For more than half a century, the United States has been pursuing a grand imperial strategy with the aim of staking out the globe. American leaders have shown themselves willing -- as in the Cuban missile crisis -- to follow the dream of dominance no matter how high the risks. Now the Bush administration is intensifying this process, driving Americans toward a choice between the prerogatives of power and livable Earth. In Hegemony or Survival, Noam Chomsky investigates how the United States came to this moment, what kind of peril we find ourselves in, and why our rulers are willing to jeopardize the future of our species.
With the striking logic that is his trademark, Chomsky dissects America's quest for global supremacy, tracking the US government's aggressive pursuit of policies intended to achieve "full spectrum dominance" at any cost. He vividly lays out how the most recent manifestations of the politics of global control -- from unilateralism and the dismantling of international agreements to state terrorism and the militarization of space -- cohere in a drive for hegemony that ultimately threatens our survival. In our era, he argues, empire is a recipe for an earthly wasteland.
Lucid, rigorous and thoroughly documented, Hegemony or Survival is Chomsky's most urgent and sweeping work in years. Certain to spark widespread debate, it is a definitive statement from one of the world's most influential political thinkers.
Editorial Reviews
"Judged in terms of the power, range, novelty, and influence of his thought, Noam Chomsky is arguably the most important intellectual alive." -The New York Times
"For anyone wanting to find out more about the world we live in....there is one simple answer: read Noam Chomsky." -The New Statesman, "12 Great Thinkers of Our Time"
"In this important addition to the literature of public policy, intellectual activist Noam Chomsky presents a scrupulously researched critique of America's "imperial grand strategy" -- a quest for dominance at any cost that not only has cast us in the role of a rogue superpower but also jeopardizes the very survival of humanity. Examining the roots of this post-WWII version of Manifest Destiny, Chomsky combs through half a century of American history for vivid examples of military aggression cloaked in the sheep's clothing of "self-defense" (Cuba, Vietnam), "preventive warfare" (Granada, Nicaragua), "humanitarian intervention" (Kosovo, East Timor), and "war on terrorism" (Iraq).
Chomsky argues that the Washington propaganda machine offers up a spin cycle of patriotic bromides designed to mask the true, self-serving motives of our government. With this as his foundation, he exposes the tradition of dominant elitism that has motivated American presidents from Roosevelt and Kennedy to Reagan and the Bushes. In case after case, he shows how policy makers have ignored public opinion and run roughshod over international law -- thereby perpetrating terrorist acts as ruthless as those they oppose. Chomsky uses the 2003 invasion of Iraq as a stunning example of how the grand imperial strategy has backfired. Far from eliminating the threat of terrorism, the war against Saddam Hussein has enhanced terrorist activity, as potential targets of U.S. aggression begin to see weapons of mass destruction as the only deterrent to American intervention. Clearly, Chomsky believes the stakes in this dangerous game of global hegemony have never been higher. Reading his thoroughly researched, copiously footnoted, and always engaging analysis, it is difficult not to agree." Anne Markowski, The Barnes & Noble Review
"Reading Chomsky is like standing in a wind tunnel. With relentless logic, he bids us to listen closely to what our leaders tell us--and to discern what they are leaving out....Agree with him or not, we lose out by not listening." -Business Week
About the Author
Political philosopher, activist, and linguist Noam Chomsky is beloved around the world for the strength of his personal commitment to the truth as he sees it and for the brilliance of his ideas. Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on December 7, 1928, he studied linguistics, mathematics, and philosophy at the University of Pennsylvania and received his PhD there in 1955. Chomsky has taught at MIT for fifty years and is currently Institute Professor Emeritus in the Department of Linguistics and Philosophy. His linguistics work is widely credited with having revolutionized the field, and his political writings have made important contributions for decades. In 2001, he published 9-11, which became his first international bestseller and was arguably the single most influential post–9-11 book. Chomsky is the author of many other best-selling political works, including Profit Over People, Media Control, Hegemony or Survival, Failed States, Hopes and Prospects, Masters of Mankind, What Kind of Creatures Are We?, and Who Rules the World?
