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9/11!
I came upon After 9/11 from a link after being thoroughly disappointed by the brief work by Noam Chomsky on September 11th. Chomsky's line has become predictable and overplayed - the lack of US morality in foreign policy, the mainstream media blackout of issues, the tyranny of capitalism, and so on. Books like After 9/11 are a breath of fresh air when compared to the dogma that dominates most widely-published left intellectuals.

After 9/11 covers a whole spectrum of issues related to the tragedy , going on the traditional political and economic analysis of the causes of the terrorist attacks. There are articles covering issues like labor, activism, commercialized patriotismeven hip-hop and post-traumatic sex!

This is a refreshing work, and I only wish it was more visible in the consciousness of Americans (Has anyone seen this title in bookstores).

Best of the Bunch
I found After 9/11 to be a standout work that differs from most 9-11 related books on shelves today. While it seems that many of these works were rushed to print in a quick response to the tragedies, After 9/11 is the most balanced work that I have seen in the body of September 11th publications.

After 9/11 is a compilation of articles and essays from many of the familiar faces of left-of-center commentary - Barbara Ehrenreich, Jim Hightower, Arianna Huffington, and so forth. The book, however, features a rich mix of opinions not just from talking heads, but from intelligensia (Edward Said, Michael Klare, Stephen Zunes), government officials (Congresswoman Barbara Lee, former Secretary of Labor Robert Reich, and even a Navy Vice Admiral), and activists.

The result is a blend of opinions that isn't as didactic and prescriptive as many of the works from the left. After 9/11 is broken into three intuitive sections - What Has Changed, How Did We Get Here, and Solutions - and it really succeeds where others have failed in trying to voice possible solutions that are workable for this complex debacle. I found it a refreshing collection of opinions that have been too often marginalized by the mainstream media.

This book covers a broad range of issues, as the back cover indicates -- national security, civil liberties, our economy, and our view of ourselves and the rest of the world. It is clearly intended for an American audience, for readers who are feeling like they aren't getting the full story from mainstream media outlets.

Most of the pieces are short and concise, having been published previously as articles in various sources. The editors of this work really did a great job in compiling these works. Of particular interest to me were the pieces by John Tirman ("Unintended Consequences"), Danny Schechter ("The Global News We Ignore Can Be Fatal"), and a touching human interest story by Tamim Ansary imploring the US not to bomb Afghanistan ("The Taliban: An Afghan-American Speaks").

While I had never heard of the publisher before, I have to say I was rather impressed by the newscoverage on Alternet's website... A good bet for any devotee of NPR or PBS. ... Read more

Isbn: 0963368710
Sales Rank: 755933
Subjects: 1. Current Affairs 2. General 3. International 4. Political 5. Politics - Current Events 6. Politics/International Relations

The Dirty Truth, The Oil and Chemical Dependency of George W. Bush
by Rick Abraham
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Paperback (02 October, 2000)
list price: $12.95 -- our price: $11.01
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Reviews (9)

A great book that neads proofreading...
As a previous reviewer stated, if edited correctly, this book would have gotten the highest rating possible, and even more. The author successfully shows how GW is an oil-addicted, old-time republican, sort of a fox let loose in the chicken coop. Anyone who doubts that this administration is corrupt should this book. Anybody who does will see through the evil Bush Empire.

What a Joke nicknamed a book
Can people really be that misinformed about reality and what really matters? Why waste your time even reading these reviews. This is a Joke, nicknamed a book.

Seek the truth in all matters, not the perception of the truth...this is very likely only someone's false perception of the truth.

Let's roll with the Truth
If you have any doubts about Bush's attitude toward the environment this book will eliminate them once and for all. It never ceases to amaze me, a book written factually with supporting evidence is always maligned as the commie, pinko, or liberal media by corportists, incidentally defined by Mussolini as fascists . I give the book five stars for anyone wanting a clue about who and what is running the country, and the ground they are running it into.

The irony of a President who believes in maintaining a healthy body but has no regard for maintaing the health of our living planet earth is beyond comprehension. We overpopulate the earth, strip and mine out the land, suck the oil up from the ground, only to spew it back into the atmosphere increasing the hole in the ozone, thereby raising the temperature of the planet. We contaminate our water supply and soil by dumping toxic chemicals and nuclear waste. Deforesting the Amazon decreases the earth's ability to produce vital oxygen we need to breathe. I don't exactly see the correlation between exercise and a healthy body as long if we continue to pollute the earth as we do.

A healthy body needs fresh clean air, water, and a proper atmosphere that will effectively filter out harmful radiation from the sun in order to live. Our planet is no different than our bodies. Global warming is akin to a human running a fever, a sign that we are not living on a healthy planet.

Money can't buy a new body anymore than it can buy a new earth to live on. It's probably time to put homo sapiens on the endangered species list. It may just be that the earth we live on will begin to consider man a virus and start fighting to eliminate the virus in order to ensure it's survival as any living organism does. Mother Nature can pack a powerful punch, something to ruminate on. ... Read more

Isbn: 0970519001
Sales Rank: 115685
Subjects: 1. Current Events / Political 2. Environmental Conservation & Protection - General 3. Environmental Studies 4. Natural Resources 5. Nature 6. Nature / Environmental Conservation & Protection 7. Nature/Ecology 8. Public Policy 9. Public Policy - General 10. (George Walker), 11. 1946- 12. Bush, George W 13. Environmental Conservation & Protection 14. Governors 15. Politics - Current Events 16. Pollution 17. Texas

$11.01

Propaganda and the Public Mind
by David Barsamian, Noam Chomsky
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Paperback (May, 2001)
list price: $16.00 -- our price: $10.88
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Reviews (11)

An excellent primer into Chomsky's thinking
What differentiates this books from other's in Chomsky's canon is that it is a series of interviews, obviously, but in other ways it's an simplified guide to Chomsky's beliefs and journalistic pursuit of modern life.Chomsky is an amazing person and an excellent humanists and his insights will be sure to help you try to understand modern life better.

excellent
This is an excellent book filled with great information about the world we live in.Chomsky is easy to understand in interview format and still gives loads of facts with logical conclusions.

Worthwhile Read for New Perspectives
For the price, this is a worthwhile book that presents a different perspective on politics and current events.Just be warned this is not an objective treatment on the science or implementation of propaganda. I was looking for a book that explored how propaganda works and is managed. Instead, the author spends a lot of time criticizing policy and those he considers the power elite.I appreciate the author's point of view but tend to discount criticism that doesn't come with proposed solutions, examples, supporting data and facts. ... Read more

Isbn: 0896086348
Sales Rank: 133460
Subjects: 1. 1989- 2. Chomsky, Noam 3. Government & Business 4. History & Theory - General 5. Interviews 6. Language 7. Language Arts & Disciplines 8. Language and languages 9. Linguistics 10. Mass Media - General 11. Media Studies 12. Philosophy 13. Politics - Current Events 14. World politics

$10.88

Stupid White Men ...and Other Sorry Excuses for the State of the Nation!
by Michael Moore
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Hardcover (19 February, 2002)
list price: $25.95 -- our price: $16.35
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Editorial Review

Stupid White Men, Michael Moore's screed against "Thief-in-Chief" George Bush's power elite, hit No. 1 at Amazon.com within days of publication. Why? It's as fulminating and crammed with infuriating facts as any right-wing bestseller, as irreverent as The Onion, and as noisily entertaining as a wrestling smackdown. Moore offers a more interesting critique of the 2000 election than Ralph Nader's Crashing the Party (he argued with Nader, his old boss, who sacked him), and he's serious when he advocates ousting Bush. But Moore's rage is outrageous, couched in shameless gags and madcap comedy: "Old white men wielding martinis and wearing dickies have occupied our nation's capital.... Launch the SCUD missiles! Bring us the head of Antonin Scalia!... We are no longer [able] to hold free and fair elections. We need U.N. observers, U.N. troops." Moore's ideas range from on-the-money (Arafat should beat Sharon with Gandhi's nonviolent shame tactics) to over-the-top: blacks should put inflatable white dolls in their cars so racist cops will think they're chauffeurs; the ever-more-Republicanesque Democratic Party should be sued for fraud; "no contributions toward advancing our civilization ever came out of the South [except Faulkner, Hellman, and R.J. Reynolds]," because it's too hot to think straight there; Korean dictator Kim Jong-il "has got to broaden himself beyond porn and John Wayne" by watching better movies, like Dude, Where's My Car? (which contains "all you need to know about America"). Whatever your politics, Stupid White Men should make you blow your stack. --Tim Appelo ... Read more

Reviews (1150)

9 in 10 SWM Agree: Moore Has Yet To Be Laid Once In Life!!!!
Boor imposes double-standards. He mocks males as "the weaker sex", yet after citing degrading statistics about more women being under the poverty rate, men are instantly backslid to positions of subjecting women. Boor prevaricates "women still earn less", despite Census Bureau statistics affirming women at record highs in earnings and bachelor-degree holdings, and comprising 45% of executive/managerial occupations in 2002. Women attempt suicide three times greater, and endure depressive, anxiety and eating disorders furiously more, while Boor conceals these to scorn males as "going extinct"!!!! This disparagingly illustrates Boor's nuisance-sickness of misallocating data bent to his agendas to allegedly "support" his one-sidedness.

