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Rating: 
Summary: Impeach Ronald Reagan
Review: Behind the avuncular twinkling mask Ronald Reagan represented the greatest threat to American democracy since Richard Nixon. Arms for hostages. Breaking the law in Nicaragua. Disemboweling children's programs and the social safety net. It goes on and on and begins with treasonous acts in the 1980 election. This book leaves no doubt that Reagan and his campaign acted treasonously in treating with the enemy in the Iran hostage crisis to prevent the release of the hostages before the 1980 election. Well documented, intelligently argued, it is an insider's account by Gary Sick of the innards of the affair and how he came to realize that Reagan had betrayed the national trust.
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Summary: Intelligent, Unbiased, Gripping
Review: Gary Sick, a former US Navy intelligence analyst who served on the National Security Council under Presidents Ford, Carter and Reagan, has written an incisive account of the double-dealing American-Iranian-Israeli weapons/petroleum co-dependency that has undermined democracy in the US and abroad for many decades. The right-wing and corporate media have responded to these allegations with the usual mix of denial, doubletalk and attempted character assassinations of those who dare to investigate and promulgate the facts. This conspiracy, whitewashed by a Senate investigation in 1992, highlights the necessity for American and global democracy to achieve a reasonable degree of regional self-reliance (eg: renewable energy, genuine arms control) rather than remaining addicted to multinational corporate welfare, Machiavellian pretenses of "free trade" and money-manipulated, superficial democracy.
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Summary: Totally Discredited Book
Review: Gary Sicks' bizarro theory that George Bush flew to Paris in an SR-71 to meet with the Iranians to convince them to keep the hostages until after the election in 1990 is just plain crazy. Congress investigated this and found no basis for Sicks account. This is better fiction though than most spy stories but no one should take this silliness seriously.
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Summary: A story every American should know
Review: I haven't heard the audio book for "October Surprise," but I did read the hardbound book when it was first published. Perhaps the negative review from "M.P.T." of AudioFile can be explained by the book author's inability to reference virtually every sentence with footnoted sources as he did in the full, paper version. Failing that excuse, the blurb and referenced to a fault, and he used no information from his investigation that he did not have at least two or three unrelated sources for. Though Sick doesn't draw the conclusion in the book, he leaves enough clues for the reader to figure oseems typical of the disinformation reviews written by the small army of media-spinners who enjoy two paychecks--one from their unsuspecting publisher or TV/radio station, and one from a certain U.S. Government agency who wants to discourage the public from knowing about self-serving black bag operations. The fact is that Gary Sick's story is meticulously detailed ut that it was not Ronald Reagan, but likely another still-living former president who was behind the treasonous actions recorded here--someone who still has powerful friends to help quash the truth any time it tries to raise its head. Read or listen to this book, and then buy "Plausible Denial" written by Mark Lane to see what other high-profile shenanigans this same group has been up to. It will also explain just how much control these folks exert over the media to steer the public away from the truth. I very highly recommend both books.
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Summary: Another Trick like Watergate
Review: The author served on the National Security Council staff under Presidents Ford, Carter, and Reagan during his 24-year career in the Navy. He has a doctorate in political science. This book tells how the 1980 Reagan-Bush campaign helped to delay the release of 52 American hostages in Iran until after the election, and made illegal arms shipments. It tells how the national security complex of the government kept William Casey informed of highly classified military movements, diplomatic initiatives, and policy decisions. It tells of the connection to the Iran-Contra Affair.Page 109 tells of the investigation into the December 1988 bombing of Pan Am flight 103; there were many suspicious characters on that single transatlantic flight, apparently quite by chance. There was a hidden layer below the surface of events that is still unknown, due to the many dubious or dangerous passengers! The fundamental question is: did William Casey travel to Paris during October 15-20 1980 and meet with Iranian representatives to arrange a delayed release of the American hostages in return for promises of military equipment? The answer is yes! The Carter administration's negotiations with Iran collapsed, even though the Iranians had shown great interest in obtaining military equipment from the US (pp.155-7). It was not due to Khomeinin's unremitting hatred of Jimmy Carter, but to a better offer. A group of private citizens entered into diplomatic negotiations with a hostile foreign power to undercut their own government in a ruthless quest for political power (p.175). Why was the Reagan-Bush campaign afraid of an early release for the hostages held in Iran (p.168)? Perhaps they did background polling and learned this would increase Carter's votes. The October polls showed the candidates in "a dead heat". If the hostages were released, Carter would get a 10% boost (p.170). President Carter's briefing book, with his answers to questions, was stolen and handed to the Reagan-Bush campaign; this allowed them to prepare their responses. The Republican disinformation campaign also predicted an imminent hostage release (p.173) just before the election. This would create a disappointment. Page 214 discusses the policy on "contract employees". They recruit those who have the needed skills, and a propensity for exaggeration. After a couple of assignments, the contractor is arrested. This, with his boasting, ensures his record will discredit his testimony. Barbara Honegger's book was published first and is longer. I found it to be more readable and better organized. One chapter lists the fates of those involved in the deal.
