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William Blum
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Killing Hope: U.S. Military and C.I.A. Interventions Since World War II--Updated Through 2003 Paperback – October 1, 2008

by William Blum (Author)
4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 164 ratings
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Is the United States a force for democracy? In this classic and unique volume that answers this question, William Blum serves up a forensic overview of U.S. foreign policy spanning sixty years. Remarks from the previous edition: "Far and away the best book on the topic."—Noam Chomsky "A valuable reference for anyone interested in the conduct of U.S. foreign policy."— Choice "I enjoyed it immensely."—Gore Vidal "The single most useful summary of CIA history."—John Stockwell "Each chapter I read makes me more and more angry."—Helen Caldicott "A very useful piece of work, daunting in scope, important."—Thomas Powers, author and Pulitzer Prize--winning journalist "A very valuable book. The research and organization are extremely impressive."—A.J. Langguth, author and former New York Times bureau chief For those who want the details on our most famous -actions (Chile, Cuba, Vietnam, to name a few), and for those who want to learn about our lesser-known efforts (France, China, Bolivia, Brazil, for example), this book provides a window on what our foreign policy goals really are. William Blum is the author of Rogue State: A Guide to the World’s Only Superpower .
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  1. Print length
    500 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Common Courage Press
  4. Publication date
    October 1, 2008
  5. Dimensions
    6 x 1.2 x 8.9 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    1567512526
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1567512526
  8. See all details
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4.6 out of 5 stars
164 global ratings

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Customers find the book informative and well-documented. They describe it as a conversational, plainly written discussion of American imperial overreach that is worth exploring.

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Information qualityReadability
16 customers mention "Information quality"16 positive0 negative

Customers find the book informative and well-documented. They say it provides a credible background to historical events, unlike other textbooks that provide only historical facts. The book is considered an authoritative journalistic work that provides credibility to other historical works.

"...THIS IS A WONDERFUL BOOK! I had no idea that the United States was as active as it has been since WW II...." Read more

"...The book is a roughly chronological account of America's overt and covert interventions in nations that dared to exhibit independence in thinking..." Read more

"...Everything is well-documented and all the primary and secondary sources are cited so that the objective reader can find all the facts for himself/..." Read more

"...have done a lot of my own research to learn about it but this book had many details that I had never heard...." Read more

5 customers mention "Readability"5 positive0 negative

Customers find the book easy to read. They say it's a well-written discussion of American imperial overreach and a must-read for all Americans.

"...Blum has a long-winded, but flowing style that is easily read...." Read more

"...The chapter on Operation Gladio in Italy was particularly dense and well written...." Read more

"A very well written discussion of American imperial over reach. No matter the human cost, in lives ruined or ended...." Read more

"...This is a very conversational, plainly written, semi-sarcastic compialation of US foreign policy interventions. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!" Read more

The 4th Reich. The corproate fascists. This is what we leave behind us.
5 out of 5 stars
The 4th Reich. The corproate fascists. This is what we leave behind us.
They hate us for our freedom. Really? I hate being lied to by "The 4th Reich"™. This is corporate fascism. This is what the CIA does. This is how the bankers use us.1945 to 1960's. Italy 1947-1948. Greece 1947 to early 50's. The Philippines 1940's and 50's. Korea 1945-1953. Albania 1949-1953. Eastern Europe 1948-1956. Germany 1950's. Iran 1953. Guatemala 1953-1954. Costa Rica mid-1950's. Syria 1956-1957. The Middle East 1957-1958. Indonesia 1957-1958. Western Europe 1950's and 60's. British Guiana 1953-1964. Soviet Union late 1940's to 60's. Italy 1950's -1970's. Vietnam 1950-1973. Cambodia 1955-1973. Laos 1957-1973. Haiti 1959-1963. Guatemala 1960. France/Algeria 1960's. Ecuador 1960-1963. The Congo 1960-1964. Brazil 1961-1964. Peru 1960-1965. Dominican Republic 1960-1966.Cuba 1959-1980's. Indonesia 1965. Ghana 1966. Uruguay 1964-1970. Chile 1964-1973. Greece 1964-1974. Bolivia 1964-1975. Guatemala 1962-1980's. Costa Rica 1970-1971. Iraq 1972-1975. Australia 1973-1975. Angola 1975 to 1980's. Zaire 1975-1978. Jamaica 1976-1980. Seychelles 1979-1981. Grenada 1979-1984. Morocco 1983. Suriname 1982-1984. Libya 1981-1989. Nicaragua 1978-1990. Panama 1969-1991. Bulgaria 1990/Albania 1991. Iraq 1990-1991. Afghanistan 1979-1992. El Salvador 1980-1994. Haiti 1986-1994. The American empire 1992 to present day.
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Top reviews from the United States

  • Morley Evans
    5.0 out of 5 stars Hope is Hard to Kill
    Reviewed in the United States on February 8, 2010
    Verified Purchase
    Killing Hope: U.S. Military and C.I.A. Interventions Since World War II--Updated Through 2003

    THIS IS A WONDERFUL BOOK!

