Rulers and Ruled in the US Empire

James PetrasPolitical Science
Rulers and Ruled in the US Empire

Author: James Petras

Publisher: SCB Distributors

ISBN: 9780932863720

Category: Political Science

Page: 200

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This book provides a comprehensive guide to the systemic dimensions of the US empire. Petras elaborates the changes within the US ruling class, as its manufacturing sector declines and gives way to the ascendancy of finance capital, illustrated by its dominance of both the US economy, and the parameters for political debate on the US role in the world economy (globalization, trade liberalization). Petras addresses the fallacy of discussions on the imminent collapse of capitalism when what is occurring in reality is the collapse of workers' rights. He elaborates the contradictions in current immigration/trade liberalization policies, and how these work toward forcing the displacement of peoples, and furthering the underdevelopment of third world countries. He reveals the dark heart of modern empire, in the emergence and proliferation of holocaust-scale carnage.and further outlines how the world capitalist system is laced together in an intricate hierarchy where the US pulls most of the strings, even outside its ostensible area of dominance. The role of corruption in securing world markets is addressed, as are the reasons for the spectacular global growth in new billionaires. The role of the Zionist Lobby in America is examined as it relates to the catastrophic wars in Iraq and Lebanon, and the threat of a further attack on Iran. A mounting schism within the US ruling elite between its pro-Zionist sector concerned with advancing the interests of Israel, and the traditional ruling elite concerned with protecting US imperial interests worldwide is addressed in relation to the Iraq Study Group's failed effort to introduce changes in current US Middle East policy. Finance capital and its political representatives in the US government depend on the support of client regimes in other countries, which include those considered relatively `center left', to sustain the US empire. However, in pursuit of freedom, justice, national independence and peace, powerful social movements and in some circumstances armed national resistance forces have emerged to challenge American dominance. Petras sheds light on the actual status of contemporary resistance to US hegemony within China, Latin America, and the Middle East.

American Empire and the Politics of Meaning

Julian GoSocial Science
American Empire and the Politics of Meaning

Author: Julian Go

Publisher: Duke University Press

ISBN: 9780822389323

Category: Social Science

Page: 390

View: 848

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When the United States took control of the Philippines and Puerto Rico in the wake of the Spanish-American War, it declared that it would transform its new colonies through lessons in self-government and the ways of American-style democracy. In both territories, U.S. colonial officials built extensive public school systems, and they set up American-style elections and governmental institutions. The officials aimed their lessons in democratic government at the political elite: the relatively small class of the wealthy, educated, and politically powerful within each colony. While they retained ultimate control for themselves, the Americans let the elite vote, hold local office, and formulate legislation in national assemblies. American Empire and the Politics of Meaning is an examination of how these efforts to provide the elite of Puerto Rico and the Philippines a practical education in self-government played out on the ground in the early years of American colonial rule, from 1898 until 1912. It is the first systematic comparative analysis of these early exercises in American imperial power. The sociologist Julian Go unravels how American authorities used “culture” as both a tool and a target of rule, and how the Puerto Rican and Philippine elite received, creatively engaged, and sometimes silently subverted the Americans’ ostensibly benign intentions. Rather than finding that the attempt to transplant American-style democracy led to incommensurable “culture clashes,” Go assesses complex processes of cultural accommodation and transformation. By combining rich historical detail with broader theories of meaning, culture, and colonialism, he provides an innovative study of the hidden intersections of political power and cultural meaning-making in America’s earliest overseas empire.

America after Empire

Berch BerberogluSocial Science
America after Empire

Author: Berch Berberoglu

Publisher: Taylor & Francis

ISBN: 9781000594423

Category: Social Science

Page: 172

View: 426

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After the end of America’s longest (20-year) war in Afghanistan and Iraq that cost more than $6 trillion and nearly half a million lives, what does the future hold for America and the American people in the 21st century? In this timely and important book, Berch Berberoglu provides an eye-opening account of the history of the American Empire from its inception to the present, with prospects for its future. Examining the worldwide expansion of the American Empire over the course of its turbulent history in great detail, Berberoglu assesses America’s imperial legacy in a sober way, highlighting its failure to come to terms with the enormous cost of this adventure in imperial overreach. But Berberoglu sees light at the end of the long, dark tunnel, when the American people will awaken and lead the way to a new America after empire in the coming decades of the 21st century.

