The Complex: How the Military Invades Our Everyday Lives (American Empire Project) [Paperback]

Nick Turse (Author)

Book Description

Release date: March 3, 2009 | ISBN-10: 0805089195 | ISBN-13: 978-0805089196 | Edition: First Edition

"Fascinating, no matter where you place yourself on the ideological spectrum."—Wired

Now in paperback, a stunning breakdown of the modern military-industrial complex—an omnipresent, hidden-in-plain-sight system of systems that penetrates all our lives.

From iPods to Starbucks to Oakley sunglasses, historian Nick Turse explores the Pentagon’s little-noticed contacts (and contracts) with the products and companies that now form the fabric of America. He investigates the remarkable range of military incursions into the civilian world: the Pentagon’s collaborations with Hollywood filmmakers; its outlandish schemes to weaponize the wild kingdom; its joint ventures with Marvel Comics and NASCAR. Similarly disturbing is the way in which the military, desperate for fresh recruits, has tapped into the "culture of cool" by making "friends" on MySpace.

A striking vision of this brave new world of remote-controlled rats and super-soldiers who need no sleep, The Complex will change our understanding of the militarization of America. We are a long way from Eisenhower’s military-industrial complex: this is the essential book for understanding its twenty-first-century progeny.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“This is a deeply disturbing audit of the Pentagon’s influence on American life, especially its subtle conscription of popular imagination and entertainment technology. If Nick Turse is right, the ‘Matrix’ may be just around the corner.”—Mike Davis, author of Buda's Wagon: A Brief History of the Car Bomb

“When President Eisenhower warned of the dangers to democracy posed by the military-industrial complex, he had no idea how far it would penetrate into every aspect of our everyday lives. In impressive detail, Nick Turse shows how the military is now tied to everything from your morning cup of Starbucks to the video games your kids play before turning in for the night. It's not just political anymore—it’s personal. Turse sounds the alarm bell about the militarization of everyday life. Now it’s up to us to do something about it.”—Bill Hartung, author of How Much Are You Making on the War Daddy?

“Nick Turse’s searing, investigative journalism reveals just how deeply embedded in our lives the war-making system is and why we should be viscerally alarmed. He exposes how, with a growing contingent of corporate/entertainment/academic/media collaborators, the Pentagon has not only garrisoned the globe, but come home to dominate the United States. For anyone interested in understanding the crisis this country is in, The Complex is indispensable reading.”—Dahr Jamail, author of Beyond the Green Zone

“Americans who still think they can free themselves from the clutches of the military-industrial complex need to read this book. For example, the gimmicks the Pentagon uses to deceive, entrap, and sign up gullible 18 to 24 year-olds are anything but voluntary.  Nick Turse has produced a brilliant exposé of the Pentagon’s pervasive influence in our lives.”—Chalmers Johnson, author of Nemesis: The Last Days of the American Republic

About the Author

Nick Turse holds a doctorate in sociomedical sciences from Columbia University. He is the associate editor and research director of Tomdispatch.com, and has written for such publications as the Los Angeles Times, the San Francisco Chronicle, The Nation, and The Village Voice, as well as for a host of online sites. Turse currently lives near New York City.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Metropolitan Books; First Edition edition (March 3, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0805089195
• ISBN-13: 978-0805089196
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.1 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #62,404 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #13 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Politics & Government > Public Affairs & Policy > Cultural Policy

More About the Author

Nick Turse is a journalist, historian, and the author of Kill Anything that Moves: The Real American War in Vietnam. Turse's work has appeared in the Los Angeles Times, the San Francisco Chronicle, and The Nation, among other publications. His investigations of U.S. war crimes in Vietnam have gained him a Ridenhour Prize for Reportorial Distinction, a Guggenheim Fellowship, and a fellowship at Harvard University's Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Useful Information, Difficult to Read March 26, 2010

By Robert F. Piper

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

As a former highly paid employee of a the Military Industrial Complex I found this book to be accurate and full of useful information. I have always said if the average American understood the incompetence, waste and corruption that riddles this parallel economy they would refuse to pay their taxes. The information presented in this book bears this out. However, the book is a bit difficult to read as it is so full of data.

14 of 17 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Even Eisenhower Didn't See This Coming May 18, 2010

By Sergio

Format:Paperback

This is a fast paced compelling read. Packed with startling revelations that will horrify some, while wowing others. Nick Turse opens our eyes, as to how pervasive the Military Industrial Complex has become in our lives. He lifts the curtain on billions of dollars of Pentagon waste that Americans tolerate without question. He details for the reader the extent of how the military has garrisoned the globe.
Sounding a warning to teens that "Uncle Sam Wants You" and will do almost anything toward that end, makes this mandatory reading for young men and women as well as their parents.
Sci-fi, buffs might find cool the idea of militarized moths, or spying spiders, but the programs Dr.Turse sheds light on, are cause for grave concern.
Throughout the book the author's clever wit is apparent and the level of research admirable. If you think the Military Industrial Complex is all guns, planes, missiles and tanks you should read The Complex. If you think that we as citizens are in control of the military you must read The Complex.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Complex a good read October 5, 2012

By musicdreams

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

The Complex details the many ways that the military industrial and military entertainment and military - well you get the idea, invade our everyday lives. Frankly, it left me wondering what I could do to boycott industries and companies that have totally sold out to the military complex - would I have to live as a nomad goat herder? Probably - I am typing this review on a machine made by a company that makes huge profits off of the military. A good read.