Book Description
As Americans face the ongoing war against terrorists and their state sponsors around the world, Sean Hannity reminds us we must also cope with the continuing scourge of accommodation and cowardice at home. With his trademark blend of passion and hard-hitting commentary, he urges Americans to recognize the dangers of putting our faith in toothless "multilateralism" when the times call for decisive action. He believes that only through strong defense of our freedoms, at home and around the world, can we preserve America's security and liberty in the dangerous twenty-first century.
"Evil exists," Hannity believes. "It is real, and it means to harm us." Tracing a direct line from Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin through Saddam Hussein and Osama bin Laden, he reminds us of the courage and moral clarity of our great leaders. And he reveals how the disgraceful history of appeasement has reached forward from the days of Neville Chamberlain and Jimmy Carter to corrupt the unrepentant leftists of the modern Democratic Party -- from Howard Dean and John Kerry to Bill and Hillary Clinton.
Hannity's first blockbuster book, the New York Times bestseller Let Freedom Ring, cemented his place as the freshest and most compelling conservative voice in the country. As host of the phenomenally successful Hannity & Colmes and The Sean Hannity Show, Hannity has won a wildly devoted fan base. Now he brings his plainspoken, take-no-prisoners style to the continuing War on Terror abroad -- and liberalism at home -- in Deliver Us from Evil.
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Talk-show giant and New York Times-bestselling author Sean Hannity -- widely recognized as the most popular young conservative voice in the country -- takes on evil in all its forms: from the growing threats of overseas terror, to the ongoing moral degradation of the American way of life, to the upcoming presidential campaign and its implications.
Nearly three years have passed since that tragic day in September. Since then, our wounds have healed, but our senses and memories have dulled.
At first, the nation rallied behind its leader. But by the time the confrontation with Iraq presented itself, our courage and moral certainty seemed to fade in the face of partisan bickering and posturing.
Now the political left and the Democratic Party are trying to use the demanding aftermath of the war to exploit our national cause for their own political advantage.
How could we allow ourselves to forget so soon?
--from Deliver Us from Evil
Sean Hannity's first blockbuster book, the New York Times bestseller Let Freedom Ring, cemented his place as the freshest and most compelling conservative voice in the country. As the host of the phenomenally successful Hannity & Colmes on the Fox News Channel and The Sean Hannity Show on ABC Radio, Hannity has won a wildly devoted fan base. Now he brings his plainspoken, take-no-prisoners style to the continuing War on Terror abroad -- and liberalism at home -- in Deliver Us from Evil.
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Customer Reviews:
You will notice.......2007-09-07
You will notice that by trolling through the reviews of this book, all the negative ones written by liberals are nothing more then one or even a few sentences that can only be classified as a rant. There are a few that are a couple of paragraphs in length, but that's the best of the liberal lot.
However, all the reviews by people who agree with Sean just happen to write long reviews that actually delve into the book and analyze the ideas and opinions it presents.
It is obvious that the left wing haters who "rated" this book never even read it. How Sad.
Hannity Wuvz Bush.......2007-08-07
Yep, it's true, and basically, it comes to say that Sean Hannity is yet another conservative scumbag that worships the man and thinks that liberals are terrorists. Plus, the guy's on FOX News, the channel that despite its slogan "Fair and Balanced", leans over to one side and is up to the brim with bias and lies. Hannity is a liar, a hypocrite, basically he's one that basically follows the road of terror that Bush crafted. If you can take one word he utters in this book seriously, you need help.
Misinformation and emotional retardation.......2007-04-04
The author Sinclair Lewis said, "When fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in a flag and carrying a cross." I think even Lewis would be surprised by the transparent tactics Hannity uses to pose as a holy patriot, while he serves the super rich who are warring against the US working class, persecuting ecocide, and committing human rights abuses the world over. Hannity knows he doesn't have to honestly discuss issues, as the audience he appeals to is wedded to the military State; thus, they are often quite willing to be deceived about the alleged righteousness of their crusade for corporate profits. War is a force that gives some people meaning, to paraphrase the title of a serious book by Christopher Hedges.War Is a Force that Gives Us Meaning
Fortunately, the American people are being delivered from Hannity's evil. Every day, more people are discovering the radio shows and books of Thom Hartmann, Amy Goodman and Ed Schultz.Screwed: The Undeclared War Against the Middle Class -- And What We Can Do About It (BK Currents) Static: Government Liars, Media Cheerleaders, and the People Who Fight Back Straight Talk from the Heartland: Tough Talk, Common Sense, and Hope from a Former Conservative
Even those who have been "Hannitized" or "Limbaughtomized" are tuning in and considering all sorts of issues and perspectives that the establishment media consistently avoids.
Bringing Hannity even more shame is his endlessly abusive attitude towards anybody who dares to think or act outside "the Fox." He models an authoritarian temper that only the architects and the mental slaves of a strict hierarchy would enjoy. His style brings to mind this quote from Henry Clay, "The arts of power and its minions (like Hannity) are the same in all countries and in all ages. It marks its victim; denounces it; and excites the public odium and the public hatred to conceal its own abuses and encroachments."
Hannity appears to be beyond redemption. His fear keeps him in place. If he ever turned his back on the monied interests he serves, they'd destroy him. As "The Sopranos" and countless other mafia programs tell us - "don't cross the family." But I have faith that people will find and pass along the sort of progressive media resources that will help free ourselves from the satanic media that Hannity represents.