Moore's comprehensive research uncovered things that are hard to find elsewhere in the media.What especially impressed me were all the connections between members of the Bush administration and large corporations, or the extended Bush family members in power around the nation.Moore is so determined to give non- "stupid white men" their power that he includes a cut out, wallet-sized excerpt from the Federal Voting Rights Act.
I was occasionally thrown off by certain things, like Moore's lengthy argument on why Bush's history with drinking makes him unfit for the white house, or how talk about a decline in the stock market is a diversion created by rich people to cover up the fact that their success is at the expense of lower-wage earners.However, I still consider Moore a credible, insightful writer who has enligthened me, at least.

He's zealous.. i'll give him that!
Ahh Michael Moore... the last angry man!
A man raging violently in his verbal abuse for the system and who in so doing raises many valid points and brings many disregarded facts to the spotlight.
But also a man who in so doing ignores many counter arguments. When you read anything of Moore's you must always remember that though 9 times out of 10 hes probably on to something.. the one time he does screw up.. he screws up. ... Read more

Isbn: 0060392452
Subjects: 1. 1993-2001 2. 2001- 3. American wit and humor 4. Government - U.S. Government 5. Humor 6. Political Process - General 7. Political Process - Political Parties 8. Politics - Current Events 9. Politics and government 10. Topic - Business and Professional 11. Topic - Political 12. United States 13. Political Science / General

$16.35

Rogue States: The Rule of Force in World Affairs
by Noam Chomsky
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Paperback (01 November, 2000)
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Reviews (27)

Great Chomsky
Quite impressive as ussual. I suggest also to read The Bewildered Herd: Media Coverage of International Conflicts & Public Opinion.

Chomsky: The Ever-Knowing
Chomsky is fabulous at pointing out stinging ironies in the American political landscape, not to mention the media landscape.Those are indeed his two main topics, and he makes you think about these things as you watch your local or national news, (which gets harder to do after reading Chomsky).For instance, if you watch CNN right now, you'll be watching a lengthy report and analysis on a woman from North Dakota who is missing and believed to have been kidnapped and furthermore believed to be dead.The images of this young woman splash across the screen, then there's a shot of the suspect, then a shot of a hundred people scouring a field looking for clues, then a shot of the local sheriff hugging the woman's dad, and finally another image of the woman followed by a picture of the parking lot where it is supposed she was kidnapped.It's a tragic story to be sure, and many people must find it interesting, but not by any definition can this be news.All of the cable news companies are doing this, and while it is simply a device to boost ratings and appeal to the lowest interests of the masses, it also creates a massive distraction from the huge tragedies and ironies in the world.

Anger management
So. You're angry. Here's someone who's just as angry and is willing to take on the causes of all the anger. Read up before you get read down. ... Read more

Isbn: 0896086119
Sales Rank: 259501
Subjects: 1. Administrative Law & Regulatory Practice 2. Aggression (International law) 3. History & Theory - General 4. International 5. International Relations - General 6. Intervention (International la 7. Intervention (International law) 8. Law 9. Politics - Current Events 10. Rule of law

$10.88

Understanding Power: The Indispensable Chomsky
by Noam Chomsky, John Schoeffel, Peter Mitchell
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Paperback (February, 2002)
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Editorial Review

Understanding Power is a wide-ranging collection of transcribed and previously unpublished discussions and seminars (from 1989 to 1999) with sociopolitical analyst Noam Chomsky.

The chapters, each covering discrete sessions with Chomsky, arrive in a question-and-answer format that at times becomes delightfully contentious. Chomsky holds forth on such disparate topics as American third-party politics, the stifling of true dissent, the illusion of a muscular media, heavy-handed American imperialism (from Southeast Asia to Mexico), a dysfunctional and self-destructing United States political left, the gilding of the Kennedy and Carter administrations, and the impotent state of labor unions.

The relatively accessibility of Understanding Power is a welcome balance to Chomsky's often formidable scholarly writings. This is a book best taken in doses: a sort of bedside reader. --H. O'Billovitch ... Read more

Reviews (69)

The Threat of Peace
As is the case with myself, I suspect that many of those who wish to write a customer review for a Chomsky book invariably think it may be a cobbled, daunting effort.
Oh sure, there are those 'Big Ego' types who naturally prefer to see themselves as being far above and beyond the views of America's quintessential dissident, and can become rabidly unhinged over anyone espousing truths outside of the accepted doctrines("You're RUINING it for me! You're RUINING it for me! haha) However, many, many people have been genuinely touched and effected by Noam Chomsky's diligence over the past thirty-plus years, and the desire for wanting an apathetic and quiescent public, those on the fence, to be equally inspired by well researched counter views and a purposeful life of activism is a driving force unto itself.

Besides, as Chomsky often says(paraphrasing)'you shouldn't take my word for it, go look it up yourself'. He is foursquare against insipid celebrity/star mentality status, and seems to have begrudgingly accepted the social role his passion and determination have cultivated - somewhat bewildered that a plain-speaking, non-flashy individual has attracted the amounts of attention he has throughout a life of dissent, *especially* within the past four years, where countless numbers of people, knowing full well they're being COMPLETELY lied to by mainline media outlets, have fled to the internet, to the margins, to find different views, dissident views, truth. Not that any degree of "absolute truth" should be ascribed to any one person or group, but you get what I mean.

It pans out that way, because in a highly indoctrinated, densely propagandized society, comprised of such chauvinistic brainwashing, for the people that doesn't work on, by whatever degree, they will naturally seek out others who are like-minded, kindred spirits.

"Understanding Power: The Indispensable Chomsky" is a fantastic book to begin with for anyone. Even though this a collection of talks and interviews from roughly a decade ago, the travesty-as-usual of today isn't much different than it was then, and Chomsky's comprehensive outlining of how the propaganda machine works and needs to be understood is, given the dire mess we're in, even more critical in such grim times.

The topics range from domestic dissidence, George Orwell, Reagan, Iran/Contra, terrorism, empire, the stunningly brilliant effectiveness of democratic fascism...well, I suppose it seems silly to attempt listing the numerous categories. Suffice it to say that everything you'd expect to be covered is, and is in great detail. The footnotes to this book are longer than the text itself, according to the editors, and can be found in extended form online at understandingpower.com

Here is an excerpt from the book, taken from a disscussion on "Perpetuating Brainwashing Under Freedom":

(interviewer)"Why is it that across the board in the media you can't find examples of people using their brains?"

Noam: "Because if they have the capacity to think freely and understand these types of things, they're going to be kept out by a very complicated filtering system - which actually starts in kindergarten, I think. In fact, the whole educational and professional training system is a very elaborate filter, which just weeds out people who are too independent, and who think for themselves, and who don't know how to be submissive, and so on - because they're disfunctional to the institutions. I mean, it would be highly disfunctional to have people in the media who could ask questions like this. So by the time you've made it to Bureau Chief or Editor, or you've become a bigshot at C.B.S. or something, the chances are that you've just got all this stuff in your bones - you've internalized values that make it clear to you that there are certain things you just don't say, and in fact, you don't even think about them anymore."

