عنوان

War and empire :

0745327648 (pbk.)

0745327656 (hbk.)

9780745327648 (pbk.)

9780745327655 (hbk.)

b414031

War and empire :

[Book]

the American way of life /

Paul L. Atwood

New York :

Pluto Press,

2010

xv, 268 p. ;

22 cm

Includes bibliographical references (p. 257-264) and index

1. Introduction: American Ideology versus American Realities -- 2. By the Sword We Seek Peace -- Microbes: The ally of rape, torture and conquest? -- Spaniards discover civilizations far more advanced than their own - except for 'guns, germs and steel' -- Faced with economic and social disruption at home, the British join the game of empire -- The Virgin Queen's colony -- A blood-soaked city on a hill -- Property and profit as the sign of God's favor -- The 'Spawn of Satan' -- The first all-out war -- 3. French, Indians, Rebellion and Repression -- The first global war prefigures more global war -- Americans who wanted war now refuse to pay for it -- Those who made the greatest sacrifices are betrayed -- The new American elite taxes and forecloses on those without representation -- 4. An Empire for Liberty? -- Creating an enemy to thwart the Bill of Rights -- Many trails of tears -- Land hunger provokes an unnecessary war -- Laying claim to the hemisphere -- 'Anglo-Saxonism' and the march to the Pacific -- To the halls of Montezuma -- 5. From Ashes to Empire -- Not fighting to free slaves -- The compromise of 1877: Selling the freedmen out -- Massacres in the west -- Industrialism renewed and the ascension of finance -- Cycles of boom and bust produce political instability -- Class war intensifies -- To contain the revolt of the masses and restore profitability, the plutocrats opt for empire -- The Monroe Doctrine enforced -- The ideology of expansion -- 6. War with Spain, then Another and Another -- As a pretext for war, Spain is declared a threat to American security -- The press reveals its racism and lust for empire -- Cubans on verge of winning independence on their own alarm Washington -- 7. World War I: Making the World Safe for American Capital Investment -- Germany's potential dominance in Europe a threat to the Open Door -- The standard interpretation of American entry is superficial -- Britain violates American neutrality but Wilson does nothing -- Though its blockade damages the American economy the House of Morgan invests in Britain -- Wilson's neutrality a charade -- Wilson positions himself to be global messiah -- Bolsheviks take Russia out of the war and pose a new threat to the Open Door -- American entry tips the balance though Germany is not militarily defeated -- Wilson's peace plan fails but the US becomes the global finance capital -- A war against democracy at home -- A world made safe only for more war -- 8. Pearl Harbor: The Spark but not the Cause -- Day of infamy - or deception? -- Japan's empire threatens western colonialism -- Admiral Richardson warns FDR that his measures threaten war -- American military officials long understood that Pearl Harbor was vulnerable to surprise attack -- Electronic intercepts and radio direction finders indicate Japan's intent -- Philippines left vulnerable by General MacArthur -- Neither Germany nor Japan capable of attacking the continental US -- If the Axis posed no military threat to the US what was the real worry? -- America and the Holocaust: Not rescuing Jews -- The atomic bombings: To save lives or to intimidate communists? -- Downfall -- 9. Cold War: The Clash of Ideology or of Empires? -- Soviets indispensable to defeat of Hitler -- Yesterday's essential ally becomes the new threat -- The atomic arms race begins -- Soviets withdraw voluntarily from conquered areas -- Capitalism and communism vie for the loyalties of the defeated empires' colonies -- The threat of a closed world remains: Germany becomes a new axis -- Control of oil becomes the linchpin of American policy -- The 'Martial Plan' -- The future of Germany further polarizes the Cold War -- Building the permanent war economy -- Losing China to the Chinese -- 10. Cold War/Hot War: Savage Wars of Peace? -- Creating the warfare state -- Korea -- Vietnam -- The Middle East and the Cold War -- 11. War on Terror -- A new American century? -- Giving the Soviet Union its Vietnam War -- Terrorists as 'freedom fighters' -- Terrorizing Iraqi civilians -- Abandoning Afghanistan to warlords and the rise of the Taliban and Al Qaeda -- Demonizing Iraq for the events of 9/11 to foster hysteria at home -- The real reasons the US invaded Iraq -- The Prize -- Co-opting the Russian and Chinese backyards -- 12. Conclusion

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"In this provocative study, Paul Atwood attempts to show Americans that their history is one of constant wars of aggression and imperial expansion. The book shows that, far from being dragged reluctantly into foreign entanglements, America's leaders have always picked its battles in order to increase their influence and power, with little regard for the American soldiers and 'enemy' civilians killed or made to suffer in the process."--BOOK JACKET

War and empire.

American way of life

War and society-- United States-- History

United States, Foreign relations

United States, History, Military

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Atwood, Paul L

[Book]

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