Simplistic And Un-Objective.......2007-03-20
Sean Hannity is one of the louder members of the radical right chorus that continues to promote the "right" way in which Americans should live. We know the roster well, and there is indeed little difference between Hannity's writings and those of Anne Coulter and Bill O'Reilly. "Deliver Us From Evil" has the same characteristics as the above mentioned commentators' works in that it's plain, a quick read and offers numerous arguments in favor of an America that only exists in the mind of Sean Hannity and his devoted fans. The usual bashing of gays, "liberals" and everyone else Hannity perceives as "enemies" are all here, so fans will not be disappointed. For students of history what brings down Hannity's book is his atrocious treatment of recent American history. Hannity glorifies Ronald Reagan to the point of making him a deity, and actually defends Oliver North and Iran-Contra while actually having the cojones to praise the Monroe Doctrine (at one point Hannity says of Reagan, "the Monroe Doctrine meant something to Mr. Reagan"). Essentially Hannity, who has never served a day in combat or ever resided in a war-torn nation, condones the bullying and raiding of other nations for purely idealogical means. Mr. Hannity apparently still believes the Reagan line that Nicaragua, which resides under Mexico and after El Salvador, is a mere two day drive away from Texas. But then again, Hannity has appeared on Fox News insisting that Iraq had WMDs. In other sections of the book Hannity goes on tirades based on slim facts on everything from God to immigrants (Hannity uses his Irish ancestry as an excuse to go after current immigrants crossing into the United States). And all of it is framed by a very dry, monotone writing style. "Deliver Us From Evil" offers nothing of real value to those who seek real, detailed reading on current events, the book doesn't even serve as a useful tool for social analysis. Hannity tries to instruct us on very dire, important issues with little experience, expertise or insight. Men like Newt Gingrich of course use the man to open their "tours" and speeches because he has garnered an impressive radio audience composed of really the only type of people who could take this kind of book seriously. The saddest aspect of "Deliver Us From Evil" is that Hannity, like his comrades, does not appear to have the imagination or spirit to actually move forward into the future, instead he remains locked to a nostalgic 80's past that never existed. For Hannity the Reagan era was the Golden Age, for many it was the beginning of the true corporate sacking of America, and for Latin America it was a bloody era filled with state-sponsored terrorism. His solutions, like Pat Buchanan's and O'Reilly's, are not to face the challenges of the future, but to remain locked to a past, a past corrupted by their legalistic, radical idealism. The most dangerous aspect of this kind of propaganda is that it only serves the divide the nation instead of unifying it into a true, working culture that will advance. "Deliver Us From Evil" is empty in skill, and empty in ideas.
FINALLY!!!.......2007-01-23
Finally someone, in this case Sean Hannity, is able to cut through the liberal domination of the published world and drop some truth grenades on the battlefield of America. You say Liberalism I say Terrorism. In fact I can't tell the difference. It's the liberals who have declared jihad on the wombs of America's women. It is Liberals who strapped their [...] bombs to their bleeding hearts and blew up the church of marriage. And it is liberals who flew the plane into the second tower. I've heard one of the pilots was a 3rd cousin of Al Gore. Sean Hannity delivers us from evil...now if he could only get my pizza here on time.
Book Description
George W. Bush has launched a revolution in American foreign policy. He has redefined how America engages the world, shedding the constraints that friends, allies, and international institutions impose on its freedom of action. He has insisted that an America unbound is a more secure America.
How did a man once mocked for knowing little about the world come to be a foreign policy revolutionary? In America Unbound, Ivo H. Daalder and James M. Lindsay dismiss claims that neoconservatives have captured the heart and mind of the president. They show that George W. Bush has been no one's puppet. He has been a strong and decisive leader with a coherent worldview that was evident even during the 2000 presidential campaign.
Daalder and Lindsay caution that the Bush revolution comes with significant risks. Raw power alone is not enough to preserve and extend America's security and prosperity in the modern world. The United States often needs the help of others to meet the challenges it faces overseas. But Bush's revolutionary impulse has stirred great resentment abroad. At some point, Daalder and Lindsay warn, Bush could find that America's friends and allies refuse to follow his lead. America will then stand alone—a great power unable to achieve its most important goals.
Customer Reviews:
Helpful.......2006-12-23
Just read this helpful little book. Daalder and Lindsay describe President Bush's post-9/11 foreign policy revolution. It's easy to read and is a fine introduction into the world of neoconservatism (though he doesn't really use the term "neocon" to describe Bush's worldview). The authors point out that the Administration is a bit more heterogenus than most recognize: some of the folks around the President really believed in the power of democracy, some believed that America must remain strong and assertive to protect its national interests. As has been told many times, Bush had his attention elsewhere prior to 9/11: a little foreign policy, but mostly domestic issues - and certainly almost no focus on terrorism. That changed, of course. We can all dispute the long-term impact of the supposed Bush revolution in foreign policy, but if things don't turn around soon in Iraq - and now Afghanistan - we may see another quick revolution back to a more realism-based look at the world. As Daalder and Lindsay pointed out, thankfully there are relatively few people who want to do away with an internationalist perspective. Retreating to within our borders and the believe that oceans can protect us has been thoroughly rebuked by reality. But that does not mean that the power of military preemption (or prevention) should be our stated right as a powerful nation.
Daalder and Lindsay are most powerful in their analyses of the major speeches and documents to come from President Bush and his administration.
Helpful book, but others are better: Rise of the Vulcans by James Mann is far more useful for understanding the different viewpoints of the Administration. That and he offers compelling of the major players in the Bush administration (although there is little discussion about Bush himself).
A Comprehensive Review of Bush Starting With the First Election.......2005-11-30
The present book is a compelling read and covers many but not all of the major issues on terrorism and Iraq.