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Summary: Completely Discredited - Fast And Loose With Facts
Review: The irony of this book is that it changes the meaning of what "October Surprise" actually meant. The phrase was actually invented by the Republicans (Bill Casey, Stu Spencer, and VP candidate Bush) as a warning as to what Carter would try to do with the hostages. Yet now a former Carter administration member writes a book and hangs the term around the necks of his opponents. The thesis simply doesn't work. A Congressional investigation spent over a million dollars and released a 968-page report that refutes the claims in this book. (I would add to those who see everything through partisan eyes that the Democrats controlled Congress and all the committees at that time). The most obvious question is this: how did Ronald Reagan and his team get ahold of the equipment necessary to pull this off? Supposedly, an SR-71 Blackbird flew Bush to Madrid to negotiate for the hostages to be kept until after the election. But SR-71s don't just fly themselves, so who flew it? And what commander signed off for the plane to be missing from his fleet for a couple of days? Did Bush really have time to do that since the polls were showing a close election? Sick has a well footnoted book, but it fails all across the line. Just because there's a footnote doesn't mean we know who actually said what. We don't know if the antagonists had been in contact with each other (the Congressional investigation showed they were - which ruins their credibility). The book appears to be a retroactive attempt to say the reason Carter lost was because of the hostages. While there is no doubt that is one of the reasons, it is simplistic to say that such is the ONLY reason. How, after all, can you blame Reagan for the helicopters that didn't work in the bungled rescue attempt in April 1980? And let's not forget that half of the Democratic voters in the primary didn't want Carter to run again anyway. This book is an attempt to besmirch a Presidency solely because the author disagrees with that man's ideology. It is a shame and a disgrace that this can be done. Reagan won, Carter lost. And it wasn't even close. Please get over it, Mr. Sick.
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Summary: Completely Discredited - Fast And Loose With Facts
Review: The irony of this book is that it changes the meaning of what "October Surprise" actually meant. The phrase was actually invented by the Republicans (Bill Casey, Stu Spencer, and VP candidate Bush) as a warning as to what Carter would try to do with the hostages. Yet now a former Carter administration member writes a book and hangs the term around the necks of his opponents. The thesis simply doesn't work. A Congressional investigation spent over a million dollars and released a 968-page report that refutes the claims in this book. (I would add to those who see everything through partisan eyes that the Democrats controlled Congress and all the committees at that time). The most obvious question is this: how did Ronald Reagan and his team get ahold of the equipment necessary to pull this off? Supposedly, an SR-71 Blackbird flew Bush to Madrid to negotiate for the hostages to be kept until after the election. But SR-71s don't just fly themselves, so who flew it? And what commander signed off for the plane to be missing from his fleet for a couple of days? Did Bush really have time to do that since the polls were showing a close election? Sick has a well footnoted book, but it fails all across the line. Just because there's a footnote doesn't mean we know who actually said what. We don't know if the antagonists had been in contact with each other (the Congressional investigation showed they were - which ruins their credibility). The book appears to be a retroactive attempt to say the reason Carter lost was because of the hostages. While there is no doubt that is one of the reasons, it is simplistic to say that such is the ONLY reason. How, after all, can you blame Reagan for the helicopters that didn't work in the bungled rescue attempt in April 1980? And let's not forget that half of the Democratic voters in the primary didn't want Carter to run again anyway. This book is an attempt to besmirch a Presidency solely because the author disagrees with that man's ideology. It is a shame and a disgrace that this can be done. Reagan won, Carter lost. And it wasn't even close. Please get over it, Mr. Sick.
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Summary: One of many
Review: The only surprise to this book is that it was no surprise. In fact, the idea that Messers. Reagan and Bush, assisted by a cabal of shadow dwellers, would manipulate a democractic vote is now common. The whole affair, meticulously documented in this important book, is put in sharper relief by the recent revelation that Richard Nixon sent Henry Kissinger to Paris to pull a similar stunt, for an identical purpose, in the fall of 1968. Disgraceful. This book should be read in every classroom in America.
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Summary: A shocking work that should be read by lovers of democracy
Review: The wealth of information from well-documented sources revealed in this book is overwhelming, and I believe that I would do great injustice to its potential impact if I were to summarize it here. Having just finished the book moments ago, I feel compelled to implore that all those who truly believe in democracy and responsible government read it as well. It will open your eyes to the way things really are, or at least make you question many of the assumed truths regarding our recent history. What makes the author's allegations even more convincing is the fact that he is not merely a conspiracy-theory nut trying to discredit the right-wing at all costs. Rather, he himself has played a central role in various administrations' dealings with the Middle East and can personally testify to many of the events that took place preceding the manipulation of the hostage crisis by Reagan's powerful and influential campaign team. I couldn't stop shaking my head as I read further and further into the book. The hypocrisy of the Reagan administration was simply appalling. You would have to be a die-hard Republican (unwilling to accept nor even hear of any hints of wrongdoing by Reagan) not to at least acknowledge that the allegations contained in this book warrant a thorough investigation. If you have already read the many nostalgic books on the Reagan administration, or bought videos about our supposed "one of the greatest Presidents", let me dare you to read this book with an open mind. You'll see that it's not only the "liberals" that commit all types of scandals, they just happen to not be as good as the Republicans at covering it up at the highest levels.
Rating:
Summary: Well Written and Interesting
Review: This book is a description of the ascertain that the Reagan-Bush campaign made a secret deal with Iran to delay the release of the American hostages until after the 1980 election in return for arms. This claim gained real credence when the hostages were actually released about 2 hours after the swearing in of Regan but gained further credibility with the on again off again weapon sales made to Iran in the preceding years. Someone that was involved in both the Carter and Regan administrations so you I tended to give him some credibility right from the start writes the book. I found the book very well documented, well laid out and readable. One chapter lists the fates of those involved in the deal. Overall it will hold your attention no matter what side of the political side you are on. For an interesting different view of this situation I would suggest reading the book "Crisis" by Hamilton Jordan. It covers the topic of the hostages from a different perspective.
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