Globalization Unmasked: Imperialism in the 21st Century [Hardcover]

James Petras (Author), Henry Veltmeyer (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 11, 2001

Globalization is the mantra of our times. Business executives, politicians, and intellectuals all seem to agree that it just happened, and that we must adapt to it. In this new book, the entire globalization project is subjected to a powerful blast from the left. James Petras and Henry Veltmeyer contend that globalization is not new—capitalism over the past 100 years has experienced periodic waxings and wanings of its tendency to integrate economies worldwide. They go on to argue that globalization was created by deliberate policies put in place by powerful states under the control of dominant classes, and that it is not a structural part of the capitalist system—it is instead an ideological smokescreen used to divert attention away from the resurgence of imperialist powers. The authors do see an alternative—a renewed, democratic, and revolutionary socialist vision that is capable of uniting people, and of being recognized by political movements that are committed to finding realistic strategies and achievable goals.

Editorial Reviews

Review

...protesters at future WTO meetings will wave well-thumbed copies. Choice

About the Author

James Petras is former Professor of Sociology at Binghamton University, New York.

Henry Veltmeyer is Professor of Sociology and International Studies at Saint Mary's University, Halifax, Nova Scotia.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Zed Books (August 11, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1856499383
• ISBN-13: 978-1856499385
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.3 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,945,964 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Vital, April 13, 2005

By 

Douglas Doepke (Claremont, CA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Globalization Unmasked: Imperialism in the 21st Century (Hardcover)

Despite the superficial review below, Globalism Unmasked is neither warmed-over cliche nor Third World chauvinism. The fact that some classic themes carry over to the New World Order, while some do not should surprise no one. Which do, and which don't, however, may. Those readers interested in situating Marxist analysis within the New World Order should find the text both stimulating and rewarding. In fact, "globalization", or its semantic equivalent, is on the lips of just about everyone, while the idea dominates trendy discourse. But the question remains: how is this concept being popularly understood and what are the facts surrounding its sudden emergence. The book's project is to shed some light on these crucial issues.

Clearly, globalization is being sold as an irresistable process, driven by new technologies that make an empire of global capital impossible to avoid. The practical upshot is that resistance should be understood as futile, no matter how negatively a person's life is being affected. The ideological value of this manuever should be obvious, while the value of its debunking should be even more so. Moreover, many on the left have bought into this thesis, rendering the book's counter-thesis a particularly important and timely one.

Behind the buzz-word, the authors insist, lies the old process of imperialism, or Euro-American exploitation. So the wine hasn't changed, only the semantic bottles. Given all the nonsense about an end of history, this is a contention worth considering, and it's the book's burden to defend the thesis. (How well it succeeds should be up to the reader to judge.) But at least, their analysis caused me to re-examine what's behind popular use. Too often globalization is taken as a process driven solely by technology, apart from those social forces in whose interest the new tools are operating. In short, popular usage is encouraged to assume a technological determinism instead of a class-bound determinism, thus closing off alternatives to capitalist consolidation. Or, to risk oversimplifying, it's computers dictating the global process, not corporate greed. As a result, unmasking the concept has the value of reopening alternatives based on the interests of classes other than the capitalist, alternatives which can then serve as a platform for renewing struggle against global cosolidation. And while this is not exactly the argument the authors use, I believe it's one way of understanding their position.

There are relatively fresh topics scattered throughout. For example, NGO"s have emerged as a recent international development, and despite their laudatory press, the text reveals unsparingly the actual role these agencies play in assisting global imperialism. That alone is worth the read. Moreover, the final chapter situating socialism in a post-cold war environment is anything but a stale left-over. Anyone curious about the direction of socialist thinking, given the Soviet experience, should find this discussion of genuine interest.

A key reservation lies in the often high level of abstraction with which the text operates. Specifically, the book is weak on particular case studies. Too often, as in Chapter Four dealing with privatization, the text cuts loose from the sort of case studies that would strengthen the chapter's thesis. Still and all, I don't believe the authors intended this as a scholarly work even though the text draws from a scholarly background. Instead, it's an ideological work intended to reveal the real nature of so-called globalization, and when combined with Chomsky's intensive case studies, presents a powerful overview of North-South relations. Be that as it may, Petras and Veltmeyer's book deserves a more accurate Amazon reception than a mere single and misleading review. All in all, the book represents an important contribution to New World Order analysis and contemporary Marxist assessments, and is well worth the read.

4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A lighter and fancier rendition of imperialism, April 11, 2006

By 

Vahit Sametoglu (Edmonton, Alberta, Canada) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Globalization Unmasked: Imperialism in the 21st Century (Paperback)

"Globalization" is deemed to be something very cool and new age. We hear people say things like "we live in a small village called the World and globalization what makes this happen". It all sounds very nice, fancy and cool!

But, do you think it is really cool for those who are "globalized"? The authors basically argue that globalization is some sort of new fancy name for imperialism with lighter rendition. People of the underdeveloped and developing countries should be very cautions as to the activities of some worldwide organizations IMF, World Bank etc.

One of the most eye-opening chapters of the book was the one about non-governmental organizations (NGO's). They argue that even though the majority of the administrators of these organizations are local people, they have, in general, very strong ties with those infamous worldwide organizations and powerful countries. They are paid by those institutions / countries in large sums and used as the tools of propaganda and promotion. These (relatively) poor countries essentially become more and more connected and dependent on the (seemingly) benefactor / benevolent countries.

This book carries a message to the people of underdeveloped and developing countries that they should stay away these NGO's and similar organizations as much as possible.

0 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great condition and fast delivery, February 26, 2010

By 

Ms. Smith - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Globalization Unmasked: Imperialism in the 21st Century (Paperback)

I needed this book for a course I was taking, so I definitely appreciated the rapid shipment from the seller.