Killing Hope: U. S. Military and CIA Interventions Since World War II

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Killing Hope: U. S. Military and CIA Interventions Since World War II

by William Blum

 

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Editorial Reviews

A.J. Langguth, author and former New York Times bureau chief, about

the previous edition, The CIA: A Forgotten History

" A very valuable book. The research and organization are extremely

impressive. "

 

Helen Caldicott, about the previous edition, The CIA: A Forgotten History

" Each chapter I read make me more and more angry. "

 

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

 

* Paperback: 457 pages

* Publisher: Common Courage Press (March 1, 1995)

* Language: English

* ISBN: 1567510523

* Product Dimensions: 9.0 x 6.0 x 1.1 inches

* Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds.

* Average Customer Review: based on 31 reviews. (Write a review)

* Amazon.com Sales Rank: #311,707 in Books

(Publishers and authors: improve your sales)

* Other Editions: Hardcover | Paperback | All Editions

 

Look Inside This Book

Browse Sample Pages:

Front Cover | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover

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Spotlight Reviews

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73 of 95 people found the following review helpful:

A fine book. This classical liberal gives an A+., December 23, 2000

Reviewer: Mike Baum (Anchorage, AK USA) - See all my reviews

William Blum has written a book whose subject should be of interest to

all Americans who believe in freedom.

 

Well-informed readers may already be familiar with the basic idea. In

brief, the U.S. Government during the latter half of the twentieth

century waged numerous secret little wars, of one kind or another,

against foreign governments and groups of which it did not approve.

The avowed purpose was usually to contain a perceived communist

menace. In actuality, what might be called communist means were

employed to achieve this end. These means involved spying,

wiretapping, propaganda at home and abroad; the rigging of or

interfering with elections; the granting of monetary and military aid

to dictatorships and violent opposition groups; the training of same

in methods of subversion, torture and terror. All this and more was

done without Congressional approval or oversight. The American people

were lied to by government officials to keep it that way. A

complaisant media helped it happen. To some extent, it is still

happening today.

 

The above is fairly common knowledge. However, though it breaks little

new ground, Mr. Blum's book's sheer comprehensiveness makes it an

invaluable resource, which is my first reason for recommending it. In

383 packed pages of narrative appended with 56 pages of source

citations, Mr. Blum presents the essential facts--and horrors--of more

than 55 U.S. military/CIA foreign interventions since WWII. For

readers ignorant of these goings-on, the total impact will be

mind-blowing. For those, such as myself, already somewhat acquainted

with them, the effect is still staggering. Noam Chomsky, quoted on the

back cover, calls it " Far and away the best book on the topic. " I see

no reason to dispute him.

 

My second reason for recommending this book is for what it shows about

America today. And it is not that America is the Great Satan. It is

true that America may be thought of, with some justice, as a terrorist

country that has earned the world's hatred. But to use this fact, as

do some leftists, for the sole purpose of bashing America, is

unconstructive and wrong. Mr. Blum does not choose to focus on it

(which does not surprise me), but the crucial message I see stamped in

blood onto the pages of his book is of the disastrous consequences of

our government's executive branch being unconstrained by its proper

constitutional limits. This growth of executive power had several

causes in the twentieth century, which the book shows in action as

part of the reasoning behind the government's doing what it did.

Overblown fears of communist world conquest; an altruistic desire to

bring democracy to the world's benighted peoples; an ill-defined

" national interest " with no objective standards to keep its pursuit in

check--these all and more combined to expand the power of the

executive branch to a level unknown in the history of our republic.

The evils subsequently committed by the Presidency, the CIA and other

executive agencies were necessary consequences of their having such

arbitrary power at their disposal. If you want the real lesson from

*Killing Hope*, this is it. Its 55 chapters read like case studies of

what can and must happen when the exercise of executive discretion and

secrecy is allowed, by Congressional and philosophical default, to

grow unchecked in the foreign policy arena.

 

The Founding Fathers, were they alive today, would be shocked and

appalled, but not surprised. As James Madison said, " The management of

foreign relations appears to be the most susceptible of abuse of all

the trusts committed to a Government. " The Founders saw this firsthand

as they fought a war against a world power that in the eighteenth

century occupied a position similar, in certain relevant respects, to

America's today (though America's actions have been more destructive

than Great Britain's ever were); and they designed a new form of

government to prevent such tyrannical abuse in the future. Mr. Blum

demonstrates that perhaps millions of people--some Americans, but

mostly those non-Americans who used to look to America for inspiration

and hope--have died as a result of the corruption of the

constitutional government the Founders designed. I believe,

meaningfully, that America is the greatest country in the world--with

respect to her spirit and her original founding principles, if not to

what she has become today. Islamic militants and others who denounce

America for her embodying Western civilization's greatest achievments

are wrong. But they do have an excuse. Instead of being a beacon,

lighting the way to liberty and progress, America herself has

tragically become a symbol of oppression for many of the world's

oppressed. As the title of Mr. Blum's book implies, the actions of

America's unaccountable government are " killing " these people's

" hope. " *Killing Hope* shows us what is wrong with America and the

kind of government we must return to if we are to fix her.