I feel like I have been on an overdose of these books just having read House of Bush, House of Saud by Craig Unger - the biggest tell all blockbuster (my opinion), The Choice by Zbigniew Brzezinski (an excellent analysis), Disarming Iraq by Hans Blix, Noam Chomsky's Hegemony of Survival (truly a book that makes one think), Thirty Days (about Tony Blair) by Peter Stothard, and Price of Loyalty by Paul O'Neill (excellent book), Why America Slept by Gerald Posner, the very popular best seller Against All Enemies by Richard Clarke, and the Rise of the Vulcans by Mann and Mann. I put together a "listmania" list of the 25 best books - the best books - mainly non political taken together, no strong bias conservative or liberal - a spectrum of opinion when you take them all together.
Many of the books are "gotcha" books that link Bush with some wrong doings or alternately books like Brzezinski that lay out solutions. This book is a bit different. It is more of a chronological history, and the book has been highly acclaimed by the Economist, NY Times etc. After reading I can see why.
I started to read the present book and was unable to put it down until I had read it virtually cover to cover. It is a surprisingly good book and neutral in tone and a compelling read - for myself it was a page turner. It brings together the story of Iraq and WMD's in chronological order (all briefly). It starts with the Bush campaign and what he says in his run for the presidency regarding foreign policy, his philosophy, the team that he put together, plus the authors put in some historical perspective starting with Washington, then Wilson, Truman, etc. It then works its way through pre and post 9-11, Afghanistan and Iraq until late 2003.
Surprisingly I found that this book is in almost complete agreement with some of the more recent "tell all" books (Blix, O'Neill, Clarke), and I would strongly recommend reading this book. The overlying theme or conclusion is that the intelligence was flawed and incomplete. Like the Hans Blix book there were no WMD's in Iraq. The Iraq war was pushed by Wolfowitz and others prior to 9-11, and can best be described as a distraction or even an incitement of Muslims towards anti-Amercian feelings. The invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan lacked realistic follow up plans for the post military invasion. So those conflicts still remain unresolved. Also, the more serious threats of Iran and North Korea remain almost unsolvable due to the potential negative consequences of a military solution for those cases including the threat of North Korea dropping nuclear weapons on South Korea.
An excellent book and I highly recommend.
A decent overview.......2004-11-29
The book is an adequate overview of President Bush's foreign policy through the first three years of his office. But it does not do justice to the more intelectually challenging questions of the administration's foreign policy such as why exactly did America go to war in Iraq and what kind of role are the neo-conservatives playing in the administration.
A reasoned, balanced critique of Bush's foreign policy.......2004-09-19
Unlike the rather vitrioic and harsh rhetoric of the Bush-hating left, this book presents a fair yet reasoned critique of the Bush foreign policy. It rebuts the common assertion that Bush is an idiot or that he is being a tool by a neo-conservative cabal.
As the authors demonstrate in this book, the major problem with American foreign policy under this administration is the rigid adherance to notions that are demonstratively false. The Bush Administration seems to believe that offending allies carries no risk and that multilateral institutions such as the United Nations, are worthless in the international sphere.
This view is dangerous and in my view, demonstrative of the stunning arrogance of the Bush Administration.
Engaging and thought provoking presentation.......2004-04-15
While obviously opposed to the Bush approach to foreign policy in general and to Iraq in particular, Ivo Daalder and James Lindsay have nonetheless succeeded in producing a remarkably fair book attempting to explain the reasons behind the President's about face from recent U.S. foreign policy. The attacks on 9/11 and other terrorist activities over the past decade had gradually convinced the President that the internationalist view espoused by Bill Clinton and his own father was simply no longer the answer. Bush has chosen instead to embark on a new unilateralist course favored by most of his senior advisors that the authors argue may be somewhat productive in the short run but likely to be a disaster over the long haul. Extremely well written, thoughtful and meticulously documented, this book should be an essential read for any citizen seeking to get up to speed on foreign policy issues before the 2004 Presidential election.
Customer Reviews:
Solid introduction.......2005-10-31
The general American needs to read this book. Hunt provides a solid and thoughtful introduction to the roots of American foreign policy, and does so in a clear and crisp way that makes this book suited for both academics and the average reader. Americans are sadly under-educated regarding their own history and Hunt should be the starting point for anybody interested in understanding where the foreign policy ambitions and motives of this nation come from.
A valuable study of the roots of American diplomacy.......2002-05-02
Many historians of diplomacy refer to some inchoate set of common principles and ideas that seems to lie behind all the twists and turns of American 20th-century foreign policy; Hunt actually tries to determine what that shared ideology was. He describes three basic components of this shared ideology: 1) America's vision of national greatness, 2) the American propensity to view the world's population in a hierarchy of race (and later culture as its substitute), and 3) America's growing disappointment and horror at failed revolutions of the 19th and 20th centuries. He makes a sound, logical argument, and this book holds an importance place in its field. Certainly, Americans have always believed (and rightly so, in my opinion) that theirs is the greatest political system on earth. Indisputably, Americans have tended to assign characteristics to peoples on the basis of race (from blacks to eastern Europeans to Asians). I can't buy as strongly into the effects of failed revolutions--surely, the French Revolution shocked and displeased Americans who expected it to be a revolution in the American vein and just the first in a series of changes that would bring peace and freedom to all peoples. The Bolshevik Revolution also affected Americans' views of the world significantly, but I think Hunt overexaggerates the fears generated at home by Third World revolutions abroad. As Hunt would be the first to admit, ideology alone cannot explain foreign policy, and I find that his arguments do not explain to my satisfaction the disparity between Jeffersonian/Wilsonian and Federalist/FDR/LBJ thinkers. Overall, though, I found this book noble in its intentions and quite utilitarian in covering a neglected area in the field of foreign policy.