Always knew there were concrete reasons as to why I dropped out of high school:)

There are big heaps of Chomsky available online, reading and audio/video files, but if you enjoy the heft of a good book to dig into around the house, this is the one. In fact, I had only read one other book of his many years ago, and through the last few years mostly read online, but I'm very glad I picked this one up. I also find that Chomsky is a much better read after you've heard him give a lecture or interview. The DVD version of "Manufacturing Consent" is essential homework, and for me anyways, allowed his speaking style to be better 'heard' in the printed word.

Shill of Financial Elites
Simply read "Understanding Power" if you have any doubt that Chomsky is fake opposition.In this book he exhaustively examines the wide variety of corporate, political, and media power centers in America yet somehow never mentions the banking industry.There is no mention of the most profitable company in the world, Citigroup. This MIT genius has to at least have some idea that "money is power" and therefore in his book examining all the major power centers it is absolutely impossible that he would not mention the industry that has a monopoly on creating every single dollar in the world.

My guess is that he serves a very useful role to the financial elites by exposing just enough real political and corporate corruption to keep the public satisfied that our media is sufficiently vigilant while keeping us distracted from the core source of power and corruption which is the creation of fiat money.

Brave Intellect
If I were judging this book on bravery, accessability and scope, it would get an easy 5 stars. I liked the edited-interviews format very much.

Many things he says are dead-on accurate and represent the best of free speech, particularlyin how he dissects the motivations of the power brokers. Having said that, I think he's more a polemicist and dilettante than a serious intellect. He leaves out all kinds of facts and counterweights and seems to have a superficial understanding of many issues, e.g. he mischaracterized the Cuban Missile Crisis, leaving out Soviet fears that Kennedy was not in control of his Army and incorrectly claims that Cubans, rather than Russian generals, were in control of mobile-launched nukes in Cuba.

...but at least he's out there speaking his mind. A rare quality these days. ... Read more

Isbn: 1565847032
Subjects: 1. Chomsky, Noam 2. Current Affairs 3. History & Theory - General 4. Interviews 5. Modern State 6. Political 7. Political Process - Leadership 8. Political and social views 9. Politics - Current Events 10. Politics/International Relations 11. Public Policy - Social Policy

$13.97

The Umbrella of U.S. Power: The Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Contradictions of U.S. Policy (The Open Media Pamphlet Series, 9)
by Noam Chomsky
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Paperback (01 February, 1999)
list price: $5.95
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Editorial Review

The United States government often invokes a moral imperative to honor human rights as justification for its foreign-policy decisions. But, according to Noam Chomsky, America's actual track record falls far short of the principles iterated in 1948's Universal Declaration of Human Rights--the accepted international standard. This slim but passionate volume lists case after case in which the United States has provided aid to grossly abusive regimes--among which Chomsky includes Israel and Indonesia--and examples of how the American government seeks to limit the human rights of its own citizens. With equal criticism for Democrat and Republican administrations, The Umbrella of U.S. Power refuses to remain silent about "the things it 'wouldn't do' to mention" as it works to expose the contradictions between what government leaders tell their people and what they actually do. --Ron Hogan ... Read more

Reviews (8)

Note: Rogue States contains this essay and much more.
This is not so much a review as a note to buyers: you can obtain this exact essay by buying Chomsky's _Rogue States: The Rule of Force in World Affairs_.It's just a few dollars more than this pamphlet, yet it offers 13 *additional* essays.It doesn't fit quite as neatly into your back pocket, and it's a tad less digestable, but I think it's well worth the extra 2-3 dollars.That said, you can't go wrong with Chomsky--he's one of the greatest intellectuals and humanists of our time.

He knows too much!
Chomsky's writing is always something that will make an uproar.Good book for non-nationalists, not so good for close-minded people.

Big Money Buys Poverty and Kills, Citizens Being Looted

This is one of Noam Chomsky's most interesting pamphlets (actually a quarter-size booklet of 78 pages).It has a special relevance and importance to citizens in the aftermath of 9-11 because he directly links our corporate criminality ("Justice Department estimates the cost of corporate crime as 7 to 25 times as high as street crime") to our national policies against human rights (poverty pays, for the corporate class that strives to liquidate Third World nations in their predatory roving of the planet).

He pointedly identifies the U.S. arms industry as being among the worst violators, but even more importantly, points out that U.S. policies favoring our arms dealers are opposed by 96% of the U.S. population.While that number might be high, I believe there is no question but that Washington is being instructed by corporations rather than its citizens on this vital point of policy.It is time for citizens to take the power back.

Chomsky notes that in 1996 the World Health Organization characterized extreme poverty as the world's most ruthless killer and the greatest cause of suffering on earth.This ties in with the United Nations finding that human suffering is now a legitimate basis for intervention, and with George Soro's observation in The Washington Post of 24 February 2002, that "We can't be successful in fighting terrorism, unless we fight that other axis of evil--poverty, disease and ignorance."

This little gem of a book also includes well-footnoted observations about how nations seek to carry out trade negotiations in secrecy, in part because they are agreeing to overlook if not actively participate in the looting of poor countries as a condition for prosperous trade among the already developed nations.

The book begins and ends with thoughts from Chomsky on the intellectual discipline he founded, the relationship between linguistics, ethics, and action.He begins with pointed observations on how the most horrible crimes are allowed to go without comment because of *self* censorship, and ends by noting that our citizens do not need to be forbidden to speak of these monstrous deeds that our corporations and government are secretly agreeing to perpetuate, because we have chosen to remain ignorant and silent.

U.S. policy today is *not* founded on moral values, and it is *not* representative of the will of the people in so far as it is carried out in secret collaboration with major corporations and in opposition to the minimal mandatory needs of developing nations for water, food, disease, and economic security.

This is not about political ideology--Ralph Nader, the ultimate spoiler, has one thing right: the parties are irrelevant, this is now about the people versus the corporations.Absent a huge popular turn-out *prior* to each election, to make it clear to candidates that they will be held accountable by the people for keeping all trade and other negotiations in the public domain, and for voting on issues mindful of the will of the people rather than their corporate Enron-like paymasters, then we are the ones ultimately responsible for U.S. policy's misdirection. ... Read more

Isbn: 1888363851
Subjects: 1. Human Rights 2. International Relations - General 3. Law 4. Political And Civil Rights 5. Political Freedom & Security - Civil Rights 6. Political Science 7. Politics - Current Events 8. Politics/International Relations 9. U.S. Foreign Relations 10. United States

Censored 2001: 25 Years of Censored News and the Top Censored Stories of the Year (Censored)
by Peter Phillips, Tom Tomorrow, Noam Chomsky
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Paperback (09 April, 2001)
list price: $17.95
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Reviews (6)

missing the mainstream of interests
I have been picking up these books for the last eight years.It is amazing what the mainstream media considers news and what they miss and ignore as news, thus they are missing the mainstream of interests of the American public or what should be the interests of the public.Instead, the mainstream goes after fluff and disasters news that is inoffensive to the corporate/business interest of this nation and does not reflect reality of public interest.If CENSORED ever published a nation-wide newspaper, along the lines of USA Today, I would subcribe to it, for relevant, news without spin and news with meaning to the mainstream public.

The importance of alternative news outlets
This book is more important now than ever. As we sit with our eyes glued to the coverage of the "War" in Afghanistan, it is crucial that we observe the mainstream media with the awareness of how many years they have manipulated, lied, and deceived the American people. We cannot have a true democracy, we cannot make informed choices, we cannot live authentic lives when so much crucial information is kept from us because we don't, for whatever reason, "deserve" to know. Now, more than ever, it's important to realize the importance of alternative news outlets, and the most important part of this book is that it lists them -- all of them -- so you can find them all. Don't limit yourself to the New York Times, the Washington Post, USA Today, The Enquirer, and ABC, NBC, CBS and CNN. There's a whole world out there that so far has not entirely been kept from us -- but you have to work to access it. It's well worth the effort, and the rest of us out here digging stuff up could really use your help! Welcome aboard!

