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USA: The Ruthless Empire Kindle Edition

4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 29 ratings

Empires rise and fall; they do not last.

In the eyes of many, the US exerts the strongest destabilizing influence on world events, and thus presents the greatest threat to world peace. World power #1 hasn’t acquired this top position by chance. Since 1945, no other nation has bombed as many other countries or toppled as many governments as the US. It maintains the most military bases, exports the most weapons, and has the highest defense budget in the world.
USA: The Ruthless Empire explains the background factors, motives, and resources of this world power.

 

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From the Publisher

Empire, USA, imperialism, rise and fall, military-industrial complex, world peace, war on terror
Empire, USA, imperialism, rise and fall, military-industrial complex, world peace, war on terror
Empire, USA, imperialism, rise and fall, military-industrial complex, world peace, war on terror

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Daniele Ganser, born in Lugano in 1972, is a historian who specializes in contemporary history since 1945 and international politics. His main research focuses on peace studies, geostrategy, covert warfare, resource conflicts, and economic policy. He is the founder and director of the Swiss Institute for Peace and Energy Research in Basel, and is the author of Illegal Wars: From Cuba to Syria—How NATO Countries Sabotaged the UN.

 

Review

“In his new book USA: The Ruthless Empire, Daniele Ganser examines the West's self-portrayal as the ‘Free West,’ an enlightened and well-meaning defender of freedom, human rights and democracy around the world. Ganser provides solid facts to critically question the worldview that the leading media imposes on us daily.”
Hannes Sies, scharf links
 
“When it comes to exposing imperial politics, Swiss historian Dr. Daniele Ganser is one of the masters of his profession. Anyone who has read his latest book,
USA: The Ruthless Empire, must live with the realization that we are not the good guys and that our press is anything but statist.”
Ken Jebsen, KenFM
 
“When reading
USA: The Ruthless Empire, one is literally struck by facts that seem unbelievable. Yet, or perhaps because of that, it reads like a thriller.”
Martin Baraki, International
 
“Books like this one are more important than ever. . . . Without the realization of what has actually happened, and of what continues to happen, without seeing through the phrases of lies and constant media manipulation, no meaningful contribution can be made toward a more peaceful world, which is precisely what lies at the heart of peace researcher Daniele Ganser.”
Gerald Brei, Der Europäer
 
“With this book, Daniele Ganser has succeeded in conveying historical background knowledge in a compact form, making it easy to read, especially for young people. This is absolutely necessary in view of increasing skepticism toward US policy with uninterrupted transatlantic propaganda in the media.”
Karl-Heinz Peil, FriedensJournal
 
“In his interesting book, Ganser describes in detail the role of the US war machine in enforcing the empire's claims to power.”
—Tilo Gräser, Sputnik
 
“Dr. Phil. Daniele Ganser, Swiss historian and peace activist, is one of the outstanding contemporary thinkers who fight against "general memory loss" by profoundly reappraising historical events and making their findings available to the people in a clear and understandable language.”
—Afsane Bahar, Neue Rheinische Zeitung
 
“The great thing about Daniele Ganser's books is that they provide solid facts that can be verified at any time, encouraging the reader to draw their own conclusions ... In his journey through U.S. history, marked by numerous crimes against humanity, genocides, wars of aggression, and other abysses, the author always appeals to the principle of the human family that unites us all.”
Richard-Heinrich Tarenz, Wild Magazin
 
“Daniele Ganser's
USA: The Ruthless Empire is interesting and worth reading - because the author does not practice one-dimensional criticism of the USA. He consistently appeals to principles and ideals: UN ban on the use of force, mindfulness and what he calls the human family.”
Erich Gysling, Infosperber
 
“Every war begins with a lie, as Ganser’s many examples comprehensively demonstrate. But he also emphasizes that there have always been people guided by ethical values and that in the current peace movement, it is important to maintain these values ... In my opinion, this book belongs in every school, university and city library.”
Christiane Borowy on KenFM
 
“A book absolutely worth reading. It opens eyes, creates consternation and shows the only viable way: The path to the future must be a peaceful one!”
Angelika Gutsche in Freitag
 
--This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0BH59MSV9
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Skyhorse (January 17, 2023)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ January 17, 2023
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 7172 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 464 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 29 ratings

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Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
4.4 out of 5
29 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Reviewed in the United States on June 12, 2023
Swiss author Daniele Ganser is a world-class and top-tier teacher, analyst, lecturer, historian, writer, and thinker! He's written exactly the book I would have written on the topic. It covers broadly, concisely, and holistically American Empire.

