Thomas Ricks is no pacifist, and there’s nothing anti-military about his chronicle of the war in Iraq. Pentagon correspondent for the Washington Post, he has been to Iraq five times in four years. He tells us that each time, the situation has been worse than before. In an interview on amazon.com, he says this:

On my first trip, in April-May 2003, we would walk out on the streets of Baghdad at night, albeit with caution. Even on my second trip, in the summer of 2003, I would feel comfortable hopping in a car and driving 100 miles north from Baghdad to Tikrit. To do either of those things now would be suicidal.

His chronicle of the war, Fiasco: America’s Military Adventure in Iraq, gives senior military officials a voice for their frustrations, and brings us a clear view of both the heroes and the tragic mistakes of this “adventure.”