A very complicated hodge podge...
This one is really hard to review. Kind of like trying to write a review of a newspaper combined with a news magazine combined with some essays combined with a rulebook... And it doesn't really fit clearly into any of those categories. Many of the articles were written in the style of newspaper articles, though with longer term perspectives. Others were clearly more like you'd see in a magazine, except for the lack of illustrations. The essays wandered through various venues and styles, but I'm not even sure where to fit things there. There was a very interesting interview with Walter Cronkite, but what category was it? The 'rulebook' part was spread through several sections, describing the mechanics of preparing the book, but including some comments from judges.

The content was quite interesting, actually. Lots of stories that you'd think would be worth coverage in the main newspapers, but which were ignored. Something of interest to almost everyone. The reasons the stories were ignored are mostly pretty obvious. Some are just negative stories, but in other cases apparently just not interesting enough to compete with the 'junk food news' that draws the ratings... Not so much active censorship as selective filtering.

Actually, I had a pretty profound reaction to this book. The news is NOT 'free'--someone is paying for it. The obvious conclusion is that advertising-funded 'free' news is a very bad thing. Advertising is fundamentally NOT about facts and reason. Effective advertising is about creating irrational needs, and though this was only tangentially discussed in the book, it becomes quite obvious when you think about it. That lack of focus on the bigger problems and some production glitches are the main reasons the book couldn't earn that tough fifth star. ... Read more

Isbn: 158322064X
Sales Rank: 237856
Subjects: 1. American 2. Censorship 3. Constitutional - First Amendment 4. Freedom of the press 5. Journalism 6. Journalistic Writing 7. Language 8. Language Arts & Disciplines 9. Mass Media - General 10. Media Studies 11. Political aspects 12. Pop Arts / Pop Culture 13. Television broadcasting of news 14. United States

Media Control: The Spectacular Achievements of Propaganda (The Open Media Pamphlet Series , No 1)
by Noam Chomsky
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Paperback (01 April, 1997)
list price: $5.95
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Editorial Review

"Propaganda," says Noam Chomsky, "is to a democracy what the bludgeon is to a totalitarian state"--in other words, the means by which leaders keep the masses in line. In this slim pamphlet, he looks at American propaganda efforts, from the warmongering of Woodrow Wilson to the creation of popular support for the 1991 military intervention in Kuwait, and reveals how falsification of history, suppression of information, and the promotion of vapid, empty concepts have become standard operating procedure for the leaders of the United States--both Democrats and Republicans--in their efforts to prevent citizens from raising awkward questions about U.S. policy. ... Read more

Reviews (39)

Not Totally Convincing, But...
Chomsky questions the quality and motives of the media in the U.S.In this is a very small book, just 100 pages of large-font writing, he gives a brief history of propaganda mechanisms, especially in the U.S., from the Creel Commission in 1916 through the G.H.W. Bush administration.Chomsky makes some strong historical points, and raises some good questions about media functions today, and what rolethey play in our political process.The major flaw is that he makes many sweeping declarations, and does not always back them up with facts.This combination will blunt the effectiveness of his arguments for centrists or those on the right.

assume nothing
Have you EVER felt as tho you were being hypnotized by television, radio and the newspaper?Or do you ever feel as tho you are watching the same thing on tv NO MATTER WHAT CHANNEL YOU TURN TO FOR THE NEWS? This book by Norm Chomsky gives powerful information to help you understand why you may feel the way you do.It is not your fault and you are not alone. The question is, What will you do now that you know?Read this book to open not only your eyes but also your mind to a whole different view of mass media and its intentions for the public.

Brief and straight to the point !!
The media was co-opted by the elites and the global corporate groups many many years ago. The viewer and the reader will never be able to get an accurate and objective view of events from their newspaper or television set. The corporate media has become an intrinsic organ of the new breed of the hybrid ruler that is half politician and half corporation.
Chomsky's book is a good eye opener for the media blind. It's a book worth reading......... ... Read more

Isbn: 1888363495
Subjects: 1. Communication 2. Language Arts & Disciplines 3. Mass Communication Media And Politics 4. Mass Media - General 5. Mass media 6. Political aspects 7. Politics - Current Events 8. Politics/International Relations 9. Practical Politics 10. Propaganda 11. United States

The Chomsky Trilogy: Secrets, Lies and Democracy/the Prosperous Few and the Restless Many/What Uncle Sam Really Wants (The Real Story)
by Noam Chomsky
Average Customer Review:

Paperback (01 November, 1995)
list price: $24.00
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Reviews (29)

Thoughtful short work
more of a compendium of short interviews than indepth analysis but once again provides some thought provoking ideas for anyone interested in the world around them and if your're not, WHY NOT?

short interesting books on foreign policy and trade
The chomsky trilogy consists or three books from chomsky. They cover issues that really brought out by the media. They focus on U.S. foreign policy that many people may not be aware of it like nicauraga and hati. He deals with how coporations and strong anti-communist feeling influenced the policy.In addition, the books cover trade agreements like NAFTA and GATT and how they are influenced by corporations and turning parts of the industrialized world into the third world.

Some Good Points
In Chomsky's democracy, there is no passive citizens.Everyone will have to think and participate.And if you think about the some of the statements in this book, you begin to wonder.It's a good start when you embark on seriously reflecting on the nature of the world around us.

On the other hand, the reader whould do well to, as the first exercise, think about some of the things said in the book.For example, on p.99, it was mentioned by on of the questioners that "The United Sates, with 5% of the world's population, consumes 40% of the world's resources...."At the same time, on p.38, the author laments that "Real wages has been declining since the 1960's" in talking about the Third-Worldization of America.Does anyone not suspect that if Americans are any richer than they are now, they would not consume merely 40%, but maybe 50%, 60% or more, of the world's resources?Is it not implicit in the author's lament his horror at the thought of living a style not on the same level as the United States, when in fact, these other countries are living a more ecological balanced life?Yes, counter the defenders, but, it's possible for us to make more money and consume less.Really?What is the motivation to make money but to consume.And is it feasible at all that economic growth, the only source of wage growth, can be achieved without using up some resources of the world?A society where there is no farmer, no hunter but everyone is a lecturer, who does not pollute air, does not cut down trees, does not kill animals for food, does not exist.

In "Media Control", the same author talked about "manufacturing consent" and having "to turn to the technique of propaganda" by the government, as early as the Creel Commission to Americans to go in to World War I.In another breath, he writes in p.36 of this book, "the media contribute to the sense that the government is the enemy and they suppress the sources of real power in the society, which lie in the totalitarian institutions - the corporations, now international in scale - that control the economy and much of our social life." How is that possible?Did the Big Brother slip somewhere for the "controlled" media to attack it's own master?

Nevertheless, Chomsky is right to think that there is "a lot of power behind" the theory put forth by Thomas Ferguson, who believes that "the state is controlled by coalitions of investors who join together around some common interests." So, he is against Big Business.But, somewhat he is not against Big Government, for he thinks it's OK that the health care be in the hand of the government, for example.

He is only against the government when it comes to foreign policies.And here he is at his most consistent, as he describes one event after another, from the softball plants in Haiti, to Nicaragua, German POW's, Chile and Russia. ... Read more

Isbn: 1878825070
Sales Rank: 491663
Subjects: 1. History & Theory - General 2. Politics - Current Events 3. Sociology

Bin Laden, Islam, and America's New "War on Terrorism" (Open Media Series)
by As`ad AbuKhalil
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Paperback (05 March, 2002)
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A one-sided and distorted polemic
This is a bad book.Its representations of the historical record are characterized by so many distortions, misconceptions, and one-sided misrepresentations as to make the book risible, were not the issues at stake so serious.AbuKhalil says he does not require of the reader any special knowledge of the issues, but in fact his book absolutely depends for its persuasiveness on the reader's ignorance of the issues under discussion, especially when it comes to his remarkably biased and tendentious representation of the Arab-Israeli conflicts.

However, the real problem with the book goes deeper than merely the construction of the argument -- it goes to the author's central thesis.AbuKhalil argues that Islamist terror is a response to American policies, and while condemning the Sept. 11 attacks, suggests that American policies have been even worse, thus constructing a somewhat disingenuous apology for Islamic terrorism. Indeed, he warns readers not to "be dragged along the US standards of outrage" in reacting to the murderous Sept. 11 terror strikes.

