Failed states : the abuse of power and the assault on democracy

Format:

Book (regular print)

Title:

Failed states : the abuse of power and the assault on democracy

Author:

Chomsky, Noam.

ISBN:

9780805079128

9780805082845

9780739471876

Edition:

1st ed.

Publication Information:

New York : Metropolitan Books/Henry Holt, 2006.

Physical Description:

311 pages ; 24 cm.

Series title(s):

American empire project.

Contents:

Stark, dreadful, inescapable -- Outlaw states -- Illegal but legitimate -- Democracy promotion abroad -- Supporting evidence: the Middle East -- Democracy promotion at home.

Summary:

The United States has repeatedly asserted its right to intervene militarily against "failed states" around the globe. Chomsky turns the tables, charging the United States with being a "failed state," and therefore a danger to its own people and the world. "Failed states," Chomsky writes, are those "that do not protect their citizens from violence and perhaps even destruction, that regard themselves as beyond the reach of domestic or international law, and that suffer from a 'democratic deficit, ' having democratic forms but with limited substance." Exploring recent U.S. foreign and domestic policies, Chomsky assesses Washington's escalation of nuclear risks; the dangerous consequences of the occupation of Iraq; and Americas's self-exemption from international law. He also examines an American electoral system that frustrates genuine political alternatives, thus impeding any meaningful democracy.--From publisher description.

Personal Subject:

Bush, George W. (George Walker), 1946-

Bush, George W. (George Walker), 1946- (OCoLC)fst00363849

Subject(s):

Unilateral acts (International law)

Security, International.

Iraq War, 2003-2011.

War on Terrorism, 2001-2009.

Nuclear nonproliferation.

United States -- Foreign relations -- 2001-

United States -- Politics and government -- 2001-2009.

Geographic Term:

United States -- Foreign relations -- 2001-

United States -- Politics and government -- 2001-2009.

Iraq

United States.

Holds:

Available:*

Library	Call Number	Status
Searching... Salem Main Library	327.73 Chomsky 2006	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Dallas Public Library	327.73 Chomsky	Searching... Unknown

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Summary

The world's foremost critic of U.S. foreign policy exposes the hollow promises of democracy in American actions abroad--and at home

The United States has repeatedly asserted its right to intervene against "failed states" around the globe. In this much anticipated sequel to his international bestseller Hegemony or Survival, Noam Chomsky turns the tables, charging the United States with being a "failed state," and thus a danger to its own people and the world.

"Failed states" Chomsky writes, are those "that do not protect their citizens from violence and perhaps even destruction, that regard themselves as beyond the reach of domestic or international law, and that suffer from a 'democratic deficit,' having democratic forms but with limited substance." Exploring recent U.S. foreign and domestic policies, Chomsky assesses Washington's escalation of the nuclear risk; the dangerous consequences of the occupation of Iraq; and America's self-exemption from international law. He also examines an American electoral system that frustrates genuine political alternatives, thus impeding any meaningful democracy.

Forceful, lucid, and meticulously documented, Failed States offers a comprehensive analysis of a global superpower that has long claimed the right to reshape other nations while its own democratic institutions are in severe crisis, and its policies and practices have recklessly placed the world on the brink of disaster. Systematically dismantling America's claim to being the world's arbiter of democracy, Failed States is Chomsky's most focused--and urgent--critique to date.

Author Notes

Noam Chomsky was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on December 7, 1928. Son of a Russian emigrant who was a Hebrew scholar, Chomsky was exposed at a young age to the study of language and principles of grammar. During the 1940s, he began developing socialist political leanings through his encounters with the New York Jewish intellectual community.

Chomsky received his Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania, where he studied linguistics, mathematics, and philosophy. He conducted much of his research at Harvard University. In 1955, he began teaching at MIT, eventually holding the Ferrari P. Ward Chair of Modern Language and Linguistics.

Today Chomsky is highly regarded as both one of America's most prominent linguists and most notorious social critics and political activists. His academic reputation began with the publication of Syntactic Structures in 1957. Within a decade, he became known as an outspoken intellectual opponent of the Vietnam War.

Chomsky has written many books on the links between language, human creativity, and intelligence, including Language and Mind (1967) and Knowledge of Language: Its Nature, Origin, and Use (1985). He also has written dozens of political analyses, including Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of the Mass Media (1988), Chronicles of Dissent (1992), and The Prosperous Few and the Restless Many (1993).

(Bowker Author Biography)

Reviews (2)

Publisher's Weekly Review

Forget Iraq and Sudan?America is the foremost failed state, argues the latest polemic from America?s most controversial Left intellectual. Chomsky (Imperial Ambitions) contends the U.S. government wallows in lawless military aggression (the Iraq war is merely the latest example); ignores public opinion on everything from global warming to social spending and foreign policy; and jeopardizes domestic security by under-funding homeland defense in favor of tax cuts for the rich and by provoking hatred and instability abroad that may lead to terrorist blowback or nuclear conflict. Ranging haphazardly from the Seminole War forward, Chomsky?s jeremiad views American interventionism as a pageant of imperialist power-plays motivated by crass business interests. Disdaining euphemisms, he denounces American ?terror? and ?war crimes,? castigates the public-bamboozling ?government-media propaganda campaign? and floats comparisons to Mongols and Nazis. Chomsky?s fans will love it, but even mainstream critics are catching up to the substance of his take on Bush Administration policies; meanwhile his uncompromising moral sensibility, icy logic and withering sarcasm remain in a class by themselves. Required reading for every thoughtful citizen. (Apr.) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

Library Journal Review

A failed state, argues Chomsky, ignores international law and the need to protect its citizens. Guess what country fits the bill? (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.