War and Money: The Imperialism of the Dollar

by Maurizio Lazzarato, Jason Francis McGimsey (Translator)

In War and Money, Lazzarato demonstrates the inevitable consequences of capitalist imperialist war

Maurizio Lazzarato's War & Money explores the relationship between capitalist expansion, international economic conflict, and imperialist war.

He examines why contemporary left-wing theorists such as Michel Foucault and Antonio Negri have failed to recognise war as a fundamental aspect of capitalism. Finally, the author provides renewed readings of Karl Marx, Lenin, and Rosa Luxemburg in order to bring class struggle against capitalist war as a fundamental aspect of leftist theory.

Genres: Economics, Politics, Nonfiction

224 pages, Paperback

Published June 10, 2025

About the author

Maurizio Lazzarato is a sociologist and philosopher in Paris. He is the author of Governing by Debt and Signs and Machines: Capitalism and the Production of Subjectivity, both published by Semiotext(e).

Reviews

[Murray Katkin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m very conflicted about this book. My main problem with it is simple: Lazzarato’s prose is unreadable. I’m accustomed to dense and theoretically latent prose, but his syntax frankly annoyed me. He uses commas like a 17th century English philosopher, it’s so fucking annoying.

My gripe with the language is that it serves to dampen the power of his analysis. I found his criticism’s of what he labeled “political spinozism” extremely poignant: power isn’t infinite, nor is the relation of power to self individual. I understand the necessity that impelled Lazzarato to adopt such dense theoretical language, but I found it incommensurate with the task at hand: defining a philosophy of revolution for 21st century capitalism.

His analyses of real social movements—particularly in France and Chile—are his greatest strength. He outlines the strengths and failings of real movements to abolish the present state of things: the concrete analysis of a real situation Lenin deemed Marxism’s purpose.

However, this strength of analysis is undermined by the weakness of his historical framing. I understand and assented to the majority of his analysis of 20th century history, but I found his use of abstraction and generalization to be more confusing than clarifying. As a student of history, I found this part to be the second most agitating behind the French philosophe style.

Lazzarato’s work has fundamental strengths and fundamental weaknesses. I find the strength to be in his application of concepts to real social movements and events, recentering mass action at the core of politics. His concept of the state-capital machine is easily one of the best constructions of state-capital relationships in the 21st century, and his analysis of neoliberalism and criticism of its radical critics are crucially clarifying theoretical interventions. The text’s weaknesses impair the strong core of the argument, which to me is deeply frustrating for an author whose thesis he presents with appropriate urgency.

[Sam Cotton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Probably one of the most combative works of theory I can remember reading which, whilst may be alienating to some, is likely necessary given the urgency of the political climate. Lazzarato is in frequent critique of not just Foucault and Negri but the roads their contribution has led critical theory down. These roads, in his view, have taken us away from being able to understand the coming global civil war and have displaced the urgency of revolution. If these criticisms are harsh to some they nevertheless undoubtedly touch on a fundamental issue - that we undeniably nowhere near challenging the power relations at play particularly abroad. Due to this, critique of state autonomy within a global market dictated to us by the US sovereign as well as the shortcomings of social revolution in the face of a system that routinely multiarises itself in times of crisis.

At least from the UK perspective, that's especially dire news considering the left alternative here currently consists of left or 'eco-populism' and an entirely dysfunctional new 'left' party currently arguing over it's name. Neither of these machines are currently trying to grapple properly with dollar imperialism. At the risk of coming across as a leftist party popper sneering from the illustrious ivory tower that is a Goodreads review that, frankly, nobody will read I think it's important to learn this lesson before it's too late. Perhaps preemptive of that, these are criticisms that aren't seeking a utopia but instead arguing revolutions ultimate necessity given that both global conflict and climate catastrophe means there's only one chance now to save ourselves. Taking 5 years to legislate free bus travel means little in the face of this.

Writing this on the bus to my job at a supermarket inevitably leads me to ramble but this is a really important book and the closest one has taken me to gaining an understanding of the multitude of crises before us. Required reading for anyone tired of being the bearer of bad news to groups who seek simple solutions.

