"Boycott of No Easy Day" Topic

Friends of mine currently serving in the SEALs are asking everyone to boycott the book "No Easy Day" mainly due to the unofficial code of silence about their operations and not due to anything about the author. I know the book will be of particular interest to you as gamers, but I'm just passing on a message I thought you'd be interested in. Thanks for listening!

Did they also call for a boycott of Luttrell's Lone Survivor, or any of the other slew of recent SEAL books written by SEALs? How about the recent Acts of Valor movie? Face it, 'Code of Silence' and SEALs have never worked well together.

Anyone actually confirm No Easy Day contains previously unreleased info that is classified?

I am very interested in reading the book, but really concerned about the timing of the release being too soon after the operation and the risk to others in our armed forces. I will pass on purchasing and reading it.

I haven't purchased the book for precisely that reason (Edit – actually, not precisely that reason. I could care less about the SEAL's internal politics – I do care about following DOD procedures, however). The publisher's failure to have the book vetted by the DOD bothers me. We make a real effort in our Force on Force companion books to avoid using information that hasn't been cleared for public consumption or which may violate OpSec in some way – it seems like a major publisher should show at least the same level of responsibility as a little upstart game company like AAG.

YMMV, of course.

Shawn.

Anyone actually confirm No Easy Day contains previously unreleased info that is classified?

I have seen on one interview that there is nothing classified in the book.

*I* will not be boycotting it. I won't be buying it either because I can't afford it, and I will learn everything there is to know about it on line anyway!
As for any so-called "political content", well, my mind has been made up for a while, and the book will not influence it one iota.

Jake, the DOD announced that the book hadn't been cleared through them prior to its release and intimated charges might be levied against the author.

Shawn.

The fact that as of now DoD has not pressed charges, only threatened to, says a lot to me.

And again, there are too many books about current conflicts either by SEALs or written from inteviews with SEALs for me to buy off on a SEAL code of silence as an excuse to boycott a book.

Trust me, I understand OPSEC and the importance of it. I just don't buy off on this book being a breach of security until someone actually verifies it is, especially since this seems to be one of the most leaked about ops in recent years already. DoD has had the book for a couple of weeks. IF they have not figured out the answer to that question yet they are broken.

Like I said in my edit above – I don't care about the SEAL version of Omerta any more than you do. ;) I also doubt it's a breach of security. I'm still not going to buy the book, though, because the publisher didn't follow DoD procedure and didn't delay publication for a DoD review (as another publisher did for a recent book by a CIA operative).

I'm not throwing my voice behind a boycott, either. If folks want to buy the book, they can. I'm simply saying that this particular publisher has lost a sale to me.

Shawn.

Seems to me they should be calling for a boycott of the upcoming movie as well……

Sadly, too late for all the press releases on the news channels, and in the papers.

I won't be boycotting the movie. The studio where I work is doing the vfx…

What would be the point of the boycott anyway? To somehow teach the publisher a lesson?

I've got no interest in reading the book but if I did the opinion of the SEALs wouldn't stop me.

Doesn't the burden fall upon the *author*, who signed the NDA, and not the publisher?

Not interested in the book. They got 'em, job well done, nuff said.

Wiznard is new here. Someone should, gently, let him know to .

From what I've heard there's little if any political content in the book at all.

CPT Jake on 04 Sep 2012 7:47 a.m. PST wrote:
Did they also call for a boycott of Luttrell's Lone Survivor, or any of the other slew of recent SEAL books written by SEALs? How about the recent Acts of Valor movie? Face it, 'Code of Silence' and SEALs have never worked well together.

I will not boycott it but you are spot on about SEALs and having a BIG ****** Mouth.

I have already heard too much that I know would have been classified. There is always talk in the good old boy network but it is just that.

Should have sent the Army they know how to shut the heck up. What was it 20 years after Son Tay before some hit the lecture circuit?

NDAs were to stop all that. I signed bunches of them. I know the policy is still the same from the guys still in.

Not only will he compromise TTP and equipment but some of the information could do harm in the election. Not something some punk (and yes he is a punk) interoperates as the operation order or his "right" to sell books.

Makes me sick to the bone.

VR
James Mattes
USA SF Ret.

If you sign a NDA, onus is on authorto, and he is required to submit draft to DoD so they can determine if classified info is in there. Publisher can publish what they want.

Mike

I will be reading it.

The publisher was asked to delay publication so that DoD could review the manuscript for OpsSec issues. They refused to comply. I won't buy the book from the publisher for that reason. If the author had published the book himself, I'd refuse to buy it from him on those grounds as well, but that's not the case.

Again, I'm not saying that I support a boycott (I don't) or that anyone who buys the book is wrong – I'm just stating my purely subjective stance on the issue.

Best,

Shawn.

Wiznard, there is a place called the the Blue Fez for political discussion. If you do it here, don't be surprised if you end up in the dawg house.

Seals have friends who can read?

I won't be buying the book either, but it is not because of a boycott or some other moral stance. The subject just doesn't excite me. I am in the Army "of today", and don't feel excited much to read about it. We are making history with today's wars, we are not the history of the past just yet.

When Bin Laden was killed, I said that I was sad because all that happened was one more death (yes, I am well aware he brought it upon himself and saw him as both an enemy and a criminal). My point is this, he was just another headstone in a war where counting headstones does not means progress for either side. This is not a war of attririon but one of idealogoies. What is that line from "V" about not being able to kill an idea?

