Killing Hope
US Military and CIA Interventions Since World War II
William Blum
Author: William Blum
Country: United States
Original language: English
Subject: US Foreign Policy, Central Intelligence Agency (US)
“Far and away the best book on the topic.” — Noam Chomsky
“I bought several more copies to circulate to friends with the hope of shedding new light and understanding on their political outlooks.” — Oliver Stone
“I enjoyed it immensely.” — Gore Vidal
“Each chapter I read makes me more and more angry.” — Helen Caldicott
Book Description
Killing Hope: U.S. Military and CIA Interventions since World War II by William Blum is a history book on covert CIA operations and United States military interventions during the second half of the 20th century. The book takes a strongly critical view of American foreign policy.
The book covers various US foreign policy ventures from just after World War II onward. Its basic premise is that the American Cold War-era activities abroad were done with imperialist motives.
If you flip over the rock of American foreign policy of the past century, this is what crawls out… invasions… bombings… overthrowing governments… occupations… suppressing movements for social change… assassinating political leaders… perverting elections… manipulating labor unions… manufacturing news… death squads… torture… biological warfare… depleted uranium… drug trafficking… mercenaries…
It’s not a pretty picture. It’s enough to give imperialism a bad name.
“The United States also made wide use of advanced depleted uranium (DU) shells, rockets and missiles, leaving tons of radioactive and toxic rubble in Kuwait and Iraq. The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority, in an April 1991 secret report, warned that “if DU gets in the food chain or water this will create potential health problems.” The uranium-238 used to make the weapons can cause cancer and genetic defects if inhaled. Uranium is also chemically toxic, like lead. Inhalation causes heavy metal poisoning or kidney or lung damage. Iraqi soldiers, pinned down in their bunkers during assaults, were almost certainly poisoned by radioactive dust clouds. The civilian population suffered in the extreme from the relentless bombing. Middle East Watch, the human-rights organization, has documented numerous instances of the bombing of apartment houses, crowded markets, bridges filled with pedestrians and civilian vehicles, and a busy central bus station, usually in broad daylight, without a government building or military target of any kind in sight, not even an anti-aircraft gun.”
Author
William Blum
Author, Political Activist, Former Staffer of US Department of State, US Foreign Policy Critic
Nationality: American
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