Rate this book

The Burglary: The Discovery Of J. Edgar Hoover's Secret FBI (2014)

by Betty Medsger(Favorite Author)

4 of 5 Votes: 1

ISBN

0307962954 (ISBN13: 9780307962959)

languge

English

genre

History & Biography

publisher

Knopf

review 1: I found the subject itself very interesting. I had never heard of this event before this book, so I liked that part of the book. However, the writing style did not seem to flow, there seemed to be a lot of detail and repetition in certain parts of the story, but then the last part trying to tie in recent events seemed rushed. Also, I felt that the book was very one sided. I am not disputing that the FBI did ALOT that was illegal/wrong as history has proven, but this book makes it out to be an evil organization (even in current times). Overall I am glad that I read it, as I did learn a lot.
review 2: Great book; not only about the burglary, but about the results and, toward the end of the book, she tells us about how surveillance has progressed to the prese... morent day--up to and beyond Snowden.Quotes:"A dictator is not in place, but a tyranny-ready surveillance infrastructure is in place.""The spying has reached dimensions that I didn't think were possible for a democratic country," said Elmar Bok, chairman of teh Foreigh Affairs Committee in the European Parliament. "The U.S., once the land of the free, is suffering from a security syndrome. They have completely lost all balance. George Orwell is nothing by comparison.""The generations-long quest by black Americans to claim their most basic rights as citizens was delayed by an FBI director who cautioned successive presidents abainst supporting their efforts. He insisted that demands for quality were inspired by communists and, as such, should be ignored. He placed massive numbers of black people under surveillance for years and conducted campaigns designed to destroy black leaders."This from the person, and the agency, that we, as Americans, for upwards of 5 decades, looked to and depended on as THE agency person/agency that would protect us and our basic rights (J Edgar Hoover was our hero for gods sake)--that person/agency proved to be, possibly, the primary source of impedence in our search for those rights. ANYONE that spoke up to address our rightful place as receipiants of the Bill of Rights was suspect--including, and especially, any person that fell under the catagory of being black. The promise of them joining this country as equal partners was stalled out for 1/2 century as a result. less

Download links for: The Burglary: The Discovery of J. Edgar Hoover's Secret FBI

Advertising