I've been fairly obsessed with the Manson case for years, particularly its implications regarding the covert operations being carried out at that time. I thought I knew about as much as anyone out there...and then I read this book. This work is about so, so much more than the Manson Family. The author apparently sacrificed a lot to conduct decades of research, but I hope he knows that from my perspective anyway it was infinitely worth it.
This book goes as long as any book I can thin of in shedding light on the secret influences of that most revolutionary of decades called the 60s. I dislike using words like "important" when talking about books. It sounds pompous to me. But, there's no way around it. I think this book is important reading for people to understand this nation's history, particularly the history of its intelligence agencies and how they acted (act?) from the shadows to shape the nation. This isn't a partisan issue. It's a real shame that the subject has been turned into a "pro-Trump" or "anti-Trump" talking point. This stuff crosses the aisle. Though, I guess I should add I actually sometimes find myself sympathetic to things like COINTELPRO and CHAOS...because whether or not they were "good" or "evil" really depends entirely on whether or not there actually was a concerted Soviet campaign to undermine U.S. culture from within.
If that effort really existed, then COINTELPRO and CHAOS, ugly as they were, might have helped save the nation. If there was actually no Soviet/revolutionary influence and the hippies were just hippies, then those programs are irredeemably evil. As with anything, the answer likely lies in the middle.
But, surely I am rambling...I thought this book was absolutely fantastic. I'm going to move on to Days of Rage now and then read this one again. It's very rare I read a book twice cover to cover. That's about as high praise as I can think of.
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