The Ashes of Waco: An InvestigationThis is the story the daily press didn't give us. It may be the definitive book about what happened at Mt. Carmel, near Waco, Texas, examined from both sides—the Bureau of Alcohol and Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) and the FBI on one hand, and David Koresh and his followers on the other. Dick J. Reavis contends that the government had little reason to investigate Koresh and even less to raid the compound at Mt. Carmel. The government lied to the public about most of what happened—about who fired the first shots, about drug allegations, about child abuse. The FBI was duplicitous and negligent in gassing Mt. Carmel-and that alone could have started the fire that killed seventy-six people. Drawing on interviews with survivors of Koresh's movement (which dates back to 1935), as well as from esoteric religious tracts and audiotapes, and previously undisclosed government documents, Reavis uncovers the real story of the burning at Waco, including the trial that followed. The author quotes from Koresh himself to create an extraordinary portrait of a movement, an assault, and an avoidable tragedy. |
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LibraryThing Review
User Review - jen.e.moore - LibraryThingThis is a fascinating book somewhat limited by the fact that it came out in 1995 when there was much less information publicly available about the siege and destruction of Mt. Carmel. The story gets ... Read full review
THE ASHES OF WACO: An Investigation
User Review - KirkusRushed to press to catch the wave of summer congressional hearings on the Waco debacle, this account by former Texas Monthly senior editor Reavis may raise a few hackles both within the Beltway and ... Read full review
Contents
Introduction | 11 |
Mr Retardo | 23 |
Showtime | 31 |
Enter the Press | 39 |
The Bible House | 44 |
The Third Angels Message | 51 |
The Bulgarian and the Goddess | 58 |
The Flatfoot | 66 |
Myths at the Door | 143 |
Up on the Roof and Down in the Gym | 151 |
The Front Line | 156 |
The Second Floor | 162 |
The Element of Surprise | 177 |
The Second Shooting | 190 |
Talks | 200 |
The Suicide Pact | 215 |
Poor George | 74 |
The SemiLiterate Messiah | 83 |
Merlin the Messiah | 87 |
Gods Flying Machines | 93 |
The Seven Seals | 102 |
Winning in the Bedroom | 111 |
The Governments Flying Machines | 120 |
Dogs and Doors | 137 |
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Common terms and phrases
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