Then I read the last chapter. After putting forth his arguments, Hunt feels compelled to proscribe a new, more effective foreign policy for the United States. The fact that this exceeds the purview of an historian is beyond the point. His suggestions for changing the ideological notions of American diplomacy strike me as dangerously isolationist (despite his assertion to the contrary), exceedingly liberal, and naïve. He basically argues that America should get out of the business of imperialism, stop worrying about what other countries are doing, and devote itself to creating social and political equality at home. The Cold War had not ended when this book was written, but his suggestion was that we basically let Communism determine its own future while we implement socialism at home. Hunt must have been terribly disappointed to see Ronald Reagan win the Cold War so soon after this book's publication because that victory invalidates many of his recommendations. Hunt's main contention is that America cannot simultaneously maintain liberty at home while working to spread freedom abroad--while I think he is completely wrong about this, the subject is being hotly debated in the context of the war on terrorism and will surely be debated for all time.
I do recommend this book. I disagree with his conclusions, but his points are presented clearly, and his insights into history are invaluable. I should also mention that he ends the book with a chapter discussing relevant books in the field of ideology and foreign policy--although his references seem weighted toward revisionist/leftist scholars, it is a very useful introduction to further readings in the important and always hotly debated field of American diplomacy.
Original, important analysis -- a must-read........2000-03-23
This is that rare combination of a serious intellectual effort for scholars and a highly-readable work that should satisfy a broader audience. Michael Hunt trained at Yale, and teaches at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. It's simply a remarkable book. I've used it teaching High School students, college and graduate school students, and adults wishing to broaden their understanding of the complex motivations that underpin foreign policy.
A thoughtful and incredible study........1998-06-04
I have just finished my master's thesis on American foreign policy and Michael Hunt's book was one of the foundations of my study. It is a highly readable and fascinating study. I can recommend it for the general reader as well as the academic. It is one of the most insightful books I have ever read.
Book Description
Writing from his own experience in politics and drawing on his knowledge of history, Bill Bradley shows how the Republican Party and the Democratic Party both fail to deal with the real issues that now confront America. He then issues an informed and inspiring call to action addressed not only to the parties and elected leaders but to citizens as well. With this transformative and eye-opening book, Bill Bradley elevates the level of public discourse to illuminate the danger and the promise of our current American moment.
Customer Reviews:
A "HOW-TO" for citizenship and political leadership.......2007-09-29
Why should you read this?
- If you care about our democracy and want to help make it strong again
- If you want to understand the big domestic challenges we face today
- If you want thoughtful proposals to addresses those challenges
- If you want to better the understand the Democratic and Republican parties; what makes them function, what makes them DYSFUNCTIONAL
- If you want to hear an insider's take on what makes our democracy tick, what makes it great, and what threatens its survival
This is a terrific book. If I had the money, I'd buy one for every member of Congress.
I listened to this book unabridged on audio, narrated by Michael Prichard. He does a good job capturing Bill Bradley's dignity, but to my ear doesn't quite capture his enthusiasm and passion for good government.
excellent.......2007-08-28
bradley is a truly brilliant man. the book is filled with hundreds of good ideas. hopefully he will stay involved in politics. the problem is that the people who need to read this book will not. our government is controlled by big business and greedy men with their own agendas. how soon is that going to change? i highly reccomend this book.
Call to Greatness.......2007-08-20
You'd swear Bill Bradley was running for office or dashing down court for a breakaway three-pointer. This one-time presidential contender and New York Knicks superstar writes with the energy and urgency of a man on a mission.
Read his book, The New American Story, and you'll be tempted to join him. Bradley has issued a powerful call to action--one that promises to rescue our nation from political infighting and restore America's leadership role in the world.
His is not a story of military might and moral superiority; it is the story of our nation's founding principles, written by the men and women whose active engagement at pivotal points in history assured the country lived up to its highest ideals.
We have a choice before us that could transcend our current state of affairs, says Bradley. A choice that puts country over political party, the common good over the distracting issues that divide us.
One of our nation's most admired leaders--Abraham Lincoln--knew a thing or two about bringing a divided nation together. When he was president, Lincoln would often sneak out of the White House on Wednesday nights to hear sermons of a well-known preacher at the New York Presbyterian Church. One night, an aide asked Lincoln what he had thought of the sermon. "The content was excellent. The minister had a strong voice and a good delivery," said Lincoln, pausing. "But he forgot the most important part. He didn't ask us to do something great."
Bill Bradley is asking us to do something great.
"The answers to our problems rest in our hearts as well as in our heads," Bradley says in the introduction to his book, "and until we understand that, we'll make marginal improvements, but we won't make the quantum leaps that our Founders made and hoped we would continue."
I am drawn to stories of ordinary Americans who overcame obstacles to achieve great things. Freedom fighters on the Underground Railroad. Journalists who exposed unethical business practices at the turn of the 20th century. The immigrants who built our transcontinental railroad. A country lawyer who became a United States Supreme Court Justice, America's chief prosecutor of Nazi War criminals, and the founder of international law. These are the stories I want people around the world to know about when they think of America and its unique contributions to the world. That's why my husband and I make historical documentaries for a living.
Bill Bradley's book had me from hello, or at least from the moment I read the book jacket blurbs written by David McCullough, David Halberstam, Doris Kearns Goodwin and Robert A. Caro, all Pulitzer Prize winners. Because I love history, and because I believe in the strength of our nation's collective character, I kept on reading.
There is no question the bold policies outlined in Bill Bradley's book will be hotly debated in the coming weeks. He takes both political parties to task, taking aim at the current administration's policies with the finesse of a seasoned athlete and senator. And while I don't agree with every single one of Bradley's strategies on health care, education, environment, tax reform, and national defense, if this American story is to have a happy ending, I, like all other Americans, will have to look for common ground, and make sacrifices for the greater good.
Bill Bradley has faith that, given the right information--the true American story--we will do the right thing.
