The Ideal Man The Tragedy of Jim Thompson and the American Way of War

Written with a clear nod to spy thrillers and Graham Greene's novels, New RepublicSpecial Correspondent Joshua Kurlantzick unravels the fascinating story behind the unsolved murder of the CIA's top agent at the height of the Cold War. He spins out the whole early history of the CIA, America's long battle to control the course of world history, and the developing world's strong distrust of American intervention. Jim Thompson arrived in Asia after WWII as one of many eager young Ivy Leaguers ready to remake the world under Bill Donovan's leadership at the OSS, the forerunner to the CIA. From his post in Thailand, Thompson came to be the top CIA agent in the region, advising the Unites States government on crucial developments in Korea, Vietnam, and China. At the same time, he became a rich silk trader. Eventually, tired of a country that only saw what it wanted to see, he became a harsh public critic of US foreign policy. Eventually, without warning, he disappeared into the jungle, leaving no clues behind as to why. The CIA? The unfriendly local regime? Business associates? Washington tended to think of countries as pieces in a chess game (and still does), and when Thompson tried to explain to his handlers that it was all far more complicated than that, they stopped listening. From our habit of partnering with friendly dictators to our habit of letting ideology cloud or foreign policy, this book's major themes have clear resonance for today.

JOSHUA KURLANTZICK writes regularly about Asia for Newsweek and the New Republic. He also contributes to Mother Jones, the London Review of Books, the New York Times, Foreign Policy, the Atlantic, and Time. In 2007, Yale University Press published his book on China's soft power, Charm Offensive.

Preface v

Chapter 1 1

Chapter 2 11

Chapter 3 21

Chapter 4 29

Chapter 5 43

Chapter 6 55

Chapter 7 67

Chapter 8 83

Chapter 9 99

Chapter 10 117

Chapter 11 131

Chapter 12 149

Chapter 13 161

Chapter 14 171

Chapter 15 181

Chapter 16 195

Epilogue 209

Acknowledgments 221

Notes 225

Index 255