    I had no idea that the United States was as active as it has been since WW II. The military and the CIA have been in overdrive everywhere for 65 years. Killing Hope deals with events after 1945. Before that, of course, there was WW II, the interwar period (1918 to 1939), WW I, the run-up to WW I, the Spanish American War and the building of the Panama Canal with interventions in Central America and Colombia. Washington was not asleep before the 20th Century, either. The United States has been up to its neck in everything throughout its history. You can look that up in Appendix II.

    After looking at things through the eyes of our enemies, I believe we in the West have all been the victims of a never-ending series of elaborate hoaxes that have been perpetrated by our élites. Our enemies were never as big and scary as we believed they were. We, on the other hand, were always very big and scary.

    The Twentieth Century looks to me like a giant power grab with the Anglo-American empire (that's us good guys, you know) taking over the world. We were trying to forestall losing our preeminent position as others caught up to us. Before WW I, the British were desperately afraid of Germany which was making better stuff and selling it for less. Before WW II, the United States was desperately afraid of Japan for the same reason. Nobody imagined that India and China would ever get up off the floor where we put them, but they have.

    The Chinese can thank Richard M. Nixon for opening the door to China in 1972. Samuel Gompers must have been spinning in his grave. Everyone is catching up: It was inevitable because people are smart and they learn from each other.

    In times going back long before Marco Polo, all the good stuff was coming from India and China. The great goal in Europe was to get to India, China and Japan. The Portuguese went around Africa. The Spanish went west and ran into the Americas. Then they continued on across the Pacific. The British and Dutch were fast on their heels.

    Five Hundred years after Columbus, China and India are important again. Japan and Germany have been leading economies for decades -- after they were bombed into the stone age and crushed in 1945. If one doesn't count Grenada and Panama, we haven't won a war since The Great Victory of '45. Whoda thunk that would happen? We have been doing our best, but hope is hard to kill.
    9 people found this helpful
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  • TLR
    5.0 out of 5 stars Little-known history
    Reviewed in the United States on August 10, 2013
    Verified Purchase
    A devastating attack on America's actual foreign policies, as opposed to the propaganda fed to children in school and to adults from the government and mainstream media. We all want to believe that our country stands for freedom and human rights, but sadly the record doesn't support that idea.

    As New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison said in 1967: "...our Government is the CIA and the Pentagon, with Congress reduced to a debating society...We won't build Dachaus and Auschwitzes; the clever manipulation of the mass media is creating a concentration camp of the mind that promises to be far more effective in keeping the populace in line...I've learned enough about the machinations of the CIA in the past year to know that this is no longer the dream world America I once believed in...Huey Long once said, 'Fascism will come to America in the name of anti-fascism.' I'm afraid, based on my own experience, that fascism will come to America in the name of national security."

    Blum points out how useless popular encyclopedias (Americana, Britannica, Colliers, etc) are when it comes to documenting the history of US interventions abroad. The mainstream media doesn't need marching orders from the government, "for the simple truth is that these individuals would not have reached the positions they occupy if they themselves had not all been guided through the same tunnel of camouflaged history and emerged with the same selective memory and conventional wisdom."
    31 people found this helpful
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  • Will Sync
    5.0 out of 5 stars The 4th Reich. The corproate fascists. This is what we leave behind us.
    Reviewed in the United States on January 24, 2016
    Verified Purchase
    They hate us for our freedom. Really? I hate being lied to by "The 4th Reich"™. This is corporate fascism. This is what the CIA does. This is how the bankers use us.

