It may seem rather surprising to many who have read my politics related posts on my
Google + profile that I have read a lot of books lately by military and spy author Tom Clancy. I am very much on the left wing politically, and I feel that war is unnecessary in most cases, and surveillance of people whom the government should have no reason to suspect are terrorists, like the
NSA has been caught doing recently, is wrong. I also want US troops out of Iraq and Afghanistan now, and I feel that it should have been done a long time ago.
Considering my views, it may seem kind of odd that I read a lot of Tom Clancy, an author whose first book,
The Hunt for Red October was heartily endorsed by Reagan, who was the president at the time, and Clancy's views are very right wing. I guess it's the action that draws me to them, as well as the rather odd and creative political scenarios that he can come up with as the background for his books.
I have been reading the book
Debt of Honor, and I was rather surprised by a quote in the book, especially noting Clancy's political views. In this scene, main character and spymaster Jack Ryan, who is NSA director at the time (he later becomes the president himself under some rather bizarre circumstances), is trying to advise the president, Roger Durling.
President Durling has been rather blindsided by a surprise attack by Japan upon the US navy during what was supposed to be a friendly join military exercise.