He clearly demonstrates the true face of Pax Americana, providing a complete picture of Washington, which is almost never revealed by mainstream or establishment sources, media, or institutions. This is essential reading especially for Americans and Western Europeans, and everyone else in the Anglosphere (e.g. Canada, Australia).

He details the sordid history and genesis of U.S. Empire and how deception and the tactics of state terrorism or false flag operations are consistently wielded. Things begin to escalate after WWII with regime change operations and State Crimes Against Democracy (SCAD) which accelerate, culminating in the events of 9/11.

Washington and Brussels then bring us to the brink of WW3 having provoked Russia to invade Ukraine in 2022. He rightly compares China's Belt & Road to Germany's construction of the Berlin-Baghdad Railway which the British Empire saw as a direct challenge to its empire, one in a series of events culminating in WWI. Daniele hits it out of the park with "USA: The Ruthless Empire", a must-read!
21 people found this helpful
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Reviewed in the United States on March 25, 2024
Martin Luther King called the U.S. government “the greatest purveyor of violence in the world.” No one can reasonably deny that he was right. U.S. invasions, occupations, wars of aggression, coups, regime-change operations, inciting and provoking wars and conflicts, sanctions, embargoes, and state-sponsored assassinations have all contributed to what amounts to a massive death toll among foreign citizens. We don’t know the exact number of people the U.S. government has killed in, say, the last 80 years but it certainly has to be in the millions. That’s nothing to scoff at. When it comes to killing, there is no doubt that the U.S. government has made America Number 1.

The problem is that all too many U.S. mainstream newspapers and writers are loathe to confront this core feature of the U.S. government. In fact, when one reads the mainstream press or mainstream books on U.S. foreign policy, one oftentimes gets the distinct impression that they are nothing more than assets of Operation Mockingbird, the CIA’s program to enlist the support of American journalists, especially those in the mainstream press.

To get an excellent handle on the real nature of the U.S. military-intelligence empire and its killing machine, I highly recommend this book by Daniele Ganser, who is a Swiss historian. It is an absolutely fantastic analysis of the U.S. killing machine that the U.S. government has become, especially after the federal government was converted to a national-security state consisting of the Pentagon, the vast military-industrial complex, an empire of domestic and foreign military bases, the CIA, and the NSA after World War II.

Ganser pulls no punches. He correctly points out that the U.S. government is the greatest threat to world peace. Yes, greater than Russia, China, Iran, North Korea, and other nations that have been converted into official enemies, adversaries, opponents, or rivals of the U.S. Empire. He’s not alone. He observes that 24 percent of worldwide respondents to a survey stated the same thing.

He reminds us of President Eisenhower’s famous warning in his Farewell Address of the extreme danger that the military-industrial complex poses to the American people. He also reminds us that that the U.S. government leads the world in military spending. He writes about the adverse consequences of U.S. military bases in foreign countries. He also writes about the CIA’s regime-change operations, such as the ones in Iran, Guatemala, Cuba, Vietnam, the Dominican Republic, and Chile. He details the U.S.-sponsored kidnapping and murder of Gen. Rene Schneider, the innocent commander of Chile’s armed forces. He points out that since 1945, the United States has bombed more countries than any other nation.

Ganser also has a chapter on the national-security’s state’s assassination of President Kennedy, something that the U.S. mainstream press and mainstream historians have long been loathe to acknowledge. He correctly points out, “Important files on the assassination of President Kennedy are still under lock and key today, which prevents a full investigation into this unscrupulous crime.”

