Scott's review of Confessions of an Economic Hitman

Confessions of an Economic Hitman
by John Perkins

Scott's review

rating:

bookshelves: 2008

recommended for: Anybody who thinks Capitalism is a good thing.

status: Read in January, 2008

Here's what banks and international corporations, with the aid of governments do:

First, you take a resource rich country, and aside from maybe Tuvalu (an island nation that is about to disappear into the ocean), all countries are resource rich in one way or another. Next, you send a speculator, or, what this book refers to as an economic hitman, in to the country to resource the amount of economic growth the country can support. The economic hitman, or EHM, then creates a report with grossly inflated projections for what the country can handle. They then submit this report, with collusion from the government that runs the country in question, to an international lending institution like the World Bank, which bestows a loan that is far larger than needed. This is something like having a bank give you a loan for a Jaguar when all you really need is a Hyundai.

Naturally, banks treat countries much the same as they treat individuals. You will pay or you will, well, pay. The end resu...more Here's what banks and international corporations, with the aid of governments do:

First, you take a resource rich country, and aside from maybe Tuvalu (an island nation that is about to disappear into the ocean), all countries are resource rich in one way or another. Next, you send a speculator, or, what this book refers to as an economic hitman, in to the country to resource the amount of economic growth the country can support. The economic hitman, or EHM, then creates a report with grossly inflated projections for what the country can handle. They then submit this report, with collusion from the government that runs the country in question, to an international lending institution like the World Bank, which bestows a loan that is far larger than needed. This is something like having a bank give you a loan for a Jaguar when all you really need is a Hyundai.

Naturally, banks treat countries much the same as they treat individuals. You will pay or you will, well, pay. The end result is that the country in question is now in a tremendous amount of debt to American banks who wait patiently, like Mafia dons, for that moment when they can call in a favor, say, when the price of oil goes to high and we need to somebody to sell it to us cheap. It transforms a country from a poor, underdeveloped nation into a poor, overdeveloped nation that is indebted, and therefore owned, by the United States. That's how they build empires in the 20th century.

And why? So that we can continue to have a consumer goods-based economy. So that executives can make extraordinary profits while people in poor countries all over the world starve to death or lack basic necessities because their governments have to devote 50% of their GNPs to paying interest. Because that's what keeps the economy going. The implication is that we're all guilty in some sense, even though I don't buy the charge of guilt since most people are so brainwashed by the media that they have no idea that globalization actually works this way.

Most people are decent and do not want to see others to suffer. There are justifications but most importantly there is just misinformation. Nobody knows until way after the fact most of the time that dictators in foreign countries are propped up by our government. Nobody knows these things because they are not told. Media outlets are owned by the same major corporations so it's no wonder people go along with the notion that globalization is helping the world become a better place. And then when people attack us, we are surprised and hurt and it makes it even easier to whip the public into a frenzy to go after the Taliban or whoever happens to be the villain of the month (or, more accurately, the government-sponsored tyrant that has either stopped cooperating or has out-grown his usefulness).

Empires always fail. Ours will. The Chinese, Singaporians, Japanese and Koreans are buying massive amounts of our debt to keep our economy afloat so that we can continue to buy their manufactured goods. One day, perhaps, they will call in their favors, and poof, there goes the American empire.

The best thing one can do is find the myriad of small ways to resist the behaviors encouraged by modern American capitalism. Buy less, eat less, read more, turn the tv off, think locally, etc. It's easier said than done as I discover day after day. Sometimes I forget because I have bills of my own to pay. Sometimes, there just aren't very many apparent options. Sometimes, I just get lazy and want to watch a baseball game or play X-Box. I'm no better. But I hope to be....less

Like this review? yes flag

comments

No comments have been added yet.

Scott's review of Confessions of an Economic Hitman

comments

flag abuse