 

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26 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

A Thorough Critique of American Policy for the Last 50 Years, April

24, 2002

Reviewer: Jeff W. Krueger " angry_bear " (Portland, Oregon) - See all my

reviews

(TOP 500 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)

This is an unbelievably-well-documented expose of American Foregin

Policy over the last 50 years. Although his style leaves much to be

wanting, Blum's book is filled to the brim with facts that are never

discussed by traditional political analysts. Rarely does one catch a

glimpse of the underbelly of America Foreign Policy, and that is

exactly what Blum here provides. Some reviewers have said that he is a

biased Leftist spouting agitprop, or that he is pushing an ideological

agenda, but frankly I just didn't see this. If pedaling truth is an

ideological activity, then I suppose they are right. The fact is, Blum

is a master of weeding through and exposing the lies and propaganda of

American policy makers. This is not " disinformation " (as one reviewer

put it) but pure, documented facts - and lots of them. Blum comes off

as an author who has committed himself to finding and providing the

public straight, unvarnished truth - a very difficult project when one

considers the extent of government, military and media obfuscation.

Although Blum's tone can be distainful and even downright angry at

times, it is nonetheless justified. As you will see in the book, the

United States government has done some terrible things - things that

would drive any genuine patriot to righteous indignation. Blum's

findings might be difficult for the average American to swallow, but

then the truth is like that sometimes. Open your mouth and open your

mind. This book is food for rational thought. A timely, much needed

expose of an imperialist military that has completely slipped away

from public control.

 

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Customer Reviews

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4 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

The reader from Idaho..., August 17, 2003

Reviewer: A reader

....is infuriating until it becomes clear that he/she is being ironic.

It seems 18 people either realize that or agree with some deliberately

outrageous beliefs.

 

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19 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

Not a Conspiracy Theorist, July 23, 2003

Reviewer: luciana bohne (not in Finland) - See all my reviews

A fact cannot be modified, but it can be

problematised--that is, put under analysis.

William Blum's " Killing Hope " takes the Cold-

War foreign policy of the US and upends

conventional apologies and justifications

for a rather ruthless campaign to stamp

out the ideology that most threatened

American dominance in the world: communism.

Though I met Blum and can attest that he

is no communist, like any decent American he

hates liars. His book exposes lies. Once

an idealistic career servant at the State

Department, Blum turned whistle-blower

after becoming morally nauseated at the

bagful of lies that launched the country

on its disastrous adventure in Vietnam.

" Killing Hope " is an encyclopedic catalogue

of Washington's lies, misdeeds, and subversions

of democracy all over the globe--mostly

carried out in complete secrecy from the

American people. From Chile to China,

Blum shows that " freedom and democracy "

in foreign lands were never primary goals

of US foreign policy but the propaganda

cover for domination and control. Were

this a required book in all US high-school

history books, American youth could

hardly be lining up to serve in wars

that are carried out for exactly

the opposite motives from the stated ones.

In Iraq today, 145,000 soldiers, who went

to fight to liberate Iraq, are finding

out that Iraqis do not thank them for their

sacrifice. Lied to and misused, they often

find this out at the end of a bullet that

strikes them down. To historians like

Blum, this manipulation of American trust is

a crime. His book is, among other things,

a passionate dedication to truth--

and he's not making it up, either.

Declassified government documents are the major

source of his thesis!

 

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10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

A Wonderful Book, May 3, 2003

Reviewer: natty clucas - See all my reviews

Everyone should read William Blum's illusion-shattering book about

American foreign policy. It has over 2,000 sources cited, in a

400-page book. It is a wonderful reference for anyone who wants to

learn a lot about what our government is really doing in other

countries. Right wing jingoists may have trouble getting through it,

because it shatters all of their arguments, but hopefully it will

change some people's minds about what really goes on.

 

You know a book will be good when there's a quote by Noam Chomsky on

the back, and when he says a book is " far and away the best book on

the topic, " you're dealing with some amazing stuff. This was one of

the most informative books I have ever read. I would strongly

recommend it for any American citizen who wishes to know the reality

of America's role in the world,

 

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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

Unwash your brain, April 25, 2003

Reviewer: A. Brown " N/A " (Houston, Texas United States) - See all my

reviews

(REAL NAME)

A good introduction into the mindset and tactics of the world's

leading terrorist organization, the CIA! A bleak and depressing book

that may awaken the casual reader to the actual motiviting forces of

US foreign policy -- money and power.

 

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