at least a choice to get some of their children educated could do more to stabilize the Middle East than any number of combat forces. Law enforcement, including native, effective military presence can provide the appearance of stability, but people know if they can expect a fair judgement or who is going to be the first to get civil infrastructure.
Perhaps if Mr. Roosevelt had been less enamored of traditional dress and ancient skylines, he might have noticed the dissatisfaction with the instability of middle class attainment and the hopelessness of life in the lower classes.
Almost, as in to his credit. His opinions are clearly informed and if somewhat bent to serve his view of America and his fear of the Soviet aspirations. I cannot fault the former and cannot refute the latter. There remain valid lessons to be learned by his thoughts.
There are two reason why I blunt my praise by posting only 3 stars to this memoir. Having lead us to believe this would be more about his service as an intelligence officer he draws a shade across all of his service with the CIA. There are some valid reasons for this but they do not entirely excuse him from hinting at or basing later conclusions on information not shared. Given that editors own what is on the cover of a book, the teasing may not have been original to Mr. Roosevelt’s intentions, but as a reader I felt mislead.
A few thoughts on the content.
Mr. Roosevelt grew up during the depression. Family connections and money seemed to mean that his America felt no depression. The term does not have its own entry in the index. In his criticisms of the Americans who allowed themselves to be taken in by the promises of Socialism and even became the dupes of Stalinist propaganda, he has no apparent thought that some of these people had lived through another, as in not the first failure of Capitalism to care about these same people. The foolish deny any of Roosevelt’s thoughts, but his lack of a wider view weaken the strength of his remarks.
Mr. Roosevelt for example, owed his first three jobs to family connections including his commission as an officer in the Army. We are lucky that his skills were not wasted on the battle field but fortunately for us he was taken into the Army as a translator and member of a nascent intelligence community. Still his was not luck of the day, but the application of connections.
Mr Roosevelt was an Arabist. That is he was a mostly a self-educated linguist in many of the Middle Eastern languages. Apparently at his own initiative he became learned in the various communities we tend to think of under the badly spread tent of Arabs. He knew not only Shi’a from Sunni and Turk from Persian but could speak to many of the divisions between and among the tribes and nations from Morocco to Iran. I have no doubt that America benefited from his determination to learn from being in the tents, rather than the classroom. I am not sure he fully grasped the root of some of the lessons.
Much of Occidental command and influence in the Middle East came from a combination of raw military and economic power, and direct colonial control. Where this had not been sufficient, some colonial powers learned to play tribal leaders against each other. America as the newest entrant into this geography apparently never became fully adept at this last skill and was never consistent in its will to apply the first two. Further building on Russia’s Imperial legacy, Soviet Russia was seeking to expand its influence and control where it could and demonstrated little nuance in its willingness to expend Middle Eastern Blood.
Lust For Knowing tells us little of Mr. Roosevelt’s role in countering Russian expansionist plans. In speaking as a Cold Warrior he expresses little in the way of original thought.
By casting the problem in terms of US (West) versus Russia, an important point is lost. To the citizen, including the small business men of the various Middle Eastern Markets (Roosevelt makes a major case for the POV and power of these men) his misses a critical point. For many of these people and perhaps all but the immediate beneficiaries of what was usually a tribal based political system the overriding concern was for the provision of services and stability.
Unless you are in the tribe in power, or on the verge of taking power, people want peace and they want an even chance. Courts that are relatively honest, a reasonable hope that their homes will get electricity and clean water. Hospital services and at least a choice to get some of their children educated could do more to stabilize the Middle East than any number of combat forces. Law enforcement, including native, effective military presence can provide the appearance of stability, but people know if they can expect a fair judgement or who is going to be the first to get civil infrastructure.
Perhaps if Mr. Roosevelt had been less enamored of traditional dress and ancient skylines, he might have noticed the dissatisfaction with the instability of middle class attainment and the hopelessness of life in the lower classes.
May 3, 2016
Utterly fascinating. Ancient history is combined with a unique historical perspective of Africa and the Middle East from a formative time period too often ignored. Interesting observations, well-documented, and a very enlightening perspective combine to form an invaluable insight from a unique individual.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews