How America's Valiant Whistleblowers Risk Everything in Order to Speak Out Against Waste, Fraud and Abuse in Business and Government
Don’t Kill the Messenger! How America’s Valiant Whistleblowers Risk Everything in Order to Speak Out Against Waste, Fraud and Abuse in Business and Government – recounts the harrowing experiences of nine whistleblowers who found the courage to “go public” with reports of alleged lawbreaking at the highest levels of the U.S. Government. --That the massive National Security Agency routinely violated its own rules and the U.S. Constitution by spying on the electronic communications of American citizens, without obtaining legally mandated search warrants; --That the U.S. Marine Corps, in spite of its long and proud tradition of service, failed to acquire easily obtainable armored vehicles which would have protected its own soldiers from explosive devices in the Iraq War . . . a failure that resulted in the needless death or maiming of hundreds of Marines, and which occurred because military requisitioning officers were more interested in preserving cushy contracting relationships than in identifying and obtaining the safest possible personnel carriers for their combat forces; --That the FBI routinely violated the rights of accused lawbreakers by improperly operating its forensic laboratory and slanting its findings in order to help federal prosecutors obtain federal convictions, instead of analyzing evidence impartially and thus protecting the rights of suspects who were supposed to “presumed innocent until proven guilty.” The new Soeken book, which also documents the stories of bold Americans who blew the whistle on alleged corporate malfeasance in the 1986 space shuttle disaster and continuing engineering and manufacturing failures in the production of nuclear-missile components for the Pentagon, is being praised as “starkly compelling” and full of “vivid, unforgettable detail” by such early reviewers as famed corporate whistleblower Jeffrey Wigand. Wigand (whose own whistle-blowing story was documented in the 1999 blockbuster film The Insider), describes Don’t Shoot the Messenger! as “a highly suspenseful book that often reads like a contemporary political thriller” – but then goes on to tell readers: “Along with its chilling narratives, however, the book contains a vitally important warning for all of us – we must protect our truth-tellers if we hope to preserve our constitutional freedoms and the rule of law.”
Professional Reviews
wow!
Wow! This is an extremely important and engaging book--one that every American would do well to read and contemplate. The author does a superb job of telling the stories of nine individuals who dared to speak out and be heard. The personal cost for each whistleblower was incredibly high but their efforts were never in vain. Donald R. Soeken is to be commended for bringing these incredible stories of courage and personal sacrifice into the light of day. Such American heroism should not and cannot be forgotten. I highly recommend this book to others. Wow!
This book summarizes life's ten toughest tests with ten passwords each to pass these tests. The current overload, speed of change and chaos are all summarized well enough to get to the Land of Simple on the other side quicker than usual.