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Devastating Society

Devastating Society

Bernd Hamm

(2005)

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Book Details

Abstract

United in their opposition to the neo-conservatism underpinning America's current political strategies, the contributors offer a grounded critique of the real impact that these policies make, at home and abroad.

Starting with a close analysis of the Bush administration and the neo-conservative hold on power in Washington, they move on to a broader historical analysis. They set today's topical issues in the context of what they see as a gradual shift towards the right in American politics, and the creeping corporatisation of American society. The contributors show that September 11 was used by the Bush administration to clamp down on civil liberties at home and to step up an aggressive line in foreign policy. The impact on American society, and societies elsewhere, has been deeply damaging.

Ranging over this and other topics including the US economy, corporate crime and anti-environmentalism, this book is ideal for anyone who wants a critical introduction to current affairs issues, set within the broader context of America's history of foreign interventions and global capitalism.
'An important and fascinating book, which gives an original and scathing insight into the workings of the far right of American society and its impacts on social justice'
Jean Ziegler, University of Geneva
'A much-needed antidote both to simplistic anti-American rhetoric and to the view that current trends lead toward peaceful and sustainable futures'
Richard Slaughter, Foresight International, President, World Futures Studies Federation
'Every American ought to read these indictments of the G. W. Bush administration's self-righteous attacks on honesty, fairness, decency, and the rule of law'
Wendell Bell, Yale University

Table of Contents

Section Title Page Action Price
Contents v
Abbreviations and Acronyms vi
Preface xi
Introduction 1
Part I: The Power Cadres 19
1. The Bush Family Saga—Airbrushed out of History 21
2. War Hawks and the Ugly American: The Origins of Bush's Central Asia and Middle East Policy 47
3. September 11 and the Bush Administration: Compelling Evidence for Complicity? 67
Part II: The Neo-conservative Destruction of American Society 89
4. Above the Law: Executive Powers after September 11 91
5. The Vulnerabilities of an Economic Colossus 110
6. The Way Towards Corporate Crime 130
7. Poverty, Homelessness in the US Today 151
8. Beyond the Texas Oil Patch: The Rise of Anti-Environmentalism 163
Part III: The World Hegemon 183
9. Wars of Terror 185
10. A Concise History of US Global Interventions, 1945 to the Present 204
11. Global Poverty in the Late Twentieth Century 247
Part IV: The Other America 265
12. Dissenting Groups and Movements 267
Notes on the Authors 291
Index 297