The problem for AbuKhalil's argument is that Islamist terrorism has its own agenda, independent of particular American policies, as AbuKhalil is probably well aware and demonstrates when, late in his book, he discusses the influence of 14th century Islamist Ibn Taymiyya and 20th century Muslim Brother Sayyid Qutb.AbuKhalil clearly has a distaste for the Wahhabi Islam of Saudi Arabia, and in its more murderous form, of Osama bin Laden, but he fails to recognize or acknowledge the implication of this form of Islamist radicalism for his own argument.

The author is on stronger ground when he rightly tries to disassociate Islam as a religion from Islamist terrorism, but wrongly denies that there is any such thing as a political language of Islam. Islam, of course, is a major religion of 1.2 billion people practised in variety of ways across a diversity of cultures and peoples; most Muslims are not Arabs, nor are all Arabs Muslim.But politicized Islamist fundamentalism is a very real ideology with a totalitarian political agenda. Absurdly, AbuKhalil compares Billy Graham's relationship with several presidents to the rule of the mullahs in Iran, favorably citing a Syrian intellectual who describes Graham as "an ayatollah"! The disturbing problem of right-wing Christian fundamentalist influence on American politics is nothing like the problem of politicized Islamist fundamentalism. Indeed, it is precisely the Islamist desire to impose Shari'a law on society through terror against both apostates and infidels that marks the defining political stance of politicized Islamist fundamentalism.The failure of Jamal Abdul Nasser's secular pan-Arab nationalism after 1967 (an ideology for which AbuKhalil shows some sympathy), opened the door for the new brand of Islamist fundamentalism, and Qutb, who was executed by Nasser in 1966, is now having his ideological revenge.

In attacking US foreign policy, AbuKhalil identifies what he sees as two central problems: US support for Israel and US support for authoritarian regimes in the Middle East. Like many Islamists he even connects current American foreign policy to the medieval Crusades. The book was published in 2002, but he no doubt sees the course of the current war on terror as adding to the list of Arab and Muslim grievances against the US (although Islamist terror bombings against other Arabs or Muslims do not seem to stir his outrage).

AbuKhalil's argument is one that will comfort those who wish to believe that the attacks of Sept. 11 were all our fault, although the book does not go very far to actually support this position.Those seeking a stronger argument for the case against American Cold War foreign policy as fostering Islamist terrorism would do well to read Mahmood Mamdani's interesting but still flawed 2004 book, "Good Muslim, Bad Muslim: America, the Cold War, and the Roots of Terror."

The problem is that Islamist terror is not just, nor even primarily, a response to US policies.It is a response to the failure of the Muslim world within the Middle East to adapt effectively to the challenges of modernity, resulting in extraordinary levels of poverty, illiteracy, authoritarian regimes, and violence, both domestic and public. It is also a response to the weakness of national-state organization in diverse, culturally fragmented societies without either a national-state or liberal tradition. There is no easy answer to this problem, but the public space for honestly discussing these issues in the Middle East virtually doesn't exist. It might be emotionally satisfying for many to blame these problems on outside forces (France and Britain earlier in the century, the US and Israel today), but the economic and socio-cultural decline of the Arab Muslim world since the 13th century has roots extending back long before modern Europe began penetrating this region at the end of the 18th century with Napoleon's invasion of Egypt, and through the long decline of the once-powerful Ottoman Empire.

Indeed the economic, political, and technological stagnation of the Middle East has been a source of concern for Arab and Muslim intellectuals since at least the 19th century, and has prompted a variety of responses, including both secular pan-Arab nationalism, and more recently, politicized Islamist fundamentalism.Of the evolution of these responses to the problem of modernity within the Muslim world, AbuKhalil has virtually nothing to say.

The intellectual sources to whom contemporary Islamists look for inspiration were not reacting to US foreign policy.Ibn Taymiyya in the early 14th century was attacking Mongol converts to Islam, while Sayyid Qutb was attacking what he saw as the jahiliyya heresy of Nasser's 20th century secular pan-Arabism (although it is true that Qutb was disgusted by what he saw as the sexually promiscuous nature of American society in the 1940s).These intellectuals largely shaped the contemporary Islamist movement (as AbuKhalil himself acknowledges) and their vision is of a superior universal Islamist society based on the application of Shari'a principles to all society.It is the politicization of this fundamentalist Islam on a global scale, beginning with the extermination of infidels and apostates at home through terror, that is the problem.We can argue about strategies to deal with that problem, but it will do no good to grossly misrepresent the history of the Arab-Israeli conflict, nor to suggest in a simple-minded way that if we just shape our policies more to the liking of the Arab and Muslim world, everything will be fine.

He does make one good important point, on the need for the United States to be more consistent in our support of human rights.Too often our economic and geopolitical priorities entirely trump human rights concerns. Our policies in the 1980s in Central America were a vicious disgrace, we ignored Rwanda in the 1990s, and our policies in Afghanistan during the 1980s were short-sighted and naive, although there are many parties responsible for the suffering in that country, not least the Soviet Union and later, the Taliban.

But it is the United States and Israel that outrages Abu Khalil. That the PLO provoked catastrophic civil wars in Jordan in 1970 and in Lebanon in the 1970s and early 1980s, and Syria continues to occupy the country, is apparently a matter of little or no concern to AbuKhalil, nor does he seem to hold Saddam Hussein responsible for holding his own people hostage, denying humanitarian aid, and looting the oil-for-food program to rebuild his arsenal in the 1990s while letting his people starve. This is not even to mention Syria's massacre of the village of Hama in 1982, the Iraqi use of poison gas at Halabja in 1988, nor the Taliban massacre of the Shi'a Hezara at Mazar-i-Sharif in 1998; nor the catastrophic losses and destruction created by Saddam Hussein's wars against Iran and Kuwait. Despite this, we saw Arabs celebrating the murderous Saddam Hussein as a hero! Of the genocidal regime in Sudan AbuKhalil says nothing except to make a comment suggesting the US has tried to use internal unrest to undermine the murderous Khartoum regime. As for the oppression of women, he has little to say, except dismiss American concerns about the matter as insincere; it is, I suppose, more difficult to persuasively blame this problem on the US and Israel, so better be silent. He is right about the need for the United States to more consistently support human rights, but this hardly explains or justifies what happened on Sept. 11.

For AbuKhalil, it's enough to blame the US, just as he seems to excuse the relentless and obsessive Arab hatred against Israel.Israel has served as a target for the frustrations and anger of people living in poverty-stricken and unjust societies without any means of holding their own leadership responsible (aside from assassinations).That displaced hatred and rage has evolved into a terrible obsession against Israel -- the one genuinely democratic and open society in the region -- that has justified terror and war, while condemning Israel for defending herself from this exterminationist drive.

Why should any of this matter? That anti-Semitic hatred has had consequences. Wiser Arab leaders like Anwar Sadat have recognized the futility of this hatred, but Sadat was assassinated while Arafat continues to grow fat on the exploitation and misery of his own people while leading them through terror to disaster. Reluctant apologists for terror like AbuKhalil make excuses while Islamist terrorists continue to blow up civilians and chop off heads.That is no way to achieve peace, progress or security. It's a guarantee of misery and failure, which is the direction in which politicized fundamentalist Islamists seemed determined to take the Islamic world, which would be a tragedy for Muslims everywhere, and the world.

Good Introduction
This book is a good introduction to the current political situation and the so-called "War on Terror".Most people don't have a clue what is going on and if you are one of them, I recommend reading this book.It is a quick read and you might just learn something.AbuKhalil's next book is about Saudi Arabia and should be very informative.

would not recommend
the only thing good about this book is probably the picture on the cover. everything else is not only speculation but really farfetched speculation. the guy has a website angryarab.blogspot.com, where all he does is attack the US and Israel. has nothing good to say about anybody or about any effort the US has put into Afghanistan or Iraq
would not recommend the book.. people can get better source of information from the internet or from the Times.. he is a classic example of the disenchanted arabs who have lost their identity and have replaced it with random systems of thought ... Read more

Isbn: 1583224920
Sales Rank: 416060
Subjects: 1. 1957- 2. American 3. Bin Laden, Osama, 4. Case studies 5. International 6. International Relations - General 7. Middle East - General 8. Political Science 9. Politics - Current Events 10. Politics/International Relations 11. Terrorism 12. Current Events / International

$8.95

The Hidden War: A Russian Journalist's Account of the Soviet War in Afghanistan
by Artem Borovik, Artyom Borovik
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Paperback (10 May, 2001)
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Reviews (19)

Very easy to read, and strikingly similiar to Vietnam War
Very interesting book, it was amazing how similiar the experience sounded to America in Vietnam.

