The Man Who Killed Osama bin Laden (Esquire Article)

[fickman]

Excellent read. . . the author injects an amount of politics, but it's bearable and doesn't take away from the read.

This is an anonymous account of the bin Laden raid by the man who actually put UBL down. Unlike another member of the team, this SEAL is not looking for profit or notoriety.

I found this to be extremely compelling.

There is some offensive language in the dialog.
http://www.esquire.com/features/man-who ... c=soc_fcbk

[fickman]

(I put this in the "Book recommendations" forum because it's on the lengthy side, but definitely worth the time to read.)

[philip964]

Saw Zero Dark Thirty. I really loved it. It certainly was not a liberal movie. Obama was hardly mentioned. Really very well done. Surprising and I knew what was going to happen. Had a lot of spy craft.

[stroo]

News this morning is that most of this article is completely wrong.

[fickman]

A lot of that is coming from the fact that this article disputes a few "facts" from No Easy Day.

Here's an article on CNN that includes a discussion about the discrepancies:
http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/12/opinion/b ... ?hpt=hp_c1

The Shooter's version of bin Laden's death matches closely the accounts by reporters who have written most authoritatively about it.

It also matches what I saw when I was the only outside observer allowed inside the Abbottabad compound before it was demolished in late February 2012.

I can't say for sure. . . and we may never know, but you have this Shooter's account - with a humble SEAL wishing to remain anonymous, and you have the account of the guy seeking fame and fortune through a book deal: Bissonnette. The Shooter gives credit to his whole team, shares nuanced details, and admits when the story could be viewed differently from other perspectives. He openly admits things he's not sure of, like whether or not the point person hit bin Laden on the staircase from the 2nd floor.

I haven't read Bissonnette's book, but the account in the "Esquire" article seems legitimate. . . he also speaks to the SEALS opinions of Bissonnette.

He also references the movie "Zero Dark Thirty". . . the journalist took the Shooter to see the movie for the first time. He said it was "Hollywooded up" but had a lot of accuracy, especially in the portrayal of the female CIA agent.

About half of the "Esquire" article is about the night of the raid. The rest is about the culture and training of SEALS, the family element of being a SEAL, the toll on these guys' lives, and the realities of non-military life they face after retirement.

I did not feel this article was sensationalized in any sense. . . and that's something I'm usually hyper-sensitive to. I'd still highly recommend the read.

[TheDude]

He was a rocking an EOTech and had a dip of Copenhagen in! Plus he likes Lagavulin! My kind of guy! Seriously a good article though. I enjoyed it a lot. Thanks for sharing!

[anygunanywhere]

News this morning is that most of this article is completely wrong.

Impossible. You can't put anything on the internet that is not true.

Anygunanywhere