Rating: 
Summary: The terrorist Trap
Review: Required reading for History class and now need to write a paper
Rating: 
Summary: Absolutely Brilliant
Review: The moral of the story is as follows: Every tragic event that occurs is quickly utilized in the name of political advantage.
The book describes various changes that have taken place since 911 which would have not occurred otherwise and are not known to the general populous. The transition is then made to the wars in Afganistan and Iraq, which follow as a natural consequence. Reasons for these wars are also given. Parenti's logic is so strict that is impossible to find a fault in it. References are provided for all the statements that are made.
Rating:
Summary: A pocket rocket of political perspective!
Review: This little book is a masterful creation. It's short, easy to read, and hard-hitting. Parenti explains in plain language why the American government is so despised around the world. He shows that the U.S. kills civilians elsewhere on a regular basis (e.g. 30,000 in Nicaragua during the Reagan years, 2 million in Vietnam), but makes no apology for it. He shows that the U.S. government cares about oil, money, and corporate profits far more than about global problems such as AIDS, hunger, or deforestation. His chapter on Afghanistan is particularly helpful, especially when showing that Afghan women were doing very well before the U.S. supported the Taliban and Osama bin Laden and fueled a war which killed 1.5 million Afghans. As a college instructor, I will surely assign this to my students, who will enjoy debating Parenti's arguments. Highest recommendation!
Rating: 
Summary: Needed Context
Review: This little booklet does economically what the President cravenly forbids us to do--put the events of Sept. 11 into historical context. In succinct fashion, Parenti shows how US-led elimination of progressives in Afghanistan paved the way for Muslim fundamentalism as the governing ideology and sole remaining resistance to globalization. He also demonstrates how the terror attack facilitates the right-wing agenda here at home, creating conditions ripe for Security State exploitation. I particlarly like his riff on that platitude about "a world changed forever". There is also a refreshing absence of breast-beating over the horrific nature of the attack, since American sponsored atrocities of similar scope are rather common fare in the rest of the world. And though much of the interventionist material is familiar to Parenti readers, reminders of those atrocities are required by context. Still and all, I wish he had deepened Chapter one, the most topical chapter, which could have used more detailed discussion of the immediate aftermath. Nonetheless, Sept. 11 cries out for those perspectives systematically filtered out of the media as too threatening to corporate rule. As always, Parenti's commentary remains an enlightening one, and deserves to be read by all, especially those well-meaning folks blinded by bumper stickers and the blur of red, white and blue.
Rating:
Summary: A fine performance from Dr. Parenti
Review: What are the true motives of the gangsters of the Bush administration and their colleagues in congress as described by the learned Marxist-Leninist author? Well, to exploit 9-11 to strengthen the powerful interests they represent. They attempted to get their "stimulas package" i.e. even more tax cuts and tax refunds for the corporate world, through congress. The gave billions to the airlines with no strings attached, airlines which, as he notes had been in financial difficulties before 9-11. The problem with the airlines, Parenti basically says, is that they couldn't compete once the industry was deregulated. They too much competition so they couldn't make any profits from taking a huge slice of the market share, so their friends in D.C. came in to protect them from the invisible hand of the market. Of course helping the tens of thousands of laid off workers would be against free-market principles. Mr. Parenti says that tax cuts for corporations is really illogical since these scum have been making more money than they ever have been. .... And of course after 9-11 we heard from the administration's trade representative that we must confront Bin Laden and the other enemies of freedom by passing "fast track" legislation which legalizes the right of the president to sign trade agreements with scant congressional or any other involvement so now we can get more agreements which further the process whereby governments can no longer place hindrances on corporations plundering labor and resources unless in the extremely unlikely event that unelected representatives from the corporate world on secret tribunals declare them to be OK. He notes that the United states governent is the greatest terrorist in the modern world. Our government has slaugtered millions of poor people lately in Afghanistan and trained death squads and overthrown governments that obstruct transnational corporations from plundering their countries. You know the list. He surveys the quite bad effects of U.S. intervention in Grenada and Panamma. Our government is the leader in pushing on poor countries neoliberal programs from the World bank and IMF which places countries in virtually permanent debt and forces them to privitize all essential services so that you don't get clean water or decent health care if you need it but rather if you can purchase clean water and health care at market price and if it is profitable for the private sector put such things on the market for you. Our government provides massive aid which props up terrible dictatorships in the Arab/Moslem worlds, dictatorships which stifle civil society and give rise to hopelessness and despair give rise to Bin Laden type groups. He places Afghanistan under the Soviet backed regime as an example of the U.S. working to destroy a government which provided for the needs of its people. He notes that the regime gave free health care, gender equality, free education, land reform and so on to the deeply poor peasant masses and this provided the basis for the U.S. to support the landowning and Islamic oligarchy as represented by the Mujahadeen "freedom fighters"--barbaric killers significantly representing the Northern Alliance--, as early as six months before the Soviets actually invaded. U.S. support for Afghan Islamic reactionaries produced all sorts of results including powerful organizations created by Afghan war vetrans like Bin Landen full of many other war vetrans who have been responsible for many of the more infamous acts of retail terrorism in the past decade. He is right in alot of things on this issue but he seem to want to idealize the Soviet backed regime which on the whole governed in the matter of Saddam Hussein
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