American Conspiracies: Lies, Lies, and More Dirty Lies that the Government Tells Us [Hardcover]

Jesse Ventura (Author), Dick Russell (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 8, 2010

Jesse Ventura tells it like it is, and this time he tackles our government’s biggest secrets.

In this explosive account of wrongful acts and on-going cover-ups, Jesse Ventura takes a systematic look at the wide gap between what the American government knows and what it reveals to the American people. For too long, we the people have sat by and let politicians and bureaucrats from both parties obfuscate and lie. And according to this former Navy SEAL, former pro wrestler, and former Minnesota governor, the media is complicit in these acts of deception. For too long, the mainstream press has refused to consider alternate possibilities and to ask the tough questions. Here, Ventura looks closely at the theories that have been presented over the years and separates the fact from the fiction.

In Ventura’s eyes, the murder of Abraham Lincoln and the assassinations of the Kennedys and Martin Luther King, all need to be re-examined. Was Watergate presented honestly, or was the CIA involved? Did the Republican Party set out to purposefully steal two elections on behalf of George W. Bush? Has all the evidence been presented about the 9/11 attacks or is there another angle that the media is afraid to explore? And finally, is the collapse of today’s financial order and the bailout plan by the Federal Reserve the widest-reaching conspiracy ever perpetrated?

“If you’re talking outspoken, unconventional, and no-holds-barred, you’re talking Jesse Ventura.”—Larry King
 
“I wouldn’t mind seeing Ventura run for president (or for senator, or dog-catcher, or whatever). In addition to talking conspiracy, he’s likely to raise all sorts of other trouble.”—Damon W. Root, Reason Magazine

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Former Minnesota governor, navy SEAL, and pro rassler Ventura has a new truTVshow investigating but not necessarily debunking conspiracy theories. This companion to the program, a sort of teaser, dissects such famed objects of unending speculation as the JFK, RFK, and MLK assassinations. Ventura concludes that none of those were twisted-loner crimes but rather resulted from conspiracies of varying vastness. Anent the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Ventura asserts that “our government engaged in a massive cover-up” and had “ties to the hijackers.” He ventures that “unanswered questions remain about how the towers were brought down and whether a plane really struck the Pentagon” and that the “Bush Administration either knew about the plan” or “had a hand in it.” Heady, paranoiac stuff, to be sure, but there are even more forthright charges regarding the assassination of Malcolm X, the Jonestown massacre, and the “stolen” elections of 2000, 2004, 2008, and, for that matter, 1980. Believable? Some of it. An action-packed read? You bet. --Mike Tribby

Review

An action-packed read? You bet. (Booklist )

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Skyhorse Publishing; 1ST edition (March 8, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 160239802X
• ISBN-13: 978-1602398023
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (171 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #59,397 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #96 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Government     > Federal Government
  • #97 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Current Events > Conspiracy Theories

More About the Author

Governor Jesse Ventura served as the 38th governor of Minnesota from January 4, 1999, to January 6, 2003, but he is more than a politician. In fact, he doesn't like being referred to as a politician at all. Before entering the world of politics, he served his country as part of a U.S. Navy UDT team (the forerunner of the SEALs), won fame as a professional wrestler, worked as a bodyguard for big-name rock and roll acts like the Rolling Stones, and had roles in major motion pictures, including "The Running Man" and "Predator."

Governor Ventura first entered the public eye in the mid-1970s as a profession wrestler, gaining fame for his physique and wrestling as Jesse "The Body" Ventura. He wrestled until 1984, when blood clots in his lungs ended his in-ring career. After a failed comeback bid, he worked as a color commentator on television for "All-Star Wrestling" and later "Superstars of Wrestling," hosted his own talk segment on the WWF's "Superstars of Wrestling" called "The Body Shop," and did color commentary on radio for a few National Football League teams (among them, the Minnesota Vikings and Tampa Bay Buccaneers). Ventura most notably co-hosted "Saturday Night's Main Event" with Vince McMahon and the first six WrestleManias (1985-1990).

Ventura's acting career was a natural extension of his television work. He appeared in "Predator" (which starred future California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger). He had a starring role in the 1990 sci-fi movie "Abraxas, Guardian of the Universe," and had supporting roles in "The Running Man," "Demolition Man," "Repossessed," "Ricochet," "The Master of Disguise" (in which he steals the Liberty Bell), and "Batman & Robin." Ventura also made a cameo appearance in "Major League II" as "White Lightning" and appeared as a self-help guru (voice only) in "The Ringer" trying to turn Johnny Knoxville into a more confident worker. In addition, Ventura had a cameo in "The X-Files episode" "Jose Chung's From Outer Space" as a Man in Black alongside fellow 'MiB' Alex Trebek.

Ventura ran for governor of Minnesota as the nominee for the Reform Party of Minnesota. His campaign consisted of a combination of aggressive grassroots events and original television spots using the phrase "Don't vote for politics as usual." He spent considerably less than his opponents (about $300,000) and was a pioneer in his using the Internet as a medium of reaching out to voters in a political campaign. He won the election narrowly--and unexpectedly--defeating the major-party candidates, Norm Coleman (Republican) and Minnesota Attorney General Hubert H. "Skip" Humphrey III (Democratic-Farmer-Labor).

