Charlie Wilson's War Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Charlie Wilson's War - Essay Example Charlie Wilson prevented the Red Army from overtaking Afghanistan, and this eventually led to the collapse of the Soviet Union and simultaneously fueled the rise of radical Islam. A congressional representative, Charlie Wilson had great interest in partying and staffing his congressional office with young and attractive women. This social life of Charlie Wilson brings into attention federal investigation about him being a cocaine user (Bronson 301). The federal prosecutor Rudy Giuliani carried the investigation, but no evidence against Charlie was found. Charlie was a fervent anti-communist with a strong dislike of the Soviets and was a friend of the Nicaragua’s Somoza and Pakistan’s Muhammad Zia Hag. Generally, nobody is a purist, but Charlie Wilson seemed to be one. What lured him to the plight of Afghanistan was the insurgency against the Soviet occupation and his passion for the underdogs (Quick and Nelson 456). The Soviet-Afghan war was a nine-year conflict that in volved the Soviet Union forces supported by the Marxist people of the Afghanistan government against Mujahedeen resistance. In the context of the cold war, this group found support from various sources like the United States, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and other Muslim nations. The efforts of Charlie Wilson made it possible for the Afghans to defeat the Soviet Forces. This was the last war of the cold war period. It gave a clear understanding of the two most important events of our time, which are the collapse of the Soviet Union and the rise of the militant Islam. Charlie Wilson served in Texas House and Senate before moving to the United States House of Representatives, where he served with the second congressional district before he retired in 1996. In the beginning of the book, Wilson is in a tub with two showgirls and a good supply of cocaine. This reputation made people underestimate Charlie Wilson and allowed him to work without anyone seeing. Charlie Wilson was used to seeing b attles and wars; he, therefore, saw himself as a man of destiny. Wilson had an unwavering patriotism and was convinced of the threat by the Soviets since the time he graduated from college (Crile 149). John F. Kennedy, when he won the elections through his inaugural speeches, has inspired Wilson. In his later age, Wilson never thought entirely of the news reports from the Afghanistan refugees, who flew from the Pakistan in thousands, and the gunships that destroyed the villages. Charlie Wilson and his counterpart Gust Avrakotos have a public picture as quintessential stereotypical American cowboys. They are depicted as fearless, rough-necked, and social class rule breakers who worked around the obstacles and pushed roughly their mutual enemy, the Soviet Union. They both used politics, spy novel secrecy, American money, and technology to fight against the Afghan tribesmen. Gust Avrakotos Until the production of the book Charlie Wilson War in 2003, the public knew almost nothing about Gust. The book portrays the U.S involvement in the Afghanistan-Soviet war as a partnership between Gust and a Texas congressional representative, Charles Wilson. Gust was born in Pennsylvania in the family of the Greek American soft drink manufacturer from the island of Aliquippa (Quick and Nelson 487). Gust graduated from the University of Pittsburgh after completing his