Who Rules the World? (American Empire Project)

Noam Chomsky's Who Rules the World? is probably his most recent work and discusses one of the most important questions of our time. While many Americans may think that the leading politicians from the party in power are the rulers, Professor Chomsky, probably the greatest philosopher and social analyst of our time, gets to the truth about power. His analysis is quite different than what one might find in the corporate media or from the conservative/liberal punditry. The real rulers are the elites behind the scenes who fund the campaigns of the politicians, who are merely drones taking their cues and marching orders from their corporate and oligarchic sponsors. The book concisely addresses this influence source and how it impacts democracy. For a better understanding of political, economic and social reality, I highly recommend this book or any books written by Noam Chomsky. I am taking liberty to attach below certain excerpts from the book that I think were interesting and profoundly accurate. According to Professor Chomsky, the U.S. supports democracy if, and only if, the outcomes accord with its strategic and economic objectives. The activism of the 1960s elicited elite concerns about excessive democracy. But the Republican Party cannot get enough votes from its core constituency who benefits from its policies, so must innovate by mobilizing social tendencies: nativists trembling in fear and hatred by religious extremists. As long as the general population is passive, apathetic, and diverted to consumerism or hatred of the vulnerable, then the powerful can do as they please. The Republican Party is a radical insurgency that has virtually abandoned normal parliamentary politics. Congressional Republicans are dismantling the limited environmental protections initiated by Richard Nixon, who would be something of a dangerous radical in todays political scene. We face two perfidious avenues to global calamity: nuclear war (intentional or accidental) and climate change due to human burning of fossil fuels. The U.S. is the only nation that doesn't have a national policy for restricting the use of fossil fuels and doesn't even have renewable energy targets. This reflects the power and influence of the fossil fuels industry and giant multi-national corporations like Exxon-Mobil. Ronald Reagan's fiscal irresponsibility turned the U.S. from the world's leading creditor to the world's leading debtor, tripling the national debt and raising threats to the economy that were escalated by George W. Bush. (Page 63) Due to declining profits in domestic manufacturing, planners - private and public, shifted the U.S. economy toward financialization and offshoring of production beginning in the late 1970s. NAFTA, labeled as a free trade agreement, was nothing of the sort; it was an investors' rights agreement. The rights of corporations by now far transcend those of mere humans. (page 94) In past decades, 95% of growth has gone into the pockets of 1% of the population.

A must read for those who dare to want to know...our reality. Enlightening, facts told by an outstanding author, professor, American linguist, philosopher, cognitive scientist, historian, social critic and political activist. Ranked in one index as the eighth most cited person in history, alongside Aristotle, Shakespeare, Marx, Plato and Freud. The legendary MIT professor practically invented modern linguistics. In addition to his pioneering work in that field he has been a leading voice for peace and social justice for many decades, also named, “America’s greatest intellectual”.

If one has never read or studied Noam Chomsky, be ready for a treat. Professor Chomsky has an unusual way of analyzing history and facts, and renders analysis that I personally don’t encounter elsewhere. I always learn a lot when I study a work such as this. I need to state that I do quite a bit of parallel study when I read Noam Chomsky. At the same time, as I have aged, I read less of Noam Chomsky than I used to. Why? Because there is a consistent theme that really never changes. Obviously this is possibly due to a brilliant intellectual coming to firmly held convictions that he has no reason to change. I respect that, but if I already know where he is headed, and what conclusions will be drawn, then what I learn now is the surrounding facts which I study. I already know the conclusion. I do not travel in intellectual circles. I have no one to discuss this work or Professor Chomsky with. Therefore what I say next may be wildly inaccurate…. Professor Chomsky reminds me very much stylistically of H. L. Mencken. I loved studying H. L. Mencken when I was younger. However after awhile, I would learn new information from the subject matter, I knew where Mister Mencken was headed intellectually. In any event I enjoyed this work very much. I learned a lot, mostly background and supporting facts, if one has read much of Noam Chomsky in the past, one may find this a well written repetition of his prior message. Thank You for taking the time to read this review…

For the past several years I have been trying to figure out what makes Americans tick. My efforts have run the gamut - books on history, religion, economics, philosophy, politics, but it wasn't until I ran into Noam Chomsky that everything came together. The picture he paints of American duplicity is earthshaking with his observations backed up by references. Chomsky's revelations, so critical of American foreign policy (past and present) that he's viewed as either a Communist or a crackpot. If you want to know the downside of the American experience this author and this book is a great place to start. If you're of the "America, right or wrong" this book is also for you because you will learn the arguments against your position and will be better able to counter them.

Any book by Noam Chomsky is a good book

Vivimos en un sistema que al correr libre, va donde le permitimos y como se han apoderado de el los políticos y los empresarios de Grandes consorcios, pues nos tienen atrapados a su antojo. Y además percibo que a la mayoría de la gente le gusta emular a los ricos y por tanto vivimos queriendo ser quien no somos y no podemos ser. Ojalá que nos demos cuenta que ser auténticos y más espirituales y solidarios, resultaría en un Mundo muchísimo mejor. Basta con ver como es posible que una persona como Trump, pueda marear a tanta gente y salirse con la suya, cuando tiene una mente terriblemente limitada y un Alma terriblemente pequeña...

So detailed, so sensible, so widely ignored. It's insanity to keep doing something stupidly, vilely destructive again and again while hoping each time that this time it will end differently. The people have been forced to become spectators of, not participants in decisions that affect us all. Surely something must change?

A was expecting more about who rules the world, how decisions are taken and by who. What's the role of IMF and lobbyist groups. But the book talks almost entirely about how imperialist and violent are the USA and israel. Which is true btw, but the book title is misleading imo.

This is the first book I have read by Noam Chomsky and it is an impressive and persuasive collection of essays on U.S. priorities. I suspect that many readers will disagree with Chomsky's conclusions but I think what he does so well is illuminate the question of first principles. Some of my thoughts are below but overall, this is a collection of essays well worth reading and very rewarding. The most impactful essays for me: - Why does the U.S. support Israel when the international community condemns the colonial actions and other war crimes? - Is Iran the most significant global threat to peace? The greatest nuclear threat? The extent of the North American media placating to this line of thinking in stark contrast to the fears on those in these areas and global opinion more generally. The soft edges that are a bit less satisfying: - levers on this forceful breadth of knowledge to dismiss alternatives: no reason to invade Iraq and wholesale and easily dismisses that arguments were ever provided - leftist-revolutionary sympathizer: pro-Castro as a democratic and labour-led movement, briefly acknowledging that U.S. had some reason to be concerned. (Not that Castro was so crazy that Gorbachev made the move to pull the nukes) - bait and switch title - who rules the world is admitted to be too complex to answer and the wrong question altogether. Low points: - generally, any author who starts a book with their role as an intellectual is pretty off putting. Jordan Peterson loves to do this and it comes across as really alienating. My view is that Descartes really strikes a better tone in Meditations, introduced as a letter to the reining intellectuals rather than announcing himself as the autocrat of thought. One could interpret this more generously but it came across to me an unnecessary flex. - the book is a collection of essays with different themes but Chomsky copy-pastes his arguments in a few places with the exact same sequencing of arguments. Other reviewers commented it could have done with an editor. I think it is an excellent collection of essays. It makes me feel a bit like an underappreciated reader to re-read the same argument multiple times.