Current state of affairs for the middle class .......2007-08-07
I confess I have read many other books on the current status quo and state of politics in our country before reading this book. If you have too, this may be a bit repetitive as most issues have been discussed before. What I do like about Bill Bradley's book is it is not simply a laundry list of complaints. He offers at the end of each chapter (designated to each issue) some thought out solutions. This is a good book for eye-opening for our major issues - health care, education, energy... and would recommend it to readers who want to learn more about the who, what and why our social issues are being ignored by government. I also recommend "War on the Middle Class" by Lou Dobbs or "Screwed: The Undeclared War Against the Middle Class -- And What We Can Do About It" by Thom Hartmann. I enjoyed reading those a little more.
Long-winded and Confusing Story.......2007-07-29
I'll confess right up front that I haven't finished the book yet, and I'll update this review when I do. I'm still slogging through lengthy, wandering passages that fail to make any points. I keep waiting for any kind of "here's a solution" or "here's what we should do" sentence, but I have yet to find one. He spends a lot of pages in the first 25% of the book telling the reader about the "story" that he says we're being told -- by whom? On every issue he seems to pick the most extreme right-wing position as representative of this "story" rather than the positions that the majority of Republicans and conservatives hold. And thus far all he's offered for his "new story" is idealistic pie-in-the-sky notions with no plan to get there. I trust that he gets there in the second half of the book.
Just one example of the poor writing and editing: In the section titled "Inequality" in chapter on The Economy, he goes on for quite a while about financial inequality, then about globalization and technological change, finally claiming that you can no longer get ahead by working hard. He then admits that that there is no way around benefiting the wealthy if you want to encourage investment. And then this sentence:
"But there is no excuse for failing to conduct rigorous oversight of and increase resources to education ... which in the long run will result in ... greater equality."
Okay, he tied it back into equality, but how did he suddenly switch from tax cuts and investing and unions to education in the middle of the same paragraph? Where did this out-of-the-blue accusation come from that someone isn't overseeing and funding education? I'm not agreeing or disagreeing with that accusation, just pointing out that it's completely out of place in any kind of logical or narrative flow.
And so goes this story so far. I'll keep at it and hope the writing and presentation of ideas tightens up. Maybe his publisher paid him by the word...
Book Description
What road did Americans travel to reach their current global preeminence? Taking the long historical view, Hunt demonstrates that wealth, confidence, and leadership were key elements to America's ascent. In an analytic narrative that illuminates the past rather than indulges in political triumphalism, he provides crucial insights into the country's problematic place in the world today. Hunt charts America's rise to global power from the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries to a culminating multilayered dominance achieved in the mid-twentieth century. He examines how the United States remade great power relations, fashioned limits for the third world, and shaped our current international economic and cultural order. Hunt concludes by addressing current issues, such as how durable American power really is and what options remain for America's future.
Book Description
In The Global Gamble, Peter Gowan argues that, since the collapse of the Soviet bloc, the US government has been pursuing an attempt to construct a global empire--a unipolar world in which Washington can control and shape the pattern of economic and political change in all regions of the globe. Only by understanding this ambition can we grasp the dynamics of international politics and economics in the contemporary world. Gowan explores the origins and distinctive forms of Washington's imperial project, from the collapse of the Soviet bloc through to the Gulf War of 1991, developments in the European Union, the enlargement of NATO and East Asian financial collapse. He also explores the efforts of various neo-liberal intellectuals to legitimate the American project in terms of liberalism. He concludes that the US Faustian project is almost certainly doomed to failure and unless plans are made now for such an eventuality, the world could face grave and possibly catastrophic breakdowns early in the next century.
Customer Reviews:
A Class by Itself.......2005-07-29
This book offers the most lucid descriptions of several crucial issues that you are likely to ever encounter. It is well structured, rational, specific, and well documented. Gowan renders a superb treatment of: the role of expediency in the collapse of Bretton Woods, the benefit to the Dollar-Wall Street Regime from global financial and macro-economic gyrations, the mechanisms whereby currency manipulation has a disproportionate effect on other countries, the mobilization of hedge fund attack-capital in producing the Asian Financial Crisis & the leveraging of that crisis to radically restructure East Asian domestic policy, the regional forces surrounding the first Gulf War, the disastorous implementation of the capitalist transition on Eastern Europe, and finally the way Social Democratic and formerly Communist parties danced around as they implemented this transition. This is one of the best books around concerning the motives, objectives and consequences of DC geo-political-economic policy during the '90's, it cannont fail to inform you and demythologize this sphere: it is free of demonization, over-simplification or brash rhetoric, the facts and figures are crisp and readily understandable without being overly general or conspicuously emphasized. Highest Possible Recommendation!!
The Truth Behind The Plan.......2003-11-28
Peter Gowan, writing in a sobber and technical way, clearly demonstrates the incredible amount of premeditation that the United States used to begin his fight for global economic domination, beginning with the Nixon instructed ending of the gold-dollar arrangment.
The US sometimes is not aware that his politics, controlling the IMF, the World Bank and the World Trade Organization, is making their ruling class richier and richier, and the world poorer and poorer, and this situation will not stand for long.
This is a great book. No wonder it has so few reviews here, since people are not interested in knowing what's going on in all the ruined economies around the world, mos of them ruined not only bytheir own incompetence, but also by the IMF rules, when the IMF is nothing more than a puppet to Washington...