    1945 to 1960's. Italy 1947-1948. Greece 1947 to early 50's. The Philippines 1940's and 50's. Korea 1945-1953. Albania 1949-1953. Eastern Europe 1948-1956. Germany 1950's. Iran 1953. Guatemala 1953-1954. Costa Rica mid-1950's. Syria 1956-1957. The Middle East 1957-1958. Indonesia 1957-1958. Western Europe 1950's and 60's. British Guiana 1953-1964. Soviet Union late 1940's to 60's. Italy 1950's -1970's. Vietnam 1950-1973. Cambodia 1955-1973. Laos 1957-1973. Haiti 1959-1963. Guatemala 1960. France/Algeria 1960's. Ecuador 1960-1963. The Congo 1960-1964. Brazil 1961-1964. Peru 1960-1965. Dominican Republic 1960-1966.Cuba 1959-1980's. Indonesia 1965. Ghana 1966. Uruguay 1964-1970. Chile 1964-1973. Greece 1964-1974. Bolivia 1964-1975. Guatemala 1962-1980's. Costa Rica 1970-1971. Iraq 1972-1975. Australia 1973-1975. Angola 1975 to 1980's. Zaire 1975-1978. Jamaica 1976-1980. Seychelles 1979-1981. Grenada 1979-1984. Morocco 1983. Suriname 1982-1984. Libya 1981-1989. Nicaragua 1978-1990. Panama 1969-1991. Bulgaria 1990/Albania 1991. Iraq 1990-1991. Afghanistan 1979-1992. El Salvador 1980-1994. Haiti 1986-1994. The American empire 1992 to present day.
    Customer image
    Will Sync
    5.0 out of 5 stars The 4th Reich. The corproate fascists. This is what we leave behind us.
    Reviewed in the United States on January 24, 2016
    They hate us for our freedom. Really? I hate being lied to by "The 4th Reich"™. This is corporate fascism. This is what the CIA does. This is how the bankers use us.

    1945 to 1960's. Italy 1947-1948. Greece 1947 to early 50's. The Philippines 1940's and 50's. Korea 1945-1953. Albania 1949-1953. Eastern Europe 1948-1956. Germany 1950's. Iran 1953. Guatemala 1953-1954. Costa Rica mid-1950's. Syria 1956-1957. The Middle East 1957-1958. Indonesia 1957-1958. Western Europe 1950's and 60's. British Guiana 1953-1964. Soviet Union late 1940's to 60's. Italy 1950's -1970's. Vietnam 1950-1973. Cambodia 1955-1973. Laos 1957-1973. Haiti 1959-1963. Guatemala 1960. France/Algeria 1960's. Ecuador 1960-1963. The Congo 1960-1964. Brazil 1961-1964. Peru 1960-1965. Dominican Republic 1960-1966.Cuba 1959-1980's. Indonesia 1965. Ghana 1966. Uruguay 1964-1970. Chile 1964-1973. Greece 1964-1974. Bolivia 1964-1975. Guatemala 1962-1980's. Costa Rica 1970-1971. Iraq 1972-1975. Australia 1973-1975. Angola 1975 to 1980's. Zaire 1975-1978. Jamaica 1976-1980. Seychelles 1979-1981. Grenada 1979-1984. Morocco 1983. Suriname 1982-1984. Libya 1981-1989. Nicaragua 1978-1990. Panama 1969-1991. Bulgaria 1990/Albania 1991. Iraq 1990-1991. Afghanistan 1979-1992. El Salvador 1980-1994. Haiti 1986-1994. The American empire 1992 to present day.
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    10 people found this helpful
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  • Stumpy Peeps
    5.0 out of 5 stars Where's Jack Ryan when you need him?
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 14, 2023
    Verified Purchase
    This would never have happened on Jack's watch!
    Report
  • Demetrius
    5.0 out of 5 stars Unplug Yourself from the Matrix -- Read this Book (and Pass it on)!
    Reviewed in Canada on October 12, 2017
    Verified Purchase
    The definitive account of how the Hegemon violently masqueraded around the world during the Cold War in hysterical reaction to people's determinations to chart independent courses contrary to the Hegemon's desires.

    -- Demetrius K.
    Report
  • jjsash
    5.0 out of 5 stars Interesting
    Reviewed in Australia on December 10, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    Awake. Interesting book about brainwashing.
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  • Segontra
    4.0 out of 5 stars Gut...
    Reviewed in Germany on November 24, 2012
    Verified Purchase
    ...recherchiertes Standardwerk der Verbrechen der Vereinigten Staaten. Darf in keiner gut sortierten zeitgeschichtlichen Bibliothek fehlen. Wird aber von der heutigen, postsowjetischen Zeit weit in den Schatten gestellt.
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  • Charles Neal Hyde Moore
    5.0 out of 5 stars Seminal Work
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 22, 2019
    Verified Purchase
    It's the goto for an overview of every US intervention since the Second World War. Some of them are quite surprising. All of them are appalling. After reading this book it is very difficult to stomach current US outrage at alleged Russian interference in Trump's election.
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