Walk With Soviet Troops in Afganistan
Colonel Zakharov, Sergeant Dzhabarov, and Defector Peresleni walk with author Artyom Borovik through war-torn Afghanistan. As they travel, the soldiers shoot the breeze and reveal innermost thoughts and feelings with the adept author.

`The Hidden War' humanizes many Soviet soldiers, while others are vilified for greed and murderous actions. Always the soldiers come across as real people.

Some Soviet Army defectors, Peresleni for example, eventually wound up in America. In Borovik's eyes the defectors are neither happy nor unhappy. They find themselves in a new land dealing with the challenges of a new place and poignant homesickness.

The book's many anecdotes offer unique insights into current events. For example,Pereslini's main reason for defecting was not idealism, confusion, or hatred, but that his fellow soldiers, many of whom happened to be Kazakh, wouldregularly beat him up. They beat him up for being a Muscovite.

Borovik also meets with Sayed Ahmad Gailani in London. His account of the meeting left me with much to think about the interactions western leaders have with those in the middle-east.

As the former Soviet Union's offspring make their voices heard, the `Hidden War' offers a starkly different view of the Soviet soldier than I've previously come across. But then, I was a little young in th 80s to appreciate informed news coverage. Time to catch up.

Another example of proSoviet propaganda
A must read book for people,who wish to understand history of Soviet war in Afganistan.This book will give you the best example of how Soviet Union used journalists in propaganda war during the occupation of Afghanistan.Artyom Borovik does it well.
Well written,but untruthfull.I happen to meet Artyom in Afghanistan in 1985, and in Moscow in 1989.After reading this book,I understood how much pressure he had from being a son ofgeneral editor of the largest proSoviet magazin during "communist" era.
Sorry Artyom,but you didn,t have to do it! ... Read more

Isbn: 080213775X
Sales Rank: 297671
Subjects: 1. Afghanistan 2. Asia - General 3. Biography 4. Europe - Russia & the Former Soviet Union 5. History 6. History - General History 7. History: World 8. Journalists 9. Military - Other 10. Personal narratives, Russian 11. Russia (Federation) 12. Soviet occupation, 1979-1989

$11.20

Afghanistan's Endless War: State Failure, Regional Politics, and the Rise of the Taliban
by Larry P. Goodson
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Hardcover (June, 2001)
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Reviews (10)

Great book!
I spent over four months in Afghanistan this year, and this was one of the books I read in preparation.Though it is an academic work, I think it is probably the best book to read in order to get a really good understanding of Afghanistan's recent history and its culture.Highly recommended!

Read this book
Wow, what a scholarly survey of the Afghan civil war to include the Soviet occupation, the pursuit of power by the competing mujahadeen factions, and the rise of the Taliban.Goodson's tome provides the layman and the scholar a comprehensive account of the recent fighting in Afghanistan that offers a look into the unique nature of Afghanistan with regard to the deep ethno-linguistic cleavages.
The only negative I could see was that it was published about 10 months too early.The big question mark of the Taliban's future has been addressed to a large degree.I can't wait for an updated edition.I would recommend this book strongly to anyone that is curious about how things came to be in Afghanistan.A great companion book would be "Taliban" by Ahmed Rashid or "Fundametalism Reborn?" edited by Maley.

A worthwhile read
Larry Goodson's Afghanistan's Endless War is a gem that shines with solid research and clear prose.This survey of Afghanistan's past will assist anyone who wishes to grasp how this central Asian country became the center of US foreign policy recently.Goodson briefly examines Afghanistan's early history when the country hosted part of the famous silk trade route that connected the occident with the orient.Another section details England and the Soviet Union's reasons for establishing hegemony in Central Asia.Goodson provides solid reasons why each nation's conquest failed in Afghanistan.Lastly, the author presents an overview of Afghanistan just prior to September Eleventh and offers, albeit somewhat dated, future scenarios.

Goodson's purpose is to show how various events within Afghanistan's borders along with foreign intervention have shaped this nation.He contends that "Afghanistan has a singular importance to the region it touches" and does influence its neighbors as well as other foreign nations.The text is filled with facts that support this thesis.In the chapter analyzing the Post-Cold War era, Goodson describes how Pakistan, United States, Russia, Iran, China and others are devoting resources in the quest to determine Afghanistan's future. However, steering Afghanistan's social and economic environment is extremely difficult due to long standing traditions and local laws of indigenous tribes such as the Pushtins, Hazaras, Farsiwans, and among others that are often incompatible with different tribes.According to Goodson, Afghanis are seldom steamrolled or permanently purchased into allying with foreign nations.

Most readers will want information about the inception of the Taliban movement.Goodson argues that the Taliban started when Pushtin Islamic religious students attempted to bring stability to post-communist Afghanistan.Originally funded by the Pakistan government, the Talibans piled up military successes and ended some of the lawlessness and chaos that pervaded Afghanistan.Foes of the Taliban lost military size and strength because of perpetual fighting and later formed a loose coalition of tribes called the Northern Alliance. Although the Taliban never truly gained official recognition as the legitimate government of the Afghanistan, private donations increased to further Taliban control.Additional aid came from "Saudi Arabia and other Persian Gulf countries," regional mafia, "heroin smugglers, Osama bin laden," and Unocal (Union Oil).The giant US oil company, Unocal, hoped to build a natural gas pipeline from Turkmenistan through Afghanistan to Pakistan.Unocal gambled on the Taliban establishing stability to the region by defeating the Northern Alliance and oppressing the local population.

Goodson defends his thesis well throughout the text by showing how Afghanistan, a medieval country in the twenty-first century, is inextricably linked to the central Asian region and the rest of the globe.Equally convincing is Goodson's argument that Afghanistan suffers from weak state syndrome in a post-Cold War era.No longer are the two superpowers paying consistent attention to Afghanistan and smaller national powers intermittently commit resources that often perpetuate the imbroglio.Because Afghanistan must rely on outside and sporadic help, the nation fails to develop a strong central government that can "penetrate" local "society, regulate social relationships, extract resources, and ...use resources in determined ways."

One shortcoming of this book maybe, ironically, its attraction: the book is brief.Goodson glosses over some important topics.One example is when the CIA began training Afghanistan soldiers prior to the Soviet invasion.This event needed further explanation.Nevertheless, Goodson's Afghanistan's Endless War is a fitting place to begin comprehending the complexities of Afghanistan.This book is highly recommended ... Read more

Isbn: 0295981113
Sales Rank: 736424
Subjects: 1. 1989- 2. Afghanistan 3. Asia - General 4. Government - Comparative 5. History 6. History - General History 7. History: World 8. Middle East - General 9. Middle East - History 10. Military - General 11. Military History - 1990- 12. Political History 13. Social conditions

$35.00

Taliban: Militant Islam, Oil and Fundamentalism in Central Asia
by Ahmed Rashid
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Paperback (01 March, 2001)
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Editorial Review

This is the single best book available on the Taliban, the fundamentalist Islamic regime in Afghanistan responsible for harboring the terrorist Osama bin Laden. Ahmed Rashid is a Pakistani journalist who has spent most of his career reporting on the region--he has personally met and interviewed many of the Taliban's shadowy leaders. Taliban was written and published before the massacres of September 11, 2001, yet it is essential reading for anyone who hopes to understand the aftermath of that black day. It includes details on how and why the Taliban came to power, the government's oppression of ordinary citizens (especially women), the heroin trade, oil intrigue, and--in a vitally relevant chapter--bin Laden's sinister rise to power. These pages contain stories of mass slaughter, beheadings, and the Taliban's crushing war against freedom: under Mullah Omar, it has banned everything from kite flying to singing and dancing at weddings. Rashid is for the most part an objective reporter, though his rage sometimes (and understandably) comes to the surface: "The Taliban were right, their interpretation of Islam was right, and everything else was wrong and an expression of human weakness and a lack of piety," he notes with sarcasm. He has produced a compelling portrait of modern evil. --John Miller ... Read more

Reviews (128)

Best book on Afghanistan you'll find
I've read tons on Afghanistan and been there a few times...this was BY FAR the best and most complete book on not only the Taliban but the country as a whole.This book spares nothing and addresses a lot of issues and events that happened but have been largely unaddressed by the politically correct Western pundits.It is required reading for my subordinates.