Visions of Empire

Krishan KumarHistory
Visions of Empire

Author: Krishan Kumar

Publisher: Princeton University Press

ISBN: 9780691192802

Category: History

Page: 597

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"In this extraordinary volume, Krishan Kumar provides us with a brilliant tour of some of history's most important empires, demonstrating the critical importance of imperial ideas and ideologies for understanding their modalities of rule and the conflicts that beset them. In doing so, he interrogates the contested terrain between nationalism and empire and the legacies that empires leave behind."--Mark R. Beissinger, Princeton University "This is an excellent book with original insights into the history of empires and the discourses and rhetoric of their rulers and defenders. Kumar's writing is lively and free of jargon, and his research is prodigious. He manages to bring clarity and perspective to a complex subject."--Ronald Grigor Suny, author of "They Can Live in the Desert but Nowhere Else": A History of the Armenian Genocide "A masterly piece of work."--Anthony Pagden, author of The Burdens of Empire: 1539 to the Present

Empire

Denis JuddHistory
Empire

Author: Denis Judd

Publisher: Basic Books

ISBN: 0465019528

Category: History

Page: 0

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The British Empire radically altered the modern world. At its height, it governed over a quarter of the human race and encompassed more than a fifth of the globe. As well as providing the British people with profits and a sense of international purpose, the Empire afforded them the opportunity to create new lives for themselves through emigration and settlement. It supplied jobs at home and overseas, encouraged national aggrandizement, and allowed experiments in social engineering. For those it ruled over, the Empire often represented arbitrary power, gunboat diplomacy, and the disruption of local customs, social structures, and government by a distant and sometimes coldly unsympathetic administration. Yet while the Empire rested ultimately upon military force and direct rule, it also pulsated with ideals—ideals of freedom, democracy, and even equality.In this impressively researched and always entertaining book, the esteemed British historian Denis Judd analyzes the imperial experience from the American revolution to the present day. He examines the ways in which the British Empire affected both rulers and ruled, and the roles of significant personalities—from Queen Victoria to Nelson Mandela, Cecil Rhodes to Jomo Kenyatta, Joseph Chamberlain to Mahatma GhandiWhat was so special about the ”special relationship” between Britain and the United States? Did the maintenance of the Empire artificially prolong Britain's Great Power status? Did it encourage chauvinistic, even racist, attitudes? Were subjects better off under their own elites and leaders than under British rule? In the end, what does the balance sheet of the Empire look like?The story of Empire is central to Britain's national mythology and its sense of place in the world, and essential to an understanding of its changing role as we approach the end of the millennium. Denis Judd's fine, magisterial history does full justice to a complex and epic theme.

US Imperialism

James PetrasPolitical Science
US Imperialism

Author: James Petras

Publisher: Routledge

ISBN: 9781000576627

Category: Political Science

Page: 234

View: 264

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This book offers a broad and deep examination of the dynamics of US imperialism. Petras analyzes imperialism not only as economic domination, showing that its impact in the world takes many forms, including cultural, political and historical. He points to the disruptive effects it has on other world regional economies and cultures. Capitalism and imperialism take diverse forms but both are intimately tied to the projection of state power in the service of capital—a strategy designed to advance the geopolitical and economic interests of the US economic elite and ruling class—interests that are equated with the 'US national interest'.