On Target Perspective.......2002-11-14
Can globalization be understood as the strictly market-driven phenomenon its proponents claim it to be. No, argues Peter Gowan, an editor of New Left Review. Such a narrow economic focus provides little real insight into the forces and objectives behind the American-led push to globalize. Instead, Gowan insists, there is a political component to the equation too often overlooked, yet it is this political component that provides the needed framework. Key here is what Gowan terms the Dollar Wall Street Regime (DWSR), a collaboration between Wall Street and financial organs of government. Contrary to orthodox opinion, DWSR views the relation between the state and the private sector as an essentially cooperative one, at least at the upper reaches of big business. Thus an intertwining of politics and economics stands behind the American drive for global dominance, a strategy that makes coordinate use of both state and private resources. Characterizing DWSR are two far-reaching and controversial theses. First, despite current wisdom, the state remains a key actor on the international stage, at least in the industrialized world; and second, there is nothing inevitable about a globalizing process once the role of political choice is understood. Taken together, these contentions challenge not only widely-held mainstream beliefs but swathes of ideological opinion on both left and right.
Gowan traces the historical evolution of DWSR in Part One, with an emphasis on international financial jockeying. Part Two focuses on the political dimension, particularly as it bears on the Middle East and eastern Europe. DWSR's capacity to illuminate is especially strong when dealing with post-cold war events in eastern Europe. Here it's fascinating to note the architect of Shock Therapy Jeffrey Sachs' incomprehension of how his measures are used to subjugate the region to US and European interests, instead of conforming to his more egalitarian theoretical model. Or, put another way, DWSR deceitfully uses a concrete program like Shock Therapy for selfish political ends, despite rhetoric to the contrary -- rhetoric Sachs apparently takes at face value, leaving him no one to blame for the failures except bumbling bureaucrats. As the author points out, Shock Therapy actually worked quite effectively as one component in the West's drive to subordinate the economies of former Soviet Bloc states.
Gowan's book is invaluable for making sense of current global developments: evidence of an axis like the DWSR appears overwhelming in daily news accounts, both foreign (Iraqi oil-grab) and domestic (Enron revelations). The author's style is scholarly, yet accessible to the serious reader, even though an index and bibliography would have been helpful. It's unfortunate that the work appears to be going largely unnoticed on the Amazon web. It certainly deserves a much better outcome.
Sorry I Bought It..........2001-11-13
Alas! I disagree with Michael M: reading this book was a waste of my time, and buying it a waste of my money. The problem is that he gets the "inside" story pretty much completely wrong...
highly recommended.......2001-06-11
An excellent book, I learned a great deal and enjoyed reading it several times. This book explains a great deal about what goes on behind the scenes, political maneuvering and financial engineering the US uses to gain more and more power in world affairs. It helped me understand several key areas of international investing and globalization, it was especially helpful in regards to the asian financial crisis. Unfortunately i do agree with one of the themes of the book, namely that the united states will most likely fail in its attempt to control the world via globalization. More unfortunately, I believe the failure and collapse of globalization will end in financial disaster in which hyper-inflation is a distinct possibillity as our fiat currency and derivative pyramid / stock market bubble comes crashing down. My only hope is that the day of reckoning is still several years from now (maybe 2007-2010).
Book Description
In The Crisis of American Foreign Policy, noted scholar Howard J. Wiarda argues that the foreign policy of the United States reflects the divisions and dysfunctions we see in our domestic culture and society. This text tackles such critical issues as ethnocentrism in foreign policy as well as U.S. efforts to extend democracy, human rights, and civil society in other countries. Key areas covered include Europe, Asia, Africa, Latin America, and the Middle East. Concise, clearly written, well-organized, challenging, and provocative, this is a text that students and professors alike will appreciate.
Book Description
Outsourcing is no longer just a problem for factory workers. Suddenly, software writers and radiologists are easier to hire and work with in India than in Indiana. But who can fault companies for hiring competent labor wherever it's cheapest? Cost cutting is the engine of capitalism: the worst economic system in the world—except for all the rest! So before we go blaming "Benedict Arnold CEOs" and "greedy capitalists," consider this:
Thanks to the public education system liberals have defended for the past forty years, many high school graduates are nearly functionally illiterate. Not so in India.
Thanks to lobbyists and pro-union immigration laws, foreigners aren't allowed to stay in the country after they finish their Ph.D.s. So they're starting companies overseas instead of here.
Thanks to our liberal tax system, employers have to pay extra for American workers to fund Social Security—which no one believes will be solvent in a few decades.
Thanks to a legal system that favors the plaintiff, employers in the United States must worry about lawsuits over spilled hot coffee, trumped up sexual harassment charges, and other frivolous cases.
This election year, we'll hear a lot of complaining that big business is abandoning the little guy and being unpatriotic. But it's actually left-leaning politicians who have made America less competitive. Respected economist Todd G. Buchholz will recommend fixes for our education, immigration, tax, and legal systems that will make America lean and muscular again—and make our labor pool the most attractive in the world.
Customer Reviews:
A wonderful read!.......2006-01-29
This is a wonderful read. Definitely invest in buying it. You won't regret it, no matter what your political convictions.
Brilliant and Humorous.......2006-01-29
I loved this book; it was funny, informative, and very well written. For those who want a quick, new, and great approach on today's economical situations.
Contrary to Close Minded Liberal's beliefs, It is great!.......2006-01-29
This is an absolutely excellent book. Even if you are a democrat, unless you are completely close minded and ignorant, you will enjoy it. Not too politically biased, the book gives the current economic challenges of outsourcing a comical spin, and puts things in perspective. I loved it, and recommend it for anyone; regardless of whether you care a great deal about the economy, it is a funny and enlightening quick-read.
Barely can be Considered Book about Outsourcing.......2006-01-17
When I picked up this book I thought it would offer me two things. I thought it would be about outsourcing and it would provide solutions to the problems. Sadly, Buchholz's book did neither. Instead, it provided many critiques from an American capitalist's point of view about society. In that regard it did a satisfactory job, although there are many popular books that did a far better job of doing it (Sowell's Basic Economics and even Stossel's Give me a Break).
