Nemesis: The Last Days of the American Republic (American Empire Project)

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Nemesis: The Last Days of the American Republic (American Empire Project)

4.07 of 5 stars 4.07 · rating details · 409 ratings · 53 reviews

The long-awaited final volume of Chalmers Johnson's bestselling
Blowback trilogy confronts the overreaching of the American empire and the threat it poses to the republic

In his prophetic book Blowback, Chalmers Johnson linked the CIA's clandestine activities abroad to disaster at home. In The Sorrows of Empire, he explored the ways in which the growth of American militaris...more

Hardcover, 354 pages

Published February 6th 2007 by Metropolitan Books (first published February 1st 2007)

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Jan 27, 2009 Beth rated it 4 of 5 stars

This book was both hard and easy to read. I thought it was going to be very difficult to get through but in fact, by reading just one chapter a night, I was able to get through it quickly and easily, time-wise that is. There are only 7 chapters and each one is only 30 pages or so in length.
On the other hand, this book was very difficult to read because, as an American, I read it with such a heavy heart. I have read many books now about how horrible our government has been and the terrible deeds...more This book was both hard and easy to read. I thought it was going to be very difficult to get through but in fact, by reading just one chapter a night, I was able to get through it quickly and easily, time-wise that is. There are only 7 chapters and each one is only 30 pages or so in length.
On the other hand, this book was very difficult to read because, as an American, I read it with such a heavy heart. I have read many books now about how horrible our government has been and the terrible deeds it has done both domestically and internationally. But the first chapter of this book ends by discussing how our government allowed, yes ALLOWED, the National Museum in Bagdad to be looted and did nothing, even though it had been told of the high probability of the looting, even though it had assured many people that it would protect the museum (and other nationally important institutions like the National Library), even though it did manage to protect the oil fields and the Oil Ministry building (with nary a window broken). The waste of our global human history is too sad to contemplate for long. And to know that my own government was so callus and disrespectful about such a global human treasure, that "... Secretary Rumsfeld compared the looting to the aftermath of a soccer game..." (p 47) causes me to feel real shame in my government.
And it just gets worse from there.
This author published a book called Blowback in 2000 in which he predicted that America would experience some kind of retaliation for all the overt and covert misdeeds over the years and around the globe. No one paid much attention to the book until after 9/11. He then wrote another book called The Sorrow of Empires and now he wrote this book, the third in his unintended trilogy. He ends this book, published in 2006, by stating, "The likelihood is that the United States will maintain a facade of constitutional government and drift along until financial bankruptcy overtakes it. Of course, bankruptcy will not mean the literal end of the United States any more than it did for Germany in 1923, China in 1948, or Argentina in 2001-2. It might, in fact, open the way for an unexpected restoration of the American system, or for military rule, or simply for some new development we cannot yet imagine." (p 269/270)
So there is hope yet that we can come back to the Constitution and allow it to become once again the strength of this country, its founding principles recovered.
But in order for that to happen I think people must become informed about how far off the mark we have strayed. And this book is one step on that road to knowledge.

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Nov 04, 2008 Matthew rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: books-on-pod, real-worldy

I've read a few books like this--leftist critiques of American foreign policy--in the last few years, and I often find them problematic. Many of them have good information, and good research, and good writing. But in the end don't really amount to anything.

I feel like Nemesis is one of these. I already know that American foreign policy is arrogant, aggressive, and short-sighted. I already know that the CIA tortures people. I already know that the Bush administration has drastically increased exe...more

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Sep 28, 2008 Logan rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: current-affairs, politics

I've been a big fan of Johnson's past two books, Blowback and The Sorrows of Empire and have been looking forward to reading this most recent work since I first heard of it. However, where the previous two books clearly positioned US' foreign policy as an off-shoot of the militarism which infects every level of our economy and warned that the US' overseas adventures (everything from overthrowing unfriendly governments to funneling arms to other governments) would eventually lead to a blowback ag...more

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Jan 07, 2011 Ebadur rated it 4 of 5 stars

