Confessions of an Economic Hit Man
I realized that my gloss as chief economist, head of Economics and Regional Planning, was not the simple deception of a rug dealer, not something of which a buyer can beware. It was part of a sinister system aimed not at outfoxing an unsuspecting customer, but rather at promoting the most subtle and effective form of imperialism the world has ever
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Several days later the popular Bandung politician, whose puppet stood up to Nixon and was impaled by Bucket Man, was struck and killed by a hit-and-run driver.
John Perkins • Confessions of an Economic Hit Man
There are a number of these in the book, convenient deaths of people who visibly opposed US intervention in their countries.
The modern slave trader assures himself (or herself) that the desperate people are better off earning one dollar a day than no dollars at all, and that they are receiving the opportunity to become integrated into the larger world community. She also understands that these desperate people are fundamental to the survival of her company, that they ar
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This would be a very interesting book to read alongside "The World is Flat," by Thomas Friedman. Unfortunately, I think most people will find that a rising tide only lifts the mega yachts.
Only weeks after sending his legislative package to Congress and a couple of days after expelling the SIL missionaries, Roldós warned all foreign interests, including but not limited to oil companies, that unless they implemented plans that would help Ecuador's people, they would be forced to leave his country. He delivered a major speech at the At
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I could not believe that our Founding Fathers had envisioned the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness to exist only for Americans, so why were we now implementing strategies that promoted the imperialist values they had fought against?
John Perkins • Confessions of an Economic Hit Man
The answers is that this has nothing to do with the Founding Fathers and everything to do with the corporatocracy that is spending like a cancer in our politics. That it can occur in a democracy by repeatedly asking the masses to vote against their own interests is especially appalling. Greed is intoxicating.
It hardly mattered that he was a pathological tyrant, that he had the blood of mass murders on his hands, or that his mannerisms and brutal actions conjured images of Adolph Hitler. The United States had tolerated and even supported such men many times before. We would be happy to offer him U.S. government securities in exchange for petrodollars, f
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I have found that people warm to you very quickly if you open your eyes, ears, and heart to their culture.
John Perkins • Confessions of an Economic Hit Man
And then you choke them on debt and extract their natural resource. You know, it kind of butters them up.
In addition to oil and water, Iraq is situated in a very strategic location. It borders Iran, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Syria, and Turkey, and it has a coastline on the Persian Gulf. It is within easy missile-striking distance of both Israel and the former Soviet Union.
John Perkins • Confessions of an Economic Hit Man
The United States spends over $87 billion conducting a war in Iraq while the United Nations estimates that for less than half that amount we could provide clean water, adequate diets, sanitation services, and basic education to every person on the planet.4 And we wonder why terrorists attack us?
John Perkins • Confessions of an Economic Hit Man
Our priorities make it pretty clear we will not be winning any popularity contests anytime soon.