Library Journal - Audio
06/01/2022
The very mention of SEAL Team Six brings to mind the image of an elite group of heroes that represent the very best of America and the American military. The stories and movies of the 2011 elimination of al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden are legendary. The scores of leadership books by former SEALs are often best sellers, and members are much sought after and highly compensated speakers and consultants. Yet, there is a flip side to their sacrifice that Cole (an investigative journalist who has worked for The Intercept, ABC, and NBC) provides to listeners, one where a very small number of SEALs took advantage of their culture and situation. They became morally decayed and, in some well-documented cases, even criminals. From the SEALs start well before the Vietnam War through the war in Iraq and Afghanistan, Cole explores and documents this lawlessness, ranging from rape and corruption through embezzlement, including an entire chapter on the Rogue Warrior himself - Richard Marcinko. The writing is crisp and paints a compelling picture of a few bad apples, but Cole largely celebrates the overwhelming majority of SEALs. Braden Wright's narration matches Cole's clear take and pulls listeners through the whole investigation. VERDICT Recommended; a timely exposé.—Scott DiMarco
From the Publisher
Matthew Cole has produced a searing and unvarnished history of a state-sponsored organized crime syndicate that operates globally with impunity bestowed upon it by the United States government. Since 9/11, Navy SEAL Team 6 has been elevated to legendary status in the media, and its members showered with medals and accolades from presidents, especially in the aftermath of the raid that killed Osama bin Laden. Through an even-handed accounting of the failures and successes of SEAL Team 6, from its Cold War origins to the present, Cole has masterfully documented the bloody, dark underbelly of these ‘quiet warriors.’ He exposes the sociopaths and murderers who operate on the tip of the spear of the covert US war machine, along with the military and political leaders who have shielded them from accountability. Code Over Country is a meticulously crafted corrective aimed at dismantling the dishonest mythology that dominates the public understanding of the most elite fighting force in US history.” —Jeremy Scahill, New York Times–bestselling author of Blackwater: The Rise of the World’s Most Powerful Mercenary Army and Dirty Wars: The World is a Battlefield
“Matthew Cole is telling us what we, in America, need to know about some of those men celebrated in movies and media as heroes in SEAL Team 6. The real issue, as Cole makes clear, is the leadership and command structure that shields and protects criminal behavior. This is not a book about heroism, although there is much, but tolerated wrongdoing.”—Seymour Hersh, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Chain of Command: The Road from 9/11 to Abu Ghraib
“Matthew Cole’s Code Over Country is a remarkable achievement. Cole has flanked the hagiography that has for so long protected the image of SEAL Team 6, and has cut deep behind the lines to tell the brutal truth. After reading this book, I realized that there is the Hollywood version of SEAL Team 6, and then there is the truth, laid bare by Matthew Cole.”—James Risen, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of the forthcoming The Last Honest Man: How Frank Church Fought the CIA, the Mafia, J. Edgar Hoover, and the National Security State
“Journalist Cole debuts with a searing investigation… Backed by meticulous research and lucid insights into SEAL culture, this is an impassioned and persuasive call for reforming one of the world’s most elite fighting forces.”—Publishers Weekly
“Cole wrote a thorough and frankly brave book.”—Spencer Ackerman, "Forever Wars"
“The strongest rebuke Special Operations, specifically, the SEAL community has yet faced during the War on Terror…Code Over Country is issuing the real report card, the one that Special Operations Command and Naval Special Warfare have been desperate to hide for decades. While outstanding journalistic works have been produced about the SEALs, Code Over Country examines the entire Navy SEAL enterprise, and where it came off the rails.”—Connecting Vets