I didn't read the earlier books (The Sorrows of Empire & Blowback) by Johnson who recently passed away (see http://nationalinterest.org/node/4457). This one was quite detailed in its documentation of military bases our country has around the world, the money that goes into 'defense' and space 'star wars' programs, the CIA...way too much power to the executive branch which is not checked at all, and the move in the direction of a dictatorship, if not in name, certainly in practice...it's all...more

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Apr 28, 2009 Trevor rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: economics, social-theory

Stunning! This is an even better book than Blowback, which I thought was mind blowing. I am going to have to track down part two of this trilogy. This was almost painful to read. The detailed retellings of US involvement in torture at the start left me once again reeling in disbelief – no matter how often I hear this story I still find it hard to believe. The lies, deceptions and shameful punishments handed out to those who went against the President and told the truth reads like the most improb...more Stunning! This is an even better book than Blowback, which I thought was mind blowing. I am going to have to track down part two of this trilogy. This was almost painful to read. The detailed retellings of US involvement in torture at the start left me once again reeling in disbelief – no matter how often I hear this story I still find it hard to believe. The lies, deceptions and shameful punishments handed out to those who went against the President and told the truth reads like the most improbable of Le Carré novels, except we all know that this is pure fact. The future will struggle to believe our times, and we, as the citizens and electors of governments that have allowed this to happen have much to answer for.

His thesis in this book is a simple one. The US has two choices, it can retain its empire or it can remain a democracy – he cannot see how it can have both. If it is to retain its empire then there will need to be a move towards some form of military dictatorship. He believes the transfer of power to the executive under Bush came all too close to ending the democratic project in the US. The slow but inexorable diminishing of freedoms under the Bush regime truly takes the breath away once they are catalogued.

There are so many things I don’t know about the US political system and when people explain them to me I realise the true depth of my ignorance. It took me years to work out what GOP stood for – I knew it had something to do with the Republican Party, but just what it was in relation to the Republican Party I had no idea. Like I said, the depths of my ignorance can be quite astounding. Who’d have thought it could just mean, Grand Old Party? But when this book explained the CIA I really had to wonder how it could be I could get to be this old and never have known how the organisation worked. I had no idea that the CIA isn’t answerable to Congress or anyone else other than the President. Here is an organisation that seeks to kill the heads of state of other nations (as it did successfully in South Korea and attempted at on numerous occasions in Cuba and Libya) or that sells drugs to buy weapons to give to murderers in Nicaragua or that ‘successfully’ organises the overthrow of a democratically elected government and replaces it an evil monster, as in Chile and Iran – and not even the American Government gets to have over-sight of what it is up to. I’m stunned and shocked, ladies and gentlemen. Emperor Bush seems to have made exceptionally good use of this arm of his Royal Guard.

This book’s dismantling of the excuse for much of the US military budget (I’ve heard of pork barrels, but this is incomprehensible) should be required reading for anyone with the right to vote in the US – witnessing the sheer waste of so many billions upon billons of taxpayer dollars (well, those that will need to be paid back by future generations that have been borrowed from Communist China and Japan) would, surely, have to send a patriotic American nearly insane. His description of military Keynesianism is as fascinating as it is disturbing.

The section on Star Wars is nothing less than a case in point. This project is not about building a missile defence system, the idea is virtually laughable, this is about handing trillions of dollars over to a few obscenely wealthy corporations knowing that they can only fail to ever build what it is they are claiming to be seeking to build. His explanation of why any sort of war in space has to be a bad idea does beg the question why the US is contemplating such lunacy. As is his explanation of why the EU is building its own GPS system (Galileo) rather than rely on the current system that is run by the US Military (yes, it might have something to do with the fact that the US Military has threatened to turn this increasingly essential piece of infrastructure off at will if it decides this would be a good idea in its ‘war on terror’).

This book is named after a Greek God – the god of righteous punishment for those engaged in hubris – and it is written by someone who reminds me of another character from Greek myth – Cassandra. For surely, here is a man blessed with the gift of prophesy and yet, no one ever seems to believe him. His predictions for what will happen next to the US may have been forestalled by the election of Obama – but given the depth of the problems outlined here and the arrogance and bloody-mindedness of the US ruling elites his concerns still require careful consideration.