[keiko · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting points but the author kind of just rants for 200 pages and doesn’t offer any evidence or real analysis instead just stating things that are probably true but you would need outside knowledge to believe and then very sparingly offers examples of where this theory has played out in real life. I also think you would need an entire syllabus of other works to read before this book in order to grasp most of what the author is talking about as he doesn’t really define the terms he’s dealing with and lowkey just name drops a lot of other leftist/marxist thinkers with the expectation that the reader is already pretty familiar with their ideas, which I always just fine vaguely annoying. First and last chapter were the best. 2.5

[Vinny Pagliaccio · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very dense in content, excellent insight into a broad range of wide topics. Lazzarato sharply argues that the foundation of the US Dollar previously based on gold is now on military might and diplomatic hegemony. The US empire is one that subjects countries to debt and forces the Dollar as the world's "reserve currency" thus allowing the Federal Reserve to dictate the monetary policy of most of the world. With the US exporting massive amounts of capital and taking on massive debts, it forces the worst of the consequences of this on the global south while taking the benefits of this spending. The most important thesis in the book is that war sustains this system of hegemony. War is an integral part of this stage of imperial capitalism. Contrary to what liberals and conservatives alike want Americans to think, war is not a break in the status quo or an accident; it is necessary to sustain the global system of domination. Lazzarato also includes some polemics segments, covering a lot of different schools of thought, arguing against Foucault whose work distracted from revolutionary optimism. While I don't agree with every single word of this book, Lazzarato brilliantly adapts Marx and Lenin to the modern age, gently guiding us back to pragmatic and unapologetic revolutionary thought.

[Roberto · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the most important books to read this year, in my opinion. What Lazzarato presents here is capitalism's endpoint, its violence, and its encroachment upon all forms of social and political variance. What we have before us now is the endgame: capitalism's innate contradictions exploding while it fails to reconcile them. As human beings — not just proletarians or working-class folks — we have an opportunity and a duty. The opportunity is clear: capitalism is at an impasse, in dire straits, and desperately attempting to prolong its life through violence, new fascisms, and ultimately, global civil war similar to the First and Second World Wars. Our duty is to stop capitalism and fascism in their tracks, to say "NO," to reject this deterioration of the international order, and instead bring about something new. Lazzarato shows the reader that inaction is deadly as capitalism reaches its terminus, which the entire world has already seen as an inevitable progression. However, contemporary communists have been kept in a lull since the revolutionary days of the 1960s, when scholars like Nigri, Hardt, and Foucault produced new theories that end all previous ideas. A simple statement: capitalism and anti-capitalism have all reached their final stopping points, and to bring radical change, we must ONLY envision it. This is a betrayal of all revolutionaries, both past and present, maintaining their theories of revolution and emancipation in lockstep with global capitalism’s developments instead of transcending them. The contemporary left needs a new set of theories on the reality of modern revolution more than ever. How can we bring it about? How can we study it? Why is it so important? Why is there no alternative? What we must produce is not a superficial set of options to halt capitalism at its doorstep, but new strategies to smash and overturn capitalism and fascism before they destroy us all.

[Arpan · Rating 5 out of 5]

excellent analysis of the mechanisms of US imperialism

would recommend reviewing some Foucault (governmentality and biopolitics comes up a lot), DnG (body without organs stuff is easy enough to follow but territorialization and reterritorialization come up too), and some basic economic history and understanding of trade deficits and debt etc etc

a lot of these things are woefully under-analyzed by leftists even though tons of economists have pointed out (but they don’t have the critical theory tools to do anything besides prescribe neoliberal solutions). this is the innovativeness that lazzarato brings to the discussion

[Zeke Medley · Rating 2 out of 5]

War being intrinsic to capitalism is an interesting (and plausible) claim, but unfortunately the book gives little evidence for it. For example, the author’s contention that a US trade imbalance leaves other countries with a dollar surplus which increases demand for US debt is interesting but their argument is more rant than factual analysis. The book is a nonsensical argument for insightful theories.

[Swarthout · Rating 3 out of 5]

the author proposes the superimperialism/dollar imperialism theory as being an explanation for increased war and conflict between countries and even within countries. he says we are in a period of "world civil war".
i do not totally ascribe to the imperialism explanation for capitalism's wars. i have no idea what the cause of war is.

[Cru · Rating 5 out of 5]

The most poignant critique of Foucault I've read so far! So essential. I wouldn't be surprised if this is on some top list of 2025's non-ficiton.