The first 20 pages of the book offered hope that it'd stay on the topic of outsourcing; however even they were disappointing. There were few facts supporting free trade or details about why outsourcing can help an economy. After the first chapter Buchholz quickly veers off outsourcing and into taxes, education, tort reform and many other faults within our society. In doing this though he rarely talks about how they relate to outsourcing. This book is especially lacking in any quantitative analysis. Many of these facts are seen as given and therefore don't require support. Finally, his last chapter on our cultural exports seemed to be a socially conservative polemic that was out of place in an otherwise economically focused book. If you are looking for a book about outsourcing or an above introductory look at economic problems in the United States, I'd look elsewhere. Buchholz's book is strictly for those who haven't read alot about modern American politics and are looking for a partisan introduction to them.
The main positive about this book is it's an easy and quick read. At 179 pages you won't waste too much time on it. The author does a very good job at making the book flow. He adds many pop culture references, although they seem forced at times. Because of the very fluid writing style and his obvious intelligence, I might give his other books a chance. But hopefully they'll be a little better content wise than this one.
Why.......2005-08-26
Buchholz thinks that expensive us workers and high taxes are to blame for outsourcing, yet the real reason is greed. If company X can find cheap work in a third world country then, they'll go there.. Why pay $5, when you can pay 5 cents. Also the Bush admin thinks thinks outsoucing is a good thing. Sure outsoucing was around when Dems were in power, but it hasnt gone yet. Blame both parties.
Book Description
Senator Edward Kennedy reveals his inspired plan to revive the lapsed ideals of our nation
With a Senate career that has spanned more than four decades, Edward M. Kennedy has become one of the strongest voices in American politics. In America Back on Track, he argues that America is at a crossroads, having reached a point where it has departed more deeply from its fundamental ideals than at any time in its modern history. In response to the erosion of the nationÂ's basic values, he presents a sweeping agenda for reform and renewal, speaking to the countryÂ's most significant needs at home and abroad. National security, the war in Iraq, terrorism, and key domestic challenges such as jobs, health care, education, civil rights, energy, and the environment all receive major attention in his proposals to counter the harmful policies of the current administration, restore AmericaÂ's respect in the world, and create a better America here at home where democracy, individual opportunity, equal justice, and innovation can flourish. With his first major policy book in more than twenty years, Senator Kennedy takes an in- depth look at our modern political landscape and offers innovative policies that he genuinely believes will guide the country effectively to the future.
Customer Reviews:
The swimmer fails again.......2007-09-30
Only in Massachusetts can this fat blowhard be taken seriously. This book is a rambling attack on President Bush. Bush is evil. Bush is causing inflation. Bush is the cause of terrorism. Blah, blah, blah.
There is almost nothing that Teddy does not blame Bush for. I also get the impression that he dearly wishes that he was 20 years younger. I don't get the impression that he is wildly impressed with the Democratic candidates for 2008.
The most ironic part of the book is where Kennedy attempts to speak for the virtues of the "common man, the factory worker, etc.". He would know a common man if his life depended on it. And Mary Jo Koepekne was not available for comment.
America Way Off Track.......2006-08-23
This audio book was informative, and yet a dissappointment.
The entire book was riddled with finger pointing towards Bush and his administration. According to Kennedy almost every problem with our country today is because of George Bush's bully tactics, secrecy, illegal actions etc. Even problems that were around before Bush, made a turn for the worse when he got into office, according to Kennedy. After all this he has the nerve to demand more positive politics.
The biggest dissappointment of this whole book was the lack of direction we Americans can take. I was taught all my life to not focus on the problem if you can't offer a good solution. Kennedy has many solutions, and good ones (if somewhat unrealistic). The problem is that all of his solutions say what your country can do for you, not what you can do for your country. Maybe his brother's dogma is worthless now? I hope not.
There is nothing you can do to get "America Back on Track" except vote Democrat.
A Call To Action.......2006-07-16
In "America: Back On Track", the Honorable Senator of Massachusetts provides the nation his vision to "reawaken the belief in progress" this nation holds dear. Senator Kennedy display's to the world how America can recover the values it holds dear. He breaks down these values into seven challenges such as reaching a true state of equality, real national security, and reclaiming our constitutional democracy. He provides the reader with the problem, history, facts, and then issues us his thoughts on how to fix the problem.
The words of Senator Kennedy should be burned into the minds of public policy and political science students - both Democrat and Republican. As a political icon, Senator Kennedy's publication offers us a rare glimpse of why this country has gone so far off track and how to bring it back. Senator Kennedy and leaders like him have offered us their thoughts, it is up to the citizens of this great nation to take it in action.
A Clear, Reasonable, and Workable Political Alternative.......2006-07-07
I both enjoyed and was encouraged by Senator Kennedy's thoughtful book. On the pages of this book, he presents a clear, reasonable, and workable legislative agenda, covering a wide variety of areas, that seeks to correct the mistakes of the current administration. If one is looking for alternatives to the current political mess, both foreign and domestic, in which we as Americans find ourselves, I recommend this book.
Because I have a deep respect for and interest in the political activities of the Kennedy family, my only regret is that the book would have included more anecdotal and autobiographical material. As a legislator, I think, Senator Kennedy is one of the best!
Well Aimed Novel, Lacks Specifics.......2006-07-04
America Back on Track is a well research by look into the coming years of American politics. By closely examining the over four decades he has spent as a senator, Kennedy tries to assemble a plan to remedy what he considers to be mistakes of the Bush Administration. The book covers a wide subject area and includes a great deal of useful data; however, it lacks specifics for Kennedy's plan to get America "back on track." More information could have been included about the specific legislation that would be coming in the next few years. At exactly 200 pages, it is a quick read and worth spending the afternoon it would take to finish it.