There is much at stake if he is ever proven right.
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Bruce You mean we can't just sum up by saying, "unilateral action bad, collaboration good?" This is probably why I need to read Johnson's books. I need to b...more
updated May 07, 2009 01:19pm

Richard I'll have to read the book to find out what Johnson means b empire, but there is such a fundamental distinction between old empires and what the US ho...more
updated May 08, 2009 01:32pm

Feb 23, 2010 Vintagejunkeedotcom rated it 4 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Sep 12, 2011 Alex marked it as to-read · review of another edition

By now I have watched interview with Chalmers Johnson devoted to this book.
http://blip.tv/eons-video-blog/declin...
Chalmers Johnson, author of "Blowback, Sorrows of Empire and Nemesis: The Last Days of the American Republic" talks about the similarities in the decline of the Roman and Soviet empires and the signs that the U.S. empire is exhibiting the same symptoms: over-extension, corruption and the inability to reform.
This interview was done in 2007 ? during Bush presidency times and being
anti...more

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Apr 02, 2013 Eddy Allen rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: arts-and-historical

In his prophetic book Blowback, Chalmers Johnson linked the CIA's clandestine activities abroad to disaster at home. In The Sorrows of Empire, he explored the ways in which the growth of American militarism and the garrisoning of the planet have jeopardized our stability. Now, in Nemesis, he shows how imperial overstretch is undermining the republic itself, both economically and politically.

Delving into new areas--from plans to militarize outer space to Constitution-breaking presidential activit...more

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Jan 28, 2011 Kohl Gill rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: All U.S. citizens, and folks who question militarism, imperialism

Recommended to Kohl by: Bill Moyers

Shelves: audible, listened

Phenomenal. I already plan on reading this again in a while. What surprised me most were the parallels with thinkers like Thomas Barnett, as well as the notion of completely disbanding the CIA.

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Nov 22, 2010 AC rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: current-events

This book is not as rich or as original as "Sorrows of Empire" -- it is more journalistic, and less sustained. The material is also largely familiar to anyone who has read the newspapers or any books over the period concerned (Iraq). Finally, written before the Financial Crisis -- the GFC, aka, "The Great Fuck-up" -- the perspective has been somewhat overtaken by events.

Johnson, for example -- with the image of the collapse of the Soviet Union in mind - thought that the extension of empire woul...more

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Chris AC wrote: Definitely not mad at YOU, Chris -- hope I didn't come off that way.

No worries, AC - it's my fault that I read a testiness in your message t...more AC wrote: Definitely not mad at YOU, Chris -- hope I didn't come off that way.

No worries, AC - it's my fault that I read a testiness in your message that wasn't intended for me. Recent heated arguments with family members have rendered me somewhat sensitive about this issue, I guess.

It's just this stuff can get very upsetting

Oh, I agree. The sanitizing of the violence and destruction being committed in the war zones is one of the most objectionable - if politically understandable - aspects of the entire business.

When I was reading Paul Roberts' A War Against Truth , an online discussion group led me to a webpage that - without any warning whatsoever - displayed several score photos of the destruction wreaked upon Baghdad and its environs by US bombing. Now, I had no way of gauging the accuracy of the photos as pertained to the bombing itself, or whether it was at the hands of US warplanes, but no reason to doubt it, either; and I'll never forget it. Photos of Iraqi citizens - mostly children - with their bodies subjected to all the hideous ravages of high-explosives upon fragile flesh. One shot in particular, of a boy of around seven with both legs blown off, his lifeless and bloodied head cradled by a wailing and disconsolate father, has burned itself into my brain permanently.

At first, I was furious at the anonymous person who had provided the link for subjecting me to that sickening and horrifying experience. However, I have come to understand what he was trying to achieve with this gruesome shock assault: to hammer home to people comfortably ensconced in North America and not inclined to view such carnage the reality of what was being done in their name, to graphically remind people that reading twenty Iraqis were killed today by a stray cluster bomb is an experience worlds apart from witnessing the physical results of that ordnance missing its intended target. He was trying to make people see how every instance of such collateral damage was creating a hatred against the West that would burn for a very long time, and was the best recruiting tool for the jihadist groups that money could buy.