Imperialism, Crisis and Class Struggle

Henry VeltmeyerSocial Science
Imperialism, Crisis and Class Struggle

Author: Henry Veltmeyer

Publisher: BRILL

ISBN: 9789004184145

Category: Social Science

Page: 327

View: 315

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This book of essays, written in honour of James Petras, address some of the most critical issues of our time: those of imperialism, crisis and class struggle. These issues allow the authors to identify both the the enduring verities and contemporary face of capitalism and Petras contributions.

Face of Imperialism

Michael ParentiPolitical Science
Face of Imperialism

Author: Michael Parenti

Publisher: Routledge

ISBN: 9781317259794

Category: Political Science

Page: 124

View: 160

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The relationship between US economic and military power is not often considered within mainstream commentary. Similarly the connection between US military interventions overseas and US domestic problems is rarely considered in any detail. In this brilliant new book, Michael Parenti reveals the true face of US imperialism. He documents how it promotes unjust policies across the globe including expropriation of natural resources, privatisation, debt burdens and suppression of democratic movements. He then demonstrates how this feeds into deteriorating living standards in the US itself, leading to increased poverty, decaying infrastructure and impending ecological disaster. The Face of Imperialism redefines empire and imperialism and connects the crisis in the US with its military escapades across the world.

American Wars

Paul BuchheitPolitical Science
American Wars

Author: Paul Buchheit

Publisher: SCB Distributors

ISBN: 9780932863737

Category: Political Science

Page: 200

View: 937

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When many Americans hear that the US may go to war against another nation, they tend to believe there's probably a good reason for it or that no viable alternatives exist or they don't think about it at all. They trust their leaders to represent them and defend their values. They accept their leaders' claims that war is to ensure their safety when others wish to harm them.The parties of war play on Americans' basic values to bring them online. The media reassures them that the reasons for war are altruistic that Americans wish to spread democracy and allow others to adopt their way of life. But is this the case? With 24 compelling illustrations, maps and graphs, this book is intended to serve as a tool for peace advocacy. Well known peace advocates respond to 19 of the most common illusions held by the American public which weaken their opposition to Washington's wars. "The American way of war offers a nonstop supply of illusions--while imposing horrific realities far away and, ultimately, at home too. This book is intent on dispelling key illusions and coming to terms with human realities. Between the covers of American Wars, the result is a compendium of insights and hard-won knowledge of the sort you'll rarely find in the daily paper or the evening news. The writers are myth-busters who challenge the conventional lack of wisdom that drags the United States into one war after another and keeps us lethally mired in a warfare state. This collection provides us with an array of vital perspectives, opening up a crucial topic that usually remains shut down--what American wars are doing to humanity, under false pretenses and with calamitous results, around the world and in our own neighborhoods. The future is at stake. This book helps us to understand the perils and opportunities of the present moment. --NORMAN SOLOMON, author of War Made Easy

China and the World

Ben MahPolitical Science
China and the World

Author: Ben Mah

Publisher: iUniverse

ISBN: 1462056814

Category: Political Science

Page: 376

View: 775

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Ben Mah’s book is an excellent warning of the problems — indeed, economic depth charges — that were planted in China by the neoliberals who have destroyed nearly every economy where their advice was followed. Ben Mah’s “China and the World” describes what China should accept and what it should reject in Western advice. Michael Hudson: Distinguished Professor of Economics at the University of Missouri Mr. Ben Mah is an acute observer. This book explodes the myth of “China’s Rise”, reveals the truth about how China’s economic policies have been misguided by neoliberalism. This is a good book that anyone concerned about China’s future should not miss. Genliang Jia, Professor, People’s University of ChinaAndong Zhu The essays in this book deserve great attention. Dajun Zhong, renowned economist Mr. Mah’s work could help us re-think the related policies and eliminate the influence of neoliberal ideology. Andong Zhu, Director, Qinghua University, China Mr. Mah’s work is a biting revelation of the unpleasant reality that lies behind such currently popular buzzwords as “privatization”, “marketization”, ”freedom of capital flow” and ”free trade”. Haibo Liu Chinese Academy of Social Sciences