Book Description
From the acclaimed globalization critic, a far-reaching analysis of America's military, economic, and political vulnerabilityThe empire seems unassailable, but the empire is weak-and precisely because of its imperial ambitions. So argues Walden Bello's provocative new book, which systematically dissects the strategic, economic, and political dilemmas confronting America as a consequence of its quest for global domination.An award-winning development expert, Bello shows how despite the enormity of the U.S. defense budget, American forces are already overextended, a condition bound to intensify as each local "victory" breeds simmering resistance and new confrontation. He points to the empire's looming economic breakdown, the result of its gargantuan military costs, record-breaking deficits, and exploitative trade and investment relations with developing countries. On the political front, he warns of the bitter disillusionment mounting around the world in response to America's failure to champion liberal democracy. Everywhere America goes, crony capitalism, hostile coercion, and gross inequalities in income eat away at expectations of justice and inclusion.A clear and prophetic examination, Dilemmas of Domination reveals a not-too-distant future in which the empire's hidden weaknesses will yield fatal challenges to American supremacy.
Customer Reviews:
The weak must hang together, otherwise they hang separately.......2005-11-05
In this stringent view from the South, Walden Bello discerns three different crisis levels beleaguering the US world domination: a military, a judicial and an economical level.
On the military front, the Iraq war shows clearly the limits of interventon: 'today the entire US military is either in Iraq, returning from Iraq or getting ready to go.'
The lesson for the South is that the US military supremacy can be brought to a halt with guerrilla warfare. A sledgehammer is useless in swatting flies.
On the judicial front, the US is loosing its legitimacy.
In Western societies, enhancement of individual freedom and democratic representation are the ideological cornerstones of the regime.
Nationally, recognized human rights (no access to personal information, privacy) are jeopardized in the US by the Patriot Act in the name of the war against terrorism.
For Walden Bello, the US government is becoming authoritarian, because it is in the hands of the military-industrial complex, which functions on a risk-free, cost-plus basis and grabs one half of the US budget. He quotes judiciously William Pfaff: 'The military is already the most powerful institution in the US government, largely unaccountable to the executive branch.'
Internationally, consensus and multilateralism are needed through international institutions.
However, the US behaves unilaterally. Dealings with the South are subordinated to strategic considerations (R. Zoellick: 'countries that seek free trade agreements with the US must cooperate on its foreign policy goals.')
Walden Bello's analysis of the WTO agreements is devastating. He calls them a free trade monopoly in the hands of corporate interests. WTO's agreement on Agriculture is not less than 'Socialism for the Rich'.
The result is that the US democratic messianism is seen as sheer hypocrisy by the rest of the world.
Economically, some of Walden Bello's arguments are a little of the mark.
Finite natural resources and ecological space are demographic problems. The conflict between a minority in command of assets and the majority of the population is a trade union and an election problem.
But some of his arguments are to the point. There is a widening inequality gap in the US: the richest 1% of the population pocketed more than half the benefit of the latest tax reduction. The actual US budget and trade deficits are unsustainable in the long run and certainly if the inflow of foreign capital comes to a halt.
Finally, there is a new hegemon at the horizon: China with its state-assisted capitalism. The author summarizes brilliantly China's behavior: 'nations have no permanent friends, only permanent interests.'
But what should the South do in the meantime: regional economic blocks, G-20, South-South cooperation, because 'the weak must hang together, otherwise they will hang separately'.
Walden Bello's hard hitting analysis of current events should be a vademecum for all politiciams and laymen.
A must read.
In this context, I also recommend the works of Nafeez Mosaddeq Ahmed and Noreena Hertz.
Free trade as a tool for domination.......2005-10-26
I've read lots of books about globalization and free trade but none exposes the uneven playing field of free trade as good as Walden Bello. He shows that not only the evenness of playing field but also how the way U.S. is imprudently trying to dominate the world by adapting short sighted policies. These kind of policies have become the distinctive mark of recent American ideology domestically and foreign.
Dilemmas indeed.......2005-04-29
The problems of the US mount daily from a ballooning deficit to heightened opposition from multiplying points on the globe. Walden Bello's Dilemmas of Domination is a tour de force dissection of the causes of these mounting problems. He argues from an objective and non-partisan position in the global South. Because he primarily works outside of the US and because his method relies heavily on history, his account is compelling. Dilemmas of Domination contends that the US has entered into a period of decline as the world's hegemon. Three crises characterize the loss of power and prestige. The first crisis is the problem of manufacturing and raw materials overproduction that leads to a decline in profits, and as wages are squeezed to stabilize profits demand falls further. Added to these problems is the fact that the US, the consumer of last resort, cannot continue to borrow and buy forever. The IOUs to the rest of the world will eventually have to be repaid. A second critical problem is military overextension. According to Bello, the wars on Afghanistan and Iraq demonstrate the US is not invincible. If it were, how could guerillas continue to move about these occupied nations so freely and make nation-building into such a farce? The US military is so strained that it has to hire mercenaries from companies like Blackwater to protect its corporate interests abroad because a draft would undermine all of its imperial adventures. The third crisis, perhaps the most enduring, is legitimacy. Ideologically, the US has lost its currency to lead the world. Because the US dominates international financial institutions like the IMF, World Bank and most of the regional development banks, their imposition of neo-liberal structural adjustments programs has led to a revolt against their destructive policies as witnessed by the left ferment especially in Latin America but also in the rest of the global South. Furthermore, the US bullying and sometimes insulting treatment of the UN has further sullied the US's reputation. Added to this international delegitimation is the quagmire of domestic politics from the surrender of civil liberties to the patently obvious corporate control of both major parties. For readers looking for a rich and clear formulation of why the US government is detested and feared by much of the earth's population this is the best primer.
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- History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
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Let Freedom Ring: Winning the War of Liberty over Liberalism
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