Essential Background
This book provides excellent background material for understanding the rise, rule, and fall of the Taliban.Though written in 2000 when the Taliban were at the height of their power, and before the September 11th attacks, the book is far from outdated.The narrative begins in 1994 in Kandahar, with the rise of Mohammad Omar.Rashid then takes us on a blow-by-blow account of the battles that took the Taliban to Kabul.The second part of the book discusses various topics relating to Taliban rule, including Islamic Fundamentalism, the Taliban's political and military organization, the banning of women from public life, the basing of the economy on drugs and transshipment (smuggling), "Arab Afghans", and Osama Bin Laden.The book closes with a section that analyzesTaliban-run Afghanistan in a regional and global context.This section takes up the mutual influences and enmities between the Taliban, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Iran, and the US.End material includes a sampling of Taliban decrees, a listing of Taliban leaders and the positions they held, a chronology of the Taliban from 1992 to September 2000, a chronology of the struggle to develop oil and gas resources and a pipeline through Afghanistan, a glossary of Afghan terms, a bibliography, endnotes citing sources for all factual material in the text, and an index.

Rashid was very well qualified to write such a book.As a Pakistani journalist, he had covered politics and wars in Afghanistan from the 1978 Soviet invasion.One striking observation that he makes about the difference between the Mujaheddin and the Taliban fighters early on was the cultural ignorance of the Taliban.When Rashid met and talked with Mujaheddin fighters during the 1980s while they were on maneuvers, they spoke to him as tribal members.Many did not have formal schooling, but they all knew their ancestry back many generations, and they had a trade or could make a living from the soil.Many Taliban fighters, on the other hand, had been raised in refugee camps in Pakistan, often as orphans.They were ignorant of their ancestry and tribal customs.Though they had attended "school", it had been at madrassahs, were they got rudimentary training in the religious ideas of mullahs, many of whom were unqualified as Islamic scholars. As refugees, they knew no trades, and had no connection to the land.Many had grown up outside of family structures and had no memories of interactions with women, not even with close female relatives. Thus it wasn't surprising that they had no skills at running a government or even interest in such activities once they came to power, or that they seemed to want women to just disappear.

The chapter on the Arab-Afghans is especially interesting.In it, Rashid documents the early influences the Saudi government and the CIA had (under the leadership of William Casey) in laying the groundwork for the Taliban.As far back as 1982, Pakistan had been allowing Islamic radicals free passage so they could fight Communism with the Mujaheddin.In 1986 and 1987, Casey got the CIA to support the Pakistani ISI in recruiting Islamic terrorists worldwide to fight with the Mujaheddin.The Saudis joined in, eager to both push Wahabbism in the region, as well as to provide a worthwhile cause for their own radical malcontents like Osama Bin Laden.Rashid describes how these radicals established terrorist training camps both in Pakistan and Afghanistan, and the relations between the Taliban and these foreign thugs.

Another point that Rashid raises in several places is the idea that is apparently common throughout the Islamic world that the fall of the Soviet Union was due primarily or solely to the Muslim Mujaheddin.In the West, we assume that the Mujaheddin played a small role in the drama, and that what really happened was an economic collapse, both because the Soviet system was rotten to the core, and because the Arms Race forced the Soviets to spend their last kopeck.This difference in opinion about the demise of the Soviet Union provides some insight into how disparate the worldview may be between the West and Islamic countries.

Any reader of this book when it first came out in 2000 could see that Afghanistan was a disaster waiting to happen.Rashid warns us that this is not only a powder keg waiting to blow, but that the fuse has already been lit.He stresses the dangers of ignoring the crisis, and continuing to make due with the status quo.But not even he could guess at the magnitude of the explosion when it finally came.With this in mind, one particularly ominous observation from Rashid is the following "The radical Islamicist discourse suffered from the same weaknesses and limitations as the Afghan Marxists did: as an all-inclusive ideology, they rejected rather than integrated the vastly different social, religious and ethnic identities that constitute Afghan society.Both the Afghan communists and Islamicists wanted to impose radical change on a traditional social structure by a revolution from the top.They wished to do away with tribalism and ethnicity by fiat, an impossible task, and were unwilling to accept the complex realities on the ground."Let's see-when the Coalition Forces threw out the Taliban and the UN stepped in to establish a new government, did they try to impose a democratic revolution from the top?Are they doing enough to understand how this complex traditional society works?Are they taking care of the needs of the all the disparate ethnic and tribal groups without showing undue favoritism?Could this be a factor why peace has yet to be established in Afghanistan?

Still the best history of the Taliban available
I recently had the opportunity to interview a number of Afghans who had fought throughout the mujahadeen and Taliban eras. Without Ahmed Rashid's wonderfully well designed book, I would have been totally lost. Using it as my primary reference always kept within immediate reach, I managed to muddle through quite well, and made some level of sense of the complicated ebb and flow of power in Afghanistan since 1979. If you are going to Afghanistan for professional humanitarian or military reasons you cannot afford not to have a copy of this outstanding work. ... Read more

Isbn: 0300089023
Subjects: 1. 1973- 2. Afghanistan 3. History & Theory - Radical Thought 4. International Relations - General 5. Islam - General 6. Islam and politics 7. Islam and state 8. Islamic Studies 9. Islamic fundamentalism 10. Political Science 11. Politics - Current Events 12. Politics and government 13. Politics/International Relations 14. Taliban

$10.17

The Color of Oil : The History, the Money and the Politics of the World's Biggest Business
by Michael Economides, Ronald Oligney
Average Customer Review:

Hardcover (01 March, 2000)
list price: $24.95 -- our price: $21.21
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Reviews (17)

myth breaker
This book won't change most liberals' views, but, having met the author, who's a bit of an iconoclast, and read the book, I have to admit that it presents a number of persuasive arguments that are pro-Big Oil.First, for a short, easy-to-read book, this is an excellent book on oil history, and, possibly, a new approach to modern economic history.Second, it explains, from a layman's economics and historical perspective, a number of valuable oil exploration issues well.Third, it is very persuasive at attacking liberal ideologies on oil.

I generally have liberal ideologies, but am trained in conservative economics.The primary weakness of this book is that the author makes little admission that the oil business may be wrong at times.An excellent introduction to oil history.

Not that interesting
I have been dragging my feet to finish reading this book. It is not well-organized and full of opinions without solid arguments. Therefore, it is dry and hard to read. To the author's credit, a lot is covered in this thin book. If it had been expanded, the reader could have enjoyed it more.

Too Heavy-Handed
Overall this is a decent book about the energy business, but could do with a little more fact and a lot less opinion.The attacks on the environmentalists and other critics of the oil industry are a distraction and add about zero value to ones overall understanding of the business. ... Read more

Isbn: 0967724805
Sales Rank: 82188
Subjects: 1. Business & Economics 2. Business / Economics / Finance 3. Business/Economics 4. Corporate & Business History - General 5. Economic Conditions 6. History 7. Industries - General 8. International - Economics 9. Petroleum 10. Petroleum industry and trade 11. United States

$21.21

Barry & 'the Boys' : The CIA, the Mob and America's Secret History
by Daniel Hopsicker
Average Customer Review:

Hardcover (September, 2001)
list price: $29.95 -- our price: $25.46
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Reviews (16)

I'm overwhelmed by the government's duplicity!
Call me stupid, call me naive but I am continually surprised by the falseness and dishonesty of the United State's government in virtually all the reading explorations I undertake.I do not start these explorations with an outcome in mind: true, I have my normal bag of philosophies and mind-sets that any person alive in this world carries with them.But what has numbed my mind has been the extent of the duplicity that the US government has undertaken in that government's attempt to make the world safe for the further expansion and, at the least, protection of their economic system.Hopsicker, in this wonderfully enlightening book, mentioms at least six other books that continue unmasking various aspects of this mammoth cover-up and I will have my future filled with further frustrations regarding a government that the world has accepted as upright and straight-dealing on the international stage.How wrong we have been!

