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"The Mirror Test: America at War in Iraq and Afghanistan"

Aired on Thursday, June 30th.

On this installment of StudioTulsa, we speak by phone with John Kael Weston, who represented the United States for more than a decade as a State Department official. Weston has a new book out -- part memoir, part critique, part military history, and part geo-political reportage -- which he discusses with us today. It's called  "The Mirror Test: America at War in Iraq and Afghanistan." As was noted by The Washington Post: "As a former Foreign Service officer, Weston is perfectly positioned to provide a different perspective on these wars' sometimes-particular complexities.... 'The Mirror Test' offers insights into tribal, cultural, and religious dynamics; the limits of military power as a political instrument; the use of drones; the heavy reliance on special operators; and cooperation and failed cooperation among military services, agencies, and allies." And further, per The Decatur Daily: "If you read only one book about the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, read this one.... [This is] a great, heart-rending, powerful book you won't forget. You especially won't forget why it is called the mirror test. It refers to a terrible, often repeated event, but as a metaphor for this war it is an insight of tremendous value. Read this work to learn what a mirror test for a man, and for a nation, is."

Rich Fisher passed through KWGS about thirty years ago, and just never left. Today, he is the general manager of Public Radio Tulsa, and the host of KWGS’s public affairs program, StudioTulsa, which celebrated its twentieth anniversary in August 2012 . As host of StudioTulsa, Rich has conducted roughly four thousand long-form interviews with local, national, and international figures in the arts, humanities, sciences, and government. Very few interviews have gone smoothly. Despite this, he has been honored for his work by several organizations including the Governor's Arts Award for Media by the State Arts Council, a Harwelden Award from the Arts & Humanities Council of Tulsa, and was named one of the “99 Great Things About Oklahoma” in 2000 by Oklahoma Today magazine.
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