Perhaps the best endorsement of Ganser’s book are the criticisms of him on his Wikipedia page, which refers to him by the CIA’s favorite term—“conspiracy theorist.” The Wikipedia entry states “In 2023, Ganser’s presentations are considered to contain anti-Americanism, historical negationism, Kremlin propaganda, alternative facts, and half-truths…. The content of Ganser’s presentations is popular with a target audience of ‘conspiracy theorists and democracy skeptics.’” Why, the U.S. national-security establishment and its loyal acolytes in the U.S. mainstream press could not come up with a better critique (and endorsement) than that!

Libertarians will notice that Ganser is a leftist, especially when it comes to economics. But that doesn’t detract from the excellent nature of his analysis of the U.S. Empire, the U.S. national-security state, the U.S. foreign policy of interventionism, and the killing machine the U.S. government has become. Martin Luther King would have loved this book. So do I.
4 people found this helpful
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Reviewed in the United States on January 14, 2024
America-bashing at it's most SOARING!!
ALL of the hackneyed Leftist talking-points are taken out of mothballs and paraded proudly.
This drivel certainly could have been written by a "disenfranchised" university sophomore.
I don't believe in discarding ANY book, so this one was an instant donation to the local library as it was dirtying up my bookshelf.
3 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

GilbertoV
5.0 out of 5 stars Lucid analysis of global superpower warmongering both open and concealed.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 11, 2023
Global superpower analysis of imperialism and war mongering, both open and concealed. One of the most lucid analysis I have read. Key point was the role of 700+ USA military bases throughout the world, and the duplicity achieved in relations with these countries, whilst ignoring the UN non-violence protocols.

Daniele speaks truth to power.

His conclusion that he remains positive and hopeful for peace is weak. How we educate the masses to understand the duplicity and adopt a peaceful culture rather than a warmongering culture is completely absent. Appeals to mindfulness are rather lame, but hopefully I am wrong.
One person found this helpful
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Zakkuro
4.0 out of 5 stars A Primer to Modern Geo-Politics
Reviewed in Japan on December 18, 2023
Spoiler alert for all septuagenarians: new facts are very hard to find and very few. Information is presented factually in a bare-bone fashion to flesh out the general story of how the US plodded along the path to become the hegemonic empire it is today. After taking pains to show that the political reality is that the US thrives not as democracy but acts an oligarchy, the author attributes many of the turning points in US imperial expansion to the greed for new land and resources. Notably, the author mistakenly writes that, "Harry Truman... ordered the nuclear bombs to be dropped on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945." (p.133). Truman never "ordered" the nuclear bombs to be dropped. No Presidential directive was ever made and no written Presidential order exists to that effect. That is historical fact. I recommend this book as an anecdotal guide to the study of modern history for anyone born after 2001.09.11. It will serve you well as an antidote against the daily onslaught of propaganda and fake news.
Hugo Ernst Schwarz
5.0 out of 5 stars USA ruthless Empire
Reviewed in Singapore on May 14, 2023
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Hugo Ernst Schwarz
5.0 out of 5 stars USA ruthless Empire
Reviewed in Singapore on May 14, 2023
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Sascha Grillo
5.0 out of 5 stars A Most Important and Timely Book
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 22, 2023
Unfortunately, historian Dr. Daniele Ganser from the University of Basle is not well known in the English-speaking world, although he has written three excellent books on political issues (the fourth one, on Europe's oil dependency I have not read). His book is timely, as after the fall of the Soviet Union the world was left with only one super-power and no counter-weight to reign in the US American expansionary ambitions. At the latest, at the outbreak of the Ukraine conflict, it became so blatantly clear how subordinate Europe's role to the United States was, with no aspirations whatsoever to keep an autonomous way of thinking and acting on the world-stage. It is simply embarassing, to say the least, the vassal status that Europe has chosen vis-a-vis the United States in international relations, simply backing any neo-imperial ambition the stronger brother from overseas has had, starting from NATO's eastwards enlargement at the start of the 1990s. This, coupled with a uniform and a loyal pro-government media landscape, meant that the USA is now free to pursue whatever policies it pleases to satisfy is ever-increasing voracious appetite for power. An excellent book that should be read by anyone who wants to see a slightly different interpretation of events than the daily uniform and standardised brainwashing by the mainstream media.
3 people found this helpful
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