"Barry and the Boys" is a chronicle of American governmental lying-to both the media and, worse, to the legislative branch of their own government all in the name of countering an evil, as they saw it, greater than the evil they were perpetrating on the American people.I believe all that I read in the pages of this book; further, I believe that now that the genie has been released, as of the Bay of Pigs and the Kennedy assassination, there can be no going back and now that genie must be fed continuously so that it will not devour, not only America, but my world also.

It is difficult to imagine a country that would allow the evil of drug addiction to enslave its own people all in the name of acquiring illicit money to fund programmes propping up wasted, rightest dictators whose only vision is staying in office and keeping the American drug pipeline clear and flowing.Besides destroying these individual countries social cohesion, Hopsicker reports on the destruction of large sections of American society as a result of this drug pipeline.

The only negatives about "Barry and the Boys" that I saw, were the final chapters dealing with individuals connected with Barry Seal's "business" and the myriad interconnections of the major players.I had my hands full trying to keep so many people separated but this just shows the depth and the breadth of this entire "business."

A Must Read
Writing is sometimes amateurish, although I do like the style of writing the author is TRYING to pull off. He's just a bit too hokey at times, too over the top.
Nevertheless, the detective work in this book is AMAZING and GUTSY. I don't believe there is very much, if any, fiction to it. It all makes so much more sense as this author has investigated and found it, than does the "official" story of world and US events.

much fiction and hard to follow
This book purports to be a true account of Barry's exploits. Hopsicker uses rumors and half-truths and tries to stick Seal into the middle of the Kennedy assassination: the mother lode for conspiracy aficionados. He quotes the Baton Rouge Advocate newspaper librarian as telling him, "My ex-husband, who was 'connected,' told me that too." Hopsicker had just told the woman his big news that Seal was supposed to fly Oswald's getaway plane out of Dallas after JFK was killed. This is a snippet of the "evidence" gathered by Hopsicker to prove that Barry was part and parcel of the Kennedy assassination. The Advocate librarian is (name withheld)and she was not pleased when she learned of the quotes attributed to her by Hopsicker. "I was totally misquoted and I never met him," she said. The quotations attributed to her by Hopsicker are "lies and a bunch of baloney." said the lady. "I never used the word 'connected' with him." Hopsicker said that Barry Seal worked for the CIA and he named Dave Dixon, a prominent New Orleans French Quarter antique dealer, as Seal's long-time CIA handler. Mr. Dixon said he has never worked for the CIA and has never met Barry Seal. Hopsicker never talked to him, he said.
Hopsicker describes me as the "Special Agent in Charge of the Middle District of Louisiana Organized Crime Drug Task Force investigation into the Barry Seal drug smuggling organization." Flattering though it may be, I was one FBI agent assigned to the task force along with an IRS agent and a DEA agent. My role waswas discussed fully during several personal meetings in 1998.Hopsicker theorizes that Barry was associated with Lee Harvey Oswald when both were members of the Louisiana Civil Air Patrol and came under the tutelage of David Ferrie who is apparently one of "the Boys." Barry Seal's brother, Ben Seal, has said publicly that it was he, not Barry, who was a member of the Civil Air Patrol and was once acquainted with David Ferrie.
Hopsicker claims that David Ferrie was once an FBI agent who spent most of World War II working undercover in South America. This is a totally false. Hopsicker has confused David Ferrie with retired FBI agent Warren C. De Brueys who was assigned to the New Orleans and was actively involved in the investigation of the Kennedy assassination. He also spent some time working in South America during World War II. In an effort to give credibility to his wild story about Ferrie, Hopsicker quoted this writer as "grudgingly admitting" that he saw Dave Ferrie's name on a list of "disowned agents." More poppycock. No such conversation ever took place. The alleged "disowned agents" list is a figment of Hopsicker's imagination and David Ferrie was never a Special Agent of the FBI agent.
Hopsicker makes other errors such as continually referring to "Partners in Power" as being written by Sally Denton and Roger Morris. Sally Denton didn't have a thing to do with the book. Hopsicker, has the book confused with a Penthouse article, "The Crimes of Mena", co-authored by Denton and Morris.
The book is full of flawed logic, quantum leaps and sensationalism.
Further attesting to the falsehoods, errors and slander that are found in the book is the fact that Chapter 35 was pulled in settlement of a law suit filed by a corporation that was maligned in the missing chapter. ... Read more

Isbn: 0970659105
Sales Rank: 195340
Subjects: 1. Conspiracy & Scandal Investigations 2. Politics - Current Events

$25.46

9-11
by Noam Chomsky
Average Customer Review:

Paperback (October, 2001)
list price: $9.95 -- our price: $9.95
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Reviews (159)

Self-citations- YEHHHH!
A booklet filled with typical Chomsky. Nothing is factual but there seem to be lots of citations that refer the reader back to some other Chomsky title which contains even more self-citing.

How deep is the rabbit hole? Only Chomsky knows. I guess this is the trick of a learned linguist.

"The Anti-Chomsky Reader" is a must have accompaniment.

PenetratingArmenian
A Self Certified Blogspot Blogger

PS-1 Star because it's dead cheap and brief.

Chomsky
I find it humorous that one "patriotic, America loving" reviewer wanted to charge Chomsky with treason under the Patriot Act, even though the Constitution clearly spells out the criteria for treason, the only crime it explicitly defines.You would figure that someone who loves America so much would find it abhorrent to circumvent the Constitution like that.
It is completely illogical to equate questioning America with hating America.If you had a family member you thought was making a grave mistake, you most certainly would speak up.I see no difference in this case.In fact, I think it would betreacherous if someone who thought a loved one was making a grave mistake stayed silent, instead of trying to help.America is great because everyone is free to express their opinions, and remains viable because Americans can sort out valid opinions from trash.There is no need to censor them, bad opinions will simply marginalize themselves.If Chomsky's words are those of a loony radical, then people will disregard them.However, if there is validity to them, which many seem to feel, then they are a constructive part of American political discourse.
Chomsky doesn't defend terrorists, he just points out that it isnt the hatred of freedom that spawns them.Our foriegn policy (especially post WWII) has alienated and aggravated a large number of people around the world.That doesnt justify the actions of terrorists, it just helps explain why these people are so determined to destroy us.
Overall, I think this is a solid book, although I am not a huge fan of Chomsky's writing style.

Digging at the roots of9-11
As has been stated in numerous reviews prior to this one, this slim volume by Chomsky is a collection of edited interviews in the immediate aftermath of 9-11.Perhaps the most salient quality of this short book is the fact that it attempts to critically analyze and elucidate some of the underlying factors that seem to trace a trajectory toward the terrorist attacks on NYC and D.C.I'm sorry, but any rationally thinking human being should be able to understand that these attacks were not simply a matter of "terrorists who hate freedom and what America stands for"; it's much more complex than that.Unfortunately, at this time in our history, it has virtually become VERBOTEN to ask the question 'Why?' vis-a-vis 9-11.Despite some of the rather hackneyed and noxious accusations made by previous reviewers (e.g., that Chomsky "hates America," is "an apologist for the terrorists," is "cashing in on 9-11," etc.), this book is a good starting point for a critical analysis of that horrible day. ... Read more

Isbn: 1583224890
Sales Rank: 41619
Subjects: 1. Criminology 2. International Relations - General 3. Political Freedom & Security - Law Enforcement 4. Political Freedom & Security - Terrorism 5. Political Science 6. Political Terrorism 7. Politics - Current Events 8. Politics/International Relations 9. September 11 Terrorist Attacks, 2001 10. Terrorism 11. Current Events / International

$9.95

The Best Democracy Money Can Buy: An Investigative Reporter Exposes the Truth about Globalization, Corporate Cons, and High Finance Fraudsters
by Greg Palast
Average Customer Review:

Hardcover (15 February, 2002)
list price: $25.00 -- our price: $16.50
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Reviews (140)

WithGary Webb Dea