Bin Laden was a has-been. His influence was minimal and his killing became nothing more than another "30 seconds over Tokyo". Others had long since picked up the reigns as either/both mastermind or/and cheerleader.

Lastly, this SEAL's quest for publication is only another symtom of a larger problem;

James and Shawn if you haven't noticed lately, morale in the services is at dangerously low levels. This isn't coming from those on the front lines losing in combat, but those on the front (and in the rear) losing "faith" in their leaders (field grade to executive level)

David

I believe I saw a small story on Yahoo that did say that there are classified elements included in the book.

Also, there is more than a code here, the SEALS are almost always on some sort of classified mission. Their tactics aren't shared liberally with outsiders either.

I will be ignoring the book because I am not sure I believe everything the author is trying to say. As far as Bin Laden being unarmed, meh, good riddance in either case.

Someone is cashing in and they didn't go through proper channels or review. I hope they keelhaul the man.

Being Old you sighned a document then known as the "National Secrets Act" it basicaly gave the govt the right to arrest and detain you with out due course and in secret. to place you before a military tribunal which could sentence you to Long periods of inprisonment or poss death.
In rare instances when you were on a "you where never here " kind of job they went behind you and Sanitised your records. so even if you did not understand that you did your job for your brothers and sisters and god and country you had no physical evidence or record to try to make a buck of of ….There are a few things about the new army and military in general that could use use some old school reform….im not gonna buy this kids book either….Mikey

The DoD has found it to contain state secrets.

There's a real lack of public trust in "state secrets" now. After Wikileaks showing how many of the government's secrets are kept that way to save face or for political expediency, rather than to protect legitimate intelligence, I think far fewer people are willing to give the benefit of the doubt to the Official Secrets label than would have a decade or two ago.

I'm inclined to think that excessive playing of the state secrets card is far more damaging to freedom and democracy than the occasional leak is.

What is that line from "V" about not being able to kill an idea?

Creedy: [desperately shooting at the approaching V] Die! Die! Why won't you die?… Why won't you die?

V: Beneath this mask there is more than flesh. Beneath this mask there is an idea, Mr. Creedy. And ideas are bulletproof.

Good line.

"I believe I saw a small story on Yahoo that did say that there are classified elements included in the book".

Another, as yet, unsubstantiated claim.

Don't see how they can plausibly make that statement, when they haven't seen a copy of the book!

Mako11, I quit believing the cridibility of the military top brass a long time ago. Another small lie (I'm being sarcastic) was when CBS News (60 Minuteds) pointed out how the procurement and acquisitions branch wrote up official memorandums on the catastrophic failures of Dragon Skin body armor in testing before they even had examples in their possession to test. Salt in the wounds was when the retired General in charge of development and procurement of the OTV vests said how he wished Dragon Skin was available when he was in charge as he would have chucked all of his own development and ordered the purchasing of Dragon Skin.

The Army also showed its routine corruption when it went with UCP camouflage over Crye systems' multi-cam even when by its own admission multi-cam was the top testing performer and UCP was the lowest. In both cases, I would bet a post-retirement job offer had something to do with the decision making process.

I know that procurement may seem to have little in common with operational secrets, but my point is this: How are we supposed to know where and when to turn on or off our trust in the military's leadership? I guess they feel it ok to lie, cheat, and steal just as long as it is among "friends" (or citizens and subordinates) and not among enemies (foreign or domestic).

As someone on the outside of the military, but with a bit of cynicism another thought occurs.

If, as intimated by several sources, the book contradicts the official administration description of events, how long would the review have lasted?

And how much of the book might have been found to be unpublishable due to national security concerns?

I believe there is a film coming out sometime before the election on the raid? More in keeping with the 'official' version of events?

Not that partisan politics would have any bearing on DOD policies.

goragrad, I sense your well-reasoned cynicism. I have it too my friend.

A "he's dead, if you don't believe me try calling him" would have been good enough. Doubt I'll buy it.

I have no interest in the book.
I already know the only two things that I care about, regarding the operation:

We ran a raid to kill Bin Laden.
It worked, and worked well.

As for the "rightness" of writing/publishing the book, if the Feds are upset they should have the author in custody by now, and be working up their case for a court martial and/or civilian trial. Otherwise, they should quit whining.
-Kle.

Really at this point how much is still classified? I am not interested in the book so I won't be buying but it's not like it was a big gun fight with dozens of bodyguards or the Pakistani Army was involved I'm more upset that the high tech helo got grabbed up by the Chinese. The book is probably loaded with how stressful the op was going to be, or it's a one way mission for sure, again I'm not impressed.

if the Feds are upset they should have the author in custody by now

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surely thats passing quickly on from the point in the original post where he was saying it was actual unit members who were asking people not to buy it (or whining)on the grounds of some supposed code of silence to the usual soft target – in your country and mine – of the Feds (or in the UK its usually 'faceless bureaucrats' – who are of course actually human beings with faces and families and some of whom even wargame!)
As pointed out, with most of these things, it depends if its done by someone whose face fits/with the tacit approval of the authorities – we had police officers pocket-book entries published recently in the UK in the newspapers re an incident with an MP -whilst the latter was a twit, equally i don't think that newspapers should be being given copies of a pocket book (clearly with the connivance of those with egg on their hats) when an officer could be disciplined for losing the same, even if all it mentioned in terms of confidentiality might be booking on and off times.