July 26, 1947- President Harry S. Truman signs into law the National Security Act, establishing the formation of an intelligence agency dedicated to serving the president. The end result is the formation of the Central Intelligence Agency. Later in life, Truman came to regret the law as the CIA grew beyond his original intentions into an unaccountable, dangerous and highly suspicious agency seemingly under the control of no one. Stories of operatives such as Allen Dulles, Bill Harvey, Richard Helms, David Atlee Phillips, Cord Meyer, Jr. and James Jesus Angleton are both endless and legendary. But what was really going on within the CIA and what was the true nature of its relationship with the White House? David Talbot presents to us his investigative report into the dark side of the CIA and the secret government within the United States.
January 29, 1969-Allen W. Dulles dies at the age of 75 of complications from pneumonia in Washington, D.C. Dying with him is an unknown number of secrets of the U.S. intelligence apparatus. The former director of the CIA, former intelligence operative of the OSS and member of the Warren Commission, was relieved of his post by President Kennedy following the disastrous Bay of Pigs invasion in April, 1961. Kennedy and Dulles continued to maintain a strained relationship that would never fully heal. Although officially relieved of duty, Dulles continued to engage in intelligence operations and keep close contact with top members of the CIA. And nearly fifty years after his death, his name evokes both admiration and fear. However, as more information comes to light about the dark operations of the agency he lead, the more we are exposed to the dark side of Allen W. Dulles and his older brother and former Secretary of State, John Foster Dulles.
In March, 1945, the Allied forces in conjunction with the OSS, conducted Operation Sunrise, the black operation that obtained the freedom of several high-ranking Nazis including Karl Wolff. Dulles, at the time working for the OSS, spearheaded the campaign which was done secretly under the radar of the oval office. This mission would be one of many in Dulles’ career that could have caused international turmoil and embarrassment. Operation Sunrise was followed by equally as controversial programs such as Operation Paperclip, ZR/RIFLE and MK/ULTRA the agency’s attempt at a real life Manchurian Candidate. All of the details are included in this book and the full story is beyond shocking.
The agency faced its biggest challenge under the Kennedy Administration. Kennedy, convinced that he was unable to trust information provided by the CIA, vowed to shatter the agency and placed the control of covert operations under the control of the military. Following his assassination, the policy was reversed, authorizing covert operations in domestic and international affairs resulting in disastrous foreign policy which culminated with the Vietnam War. Dulles wouldn’t live to see the war’s end, but his agency’s role in the conflict is still the topic of debate. Talbot’s account of the strained relationship between the Kennedys and the CIA reveals an administration at war with its own intelligence community and one that ended violently in Dallas, Texas on November 22, 1963. Many of the figures in the book are now deceased, but the book reveals a very disturbing part of U.S. history that continues to haunt this nation and forces us to ask ourselves what power truly is and who really wields it? And just how much do we know about the intelligence community and what their objectives are? Additionally, the book a critical asset to JFK assassination researchers and those who desire to know the truth about what happened in Dealey Plaza.
ISBN-10: 0062276174
ISBN-13: 978-0062276179
May 14, 2013-Billie Sol Estes 
On April 15, 2008, Nujood Ali stood in a Yemeni courtroom and pleaded her case for a divorce from a physically, sexually and emotionally abusive husband. At the age of 10, her case caused shock and outrage around the globe. The marriage and subsequent divorce shed light on the old customs in the outskirts of Yemen. Born in the remote Yemeni village of Khardji, Nujood’s story is one of many that go untold each year not only in Yemen, but in countries across the Middle East. Married in exchange for the sum of US $750, her new life quickly becomes a nightmare as she is forced to leave her family and reside with her much older husband whom she does not know.
October 13, 1970-Angela Davis is arrested in New York City and extradited to Marin County, California, where she is charged with conspiracy to commit murder. The charge stems from the death of Judge Harold Haley, taken hostage by Jonathan Jackson and accomplices in an effort to free the Soledad brothers and all political prisoners from United States federal prisons. Davis’ arrest and trial became a focal point in the struggle against an unjust and discriminatory judicial system in which the privileged often found themselves defenseless in frivolous trials resulting in equally absurd prison sentences.
On January 20, 1968, Ron Kovic was shot and critically injured while leading a reconnaissance mission near the village of My Loc north of the Cua Viet River. The injury leaves him paralyzed from the waist down. After being transported back to the United States, he is moved to the Bronx VA hospital and witnesses first had the substandard treatment given to soldiers injured in the conflict. Upon his discharge, the young marine leaves the hospital a changed man forever, no longer an innocent 18-year-old kid with dreams of being a rough and tough marine. As outcry against the war continued to grow and he began to read literature given to him by his cousin’s husband, his views on the war began to change and he eventually became one of the most outspoken anti-war activist in country.
April 4, 1968-Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. is assassinated as he stands on the balcony in front of room 306 at the Lorraine Hotel in Memphis, Tennessee. That same night, Senator Robert F. Kennedy (D-New York) gives what is considered by many to be the best speech of his career on the back of a pickup truck to a crowd of stunned and angry supporters. A drifter and ex-convict by the name of James Earl Ray is arrested at Heathrow Airport in London after a manhunt and extradited back to the United States. Following his indictment, he pleads guilty to the crime, but many questions about his motive and actions continue to go unanswered. The murder of Dr. King and of President Kennedy would be the subject to investigation by the House Select Committee on Assassinations. And although the investigations revealed new evidence in both murders, new suspects and evidence of a probable conspiracy in President Kennedy’s murder, the complete truth about both murders continues to elude the American public.
On September 4, 1965, Albert Schweitzer died in Lambaréné in Central Africa. The founder of what is known today as the Albert Schweitzer hospital was the recipient of the Noble Peace Prize in 1952. Today, little is spoken of him and in most classrooms his name is unknown. But this religious scholar and doctor was one of the most influential and respected individuals of his time. This is his autobiography, about the life he lived up until several years after he returned to Lambaréné to continue his missionary aid to the people of the Central African nation. Born in the German occupied territory of Alsace in 1875, Schweitzer began his training in theological studies before making the decision to become a doctor which forever changed his life. His discussions about the Old and New Testaments are thought-provoking and encourage the reader to ask pertinent questions as to what we believe and know about Christianity, the Bible and Jesus. The writings reveal a brilliant mind, always seeking the truth but remaining a steadfast proponent of analytical and profound thought.
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