The Washington Connection and Third World Fascism: The Political Economy of Human Rights: Volume I
by Noam Chomsky and Edward S. Herman
For being such a controversial writer, Chomsky’s writings have been surprisingly easy to obtain. After all, this isn’t soviet Russia we’re living in. That’s why one of the most surprising aspects of the Washington Connection is the very beginning where the authors detail exactly how this book was suppressed by its parent company due to its “unpatriotic” content. Of course, as an avid Chomsky reader my mouth started to water at the juicy bits to come in this book, but as with most of Chomsky’s writing, he veers very little off the path he’s been traversing over the decades. The man is nothing if not consistent on many accounts.
The focus in the Washington Connection is simple: as far as third worlds are concerned, the US will only support governments that are advantageous to its position in the world, and this happens to be fascist or “proto-fascist” leadership. The usual suspects are covered here like Indochina, South America, Nicaragua and a very exhaustive analysis on East Timor, with actual background information for context. Of course, the US will play the position of the “humanitarian” while backing torture and death squads in the antagonized country, exaggerating and downright fabricating shortcomings on the other side, especially if it’s a communist or left-leaning institution. Here the role of the CIA for destabilization purposes has been instrumental.
The Washington Connection also has the benefit of being a more thorough analysis of this frequent phenomenon and Chomsky and Herman pick apart at the seams, blowing the whole thing wide open. The details just keep coming from all sides. As such, there are so many facts to deal with that it’s impossible to absorb everything in a single read. Considering the scope of this book and the dryness of its content, that’s more of a compliment than you realize.
Get your Haymarket books from the guys themselves.