Deciding not to seek a second term in office, Ventura left the political arena, but continued to speak out about the issues he cares most about. He taught a study group at Harvard University as a visiting fellow at the Kennedy School of Government's Institute of Politics in which he focused on third party politics, campaign finance, the war on drugs, and other relevant political issues. He has written two books since leaving office, both with Dick Russell, "Don't Start the Revolution Without Me!" and "American Conspiracies." He also writes and hosts the television series "Conspiracy Theory with Jesse Ventura," which airs on TruTV.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

99 of 105 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Governor Ventura is right on: " I don't get intimidated, I get angry.", April 22, 2010

By 

Kenneth W. Kassen "History Nut" (Shawnee, KS) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: American Conspiracies: Lies, Lies, and More Dirty Lies That the Government Tells Us (Audio CD)

Jesse starts out by telling us his first days as Minnesota's first Independent governor and how he was requested to meet with and answer some questions by those wonderful folks with the CIA down in the lower area of the Minnesota Capitol Building. He is obviously a conspiracy nut (and I don't mean that in a derogatory way) who takes his research seriously and is meticulous. He has said "When I get denied something, I do the opposite of getting intimidated--I get angry." He's determined to get answers. He gives us an insight on the JFK, RFK and Lincoln assassinations, the Dr. King and Malcom X assassinations, and a great American hero whom most of the country has never heard. Marine Major General Smedley Butler prevented some of America's big name bankers and industrialist of what amounted to a take over of the country from FDR. These icons thought Butler was their man to pull it off. Instead, he read the Constitution and effectively brought an end to the conspiracy. I have a degree in American History and I wasn't aware that happened. He deals with the CIA and their escapades. He goes after Bush/Cheney and the stolen elections of 2000 and 2004. He takes us through the Jonestown Massacre. The first stolen election? Bush/Cheney you think? So did I, but he shows us how the Election of 1980 was the first stolen election. His take: "Reagan's people had cut a deal with Iran to keep the hostages beyond the presidential election, to ensure President Carter's negotiations with Iran failed and that he lost to Reagan." 9/11 is not a taboo subject for the former governor. Israel sent two senior agents of the Mossad to Washington in August 2001 to "alert the CIA and FBI to the existence of a cell of as many as 200 terrorists said to be preparing a big operation." He shows us that our officials in Washington were not concerned enough to take that and other warning seriously. Was there a conspiracy? The Governor's book isn't an "I think it was like this" book. He documents his findings. In summary, I'm glad I purchased this book. It is written by someone who isn't afraid of our corrupt government (whether Democrat or Republican, they're both self serving, each with their own agenda) and who pretty much says it like it is. I wish we had more people of Governor Ventura's calibre who exposes our government's lies and coverups by ssking the tough questions our bureaucrats don't want to answer. If conspiracies are your thing, this book is a must read. If you don't buy it, go to your library and check it out.

149 of 166 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Jesse Ventura tells the truth, March 11, 2010

By 

Steven Hager "templedragon420" (New York City) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: American Conspiracies: Lies, Lies, and More Dirty Lies that the Government Tells Us (Hardcover)

This book is an excellent primer on some of the major political conspiracies in American history, from the Lincoln assassination to 9/11. Ventura's strong suit is avoiding the bogus conspiracy stories that have been planted to muddy the investigative waters and paint conspiracy theorists as a tinfoil hat brigade. Ventura knows those stories get planted by government spooks in the media to create straw men than can easily be torn down. Notice how we have a constant stream of "investigations" into UFOs on television, but nothing of any substance on 9/11? I was happy to see a chapter on Marine Corp. General Smedley Butler, a man who tried to blow the whistle on the Anglo-American cabal that was secretly running the country, manufacturing war for profit, only to be muzzled by Congress. Smedley should be celebrated as our greatest patriot since the Founding Fathers, instead he is virtually unknown. Another story that seldom gets told is how the Martin Luther King Jr. family won a civil case against the government for King's assassination after it was discovered two sniper teams were sent to Memphis that day, and that the bushes the sniper hid behind were immediately chopped down and removed a few hours after the shooting by police to sanitize the crime scene. Just as all the steel from the Twin Towers was disappeared as quickly as possible to sanitize that crime scene. Ventura picked one of the best researchers in the country to help him with this book, Dick Russell. Russell's book, "That Man Who Knew Too Much," is probably the best book ever written about the JFK assassination.

117 of 132 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Simply eye-opening, March 10, 2010

By 

A. Shay (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: American Conspiracies: Lies, Lies, and More Dirty Lies that the Government Tells Us (Hardcover)

This book simply is eye-opening. The conclusion that I get is that we can't trust the government and what is told and taught is not at all the reality. The research done for the book is outstanding and other than his opinions, they are mostly all government documents and well-reserched material.

Looking at some of the unfounded and idiotic bad reviews on this book, I ask -

Why is it easy to see corruption in countries like China, Russia, Venezuela, North Korea, and Cuba, but so hard to see the corruption in America? I believe it's because of so much brain-washing in Media, Education, and politics and while I love this country dearly, before we realized, we have become a near-fascist country.