The US government and military learned their lessons from Vietnam very thoroughly - however, a public emotionally and viscerally disconnected from the bloodshed their military is involved with reminds me of those of the First World War so powerfully limned by the likes of Modris Eksteins and Robert Graves.(less)
updated Nov 24, 2010 05:04pm

AC Wonderfully put... And it is true -- that we are sleepwalking in the U.S. at the edge of history's cliff...
Nov 24, 2010 05:06pm

Apr 16, 2012 Hollowman rated it 4 of 5 stars

One is not an America or USA basher/hater for reading and recommending Johnson's books. He -- like Zinn, Chomsky and Vidal -- I think genuinely wants to protect his homeland from opportunistic exec-level intellectuals (= certain upper-level politicians in govt. and/or corporate execs [often they are one and the same!]) with either deliberate imperialistic agendas ... and/or self-interest agendas that result in imperialistic consequences. It gets complicated! But the results are not: expensive wa...more

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Jul 29, 2011 Nilesh rated it 3 of 5 stars

It makes sense in the overall sense but the point is too small and to a degree even obvious to fill such a large book just proving it. There are other drawbacks: too many facts, too stretched comparisons with the previous two empires, inability to see "everytime is largely different", and any thorough analysis of what's next. I guess this is a book worth reading if you have been a huge fans of American wars or CIA or Rumsfeld for an alternative view, otherwise there are better books on the dark...more

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Aug 10, 2010 Ron rated it 5 of 5 stars

If you want a book that deeply explores why America seems to be (I'm being hopeful) headed down the wrong river, this is it -- with discussions on the rise of militarism; a comparison of Rome, Britain & America; the sordid history of the CIA; the basing of soldiers anywhere on the globe America pleases; the drive to militarize outer space; and more. To really get the full impact of what Chalmers Johnson is saying (and warning us all about), you should read the whole trilogy: "The Sorrows of...more

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Dec 23, 2011 Joey rated it 3 of 5 stars

to be honest, all three books kind of repeat themselves, verbatim at times. it was definitely provocative and shocking to see some of the blatant atrocities of the executive administrations, as well as clear imperialistic tendencies of our country. chalmers' thesis sort of hovers around the following point: you can have an imperial empire, or you can have a democracy. he offers rome as an example to what happens to democracy when you keep the empire, and britain as a counter example, who forwent...more

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Mar 17, 2009 Kevin rated it 5 of 5 stars

I thought this book was great. A brilliant argument of the absurdity of the war on terror and really interesting history of the CIA. An interesting side note: I listened to part of this book on audiobook (sorry, i downloaded it for free) at work in the hospital cafeteria, not on headphones (because they are prohibited) but on loud computer speakers. other people would listen for a few seconds and then remark on how sad it made them feel. I'm pretty sure the rest of the staff thought I was insane...more

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Mar 20, 2008 Bruce Sanders rated it 4 of 5 stars

This book is about the end of the U.S. as a republic. Early on the book looks at the death of the Roman Republic as it turned to empire to keep the lands it conquered, and conversely the decision of the British to disengage from empire to keep their democracy. It compares the current situation in the US and argues that we are at that tipping point where we must choose empire or democracy. The book then begins to detail the horrors of our post-1945 imperialism. I was not ignorant of most of this,...more

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May 16, 2007 Aaron Crossen rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: commentary

Johnson has been maligned in the past for shoddy research and a conspiratorial bent, but I found shades of neither in his this most recent work. In fact, the military archives are cited more frequently in his notes than any other source and his overarching thesis is hardly conspiratorial: militarism and imperialism threaten the constitution of the United States and the liberties it grants; not some shady Deus Ex syndicate. Like one of my professors said, it feels good to read an old-fashioned le...more

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Jul 01, 2007 Nick rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: international, politics

Chalmers Johnson's third book about the pernicious influence of militarism on our country is excellent. I was a participant in or observer of many of the incidents Dr. Johnson discussed in his first book, "Blowback", and worked with him when I was the US Information Agency's Japan desk officer from mid-1985 through mid-1987. Dr. Johnson, a patriotic, Republican economist with extensive international experience, raises interesting questions about the extent to which "the military-industrial compl...more

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Mar 29, 2007 Eric Gulliver rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: internationalaffairs

This book is the the third installment from Chalmers Johnson that was preceeded by Blowback and The Sorrows Of Empire. It is the continuation of his thesis that spans the three books contending that militarism and a permanent war economy are incompatible with our republican form of government. In Nemesis (with a subtitle of "The Last Days of the American Republic," Johnson's primary objective is to demonstrate his fear of what the future will hold in terms of current patterns of preventive war a...more

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Feb 03, 2011 Chris rated it 4 of 5 stars

This book gave me a whole lot to think about. While I'm not sure the US is going the way of the Roman Empire, he makes a strong argument for how our global military over-reach has stretched us too far, fiscally and otherwise. A worthwhile read for anyone concerned about America's place in the world in the 21st Century.

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Feb 08, 2010 Frodo rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

For those who appreciate the problems of an empire nation, this is a book to read. The USA, Rome and Great Britain have similar stories. Our story as a nation is drifting toward an ending as we know it like that of previous empires. A troubling analysis of the path we are on.

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Apr 26, 2013 Qian Li rated it 5 of 5 stars

While I don't agree with his conclusion that America should repatriate from the rest of the world and reduce its international influence, I do agree that the military-industrial complex and social media are the serious threats to the well-being of democracy.

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Jun 10, 2012 Jay Roberts rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: politics

I really liked this book, though it seemed to wander at the end. I feel that the author could have consolidated the last few chapters a bit, and flesh out his summation a bit more. The author has some very profound points, and his sources seem credible. While obviously on the left hand spectrum of the political debate, there was little partisan rhetoric in the book, which is something all authors must strive to achieve in this delicate political landscape. With that in mind, I find that both sid...more

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Aug 12, 2010 Kevin rated it 3 of 5 stars

Interesting book. I checked it out from the library on the recommendation of Bill Moyers. Very critical of the United States' imperialistic tendencies with particular detail on the George W. Bush administration. Most, if not all, of the criticism is warranted, but the book tended to go on and on and not really provide any solutions except for the U.S. to change its ways lest it end up crumbling like the Roman Empire.

I skipped a number of the middle chapters because it just wasn't moving along. T...more

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Dec 27, 2007 Dave Mac rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: anyone

Interesting read. Chalmers Thesis is the American Republic is in danger of collapsing due to the rise of it's military industrial complex, the presidents power growing to resemble that of a pseudo-dictator and the governments attempts to expand their hegemony around the world. Nemesis is very well written and Chalmers makes a provocative argument. For those who are read up on American secrecy and foreign policy might find this a little redundant at times. I will say that Chalmers seems to tout f...more

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Apr 01, 2012 Marc rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: us-pol, us-decline

I think this was Chalmers Johnson's final book.
See also his book "Revolutionary Change" a more basic text book on politics.

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Dec 18, 2010 Raimi Quiton rated it 5 of 5 stars

Don't read this at bedtime or you risk becoming so agitated that you can't sleep. Great book, though. RIP Chalmers Johnson.

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Jan 25, 2010 Peter Blunden rated it 4 of 5 stars

A good expose as to where the US's foreign policy has taken it, but whether it sways the non-converted is another matter

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Aug 09, 2010 Jose rated it 5 of 5 stars

unabridged audio book, excellent. will purchase and use of future policy classes.

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Jul 14, 2012 A.J. Jr. rated it 5 of 5 stars

Johnson is a must read, if you want to know America's future.

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About Chalmers Johnson

Chalmers Ashby Johnson was an American author and professor emeritus of the University of California, San Diego. He fought in the Korean war, from 1967-1973 was a consultant for the CIA, and ran the Center for Chinese Studies at the University of California, Berkeley for years. He was also president and co-founder of the Japan Policy Research Institute, an organization promoting public education a...more

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Books by Chalmers Johnson

Blowback: The Costs and Consequences of American Empire

The Sorrows of Empire: Militarism, Secrecy, and the End of the Republic

Dismantling the Empire: America's Last Best Hope

An Instance of Treason: Ozaki Hotsumi and the Sorge Spy Ring

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