The Secret History of the American Empire: The truth about economic Hit Men, Jackals, and how to change the world. Separated into 65 chapters and 5 different sections, covering different countries, the author, John Perkins, takes readers through an unusual memoir. A memoir of foreign and domestic corruption amongst ruling elite and their government. (Read the book and you’ll understand why I say “their”.)

I had a bit of a hard time in the beginning taking this book seriously. The idea that someone could be an “economic hit man”, aiding companies in the bribing and scheming of money and politics to take advantage of third world countries, was a little too far out…Especially upon reading the word “Corpratocracy”, a word I never knew existed, but learned from Perkins’ book was basically everything undermining democracy. In a nut shell, companies control everything. Watch out.

During my experience reading this book I wasn’t surprised to learn of the corporal corruption raping third world countries but I was surprised by the level of espionage involved. Usually spies are saved for conversations of the military or stories and depictions on the big screen. Not often do I learn of modern examples, it’s almost making me consider a career change. I found very interesting Perkins recollection of a beautiful and seductive Colombian spy named Beatrice posed as a journalist and nearly lured Perkins into a situation that might have ended badly…potentially fatally.

What left me stirred about the whole idea of Corpratocracy was the power and weigh held within large companies, their ability to control and manipulate those in office, to get what they want. At one point in Perkins experience a CIA agent made the suggestion to Perkins that President Clinton’s near impeachment due to the scandal of Monica Lewinsky was a set up into which Clinton fell.

What’s scary is if government officials with some influence are undermining Corpratocracy, there a probably plans in action to take those officials down. Plans of rich white men. Rich, greedy, power hungry men. Men with little regard for the millions of lives that are being negatively affected and controlled by the imperialistic wants and desires of wealthy foreigners. Foreigners looking to take advantage of the third world for profit and power gains. It’s no wonder these third world countries can’t rise from poverty, their being swindled 24/7 by men with a lot of money and a lot of power. It’s frighting and enraging. I had never taken into consideration Imperialism still exists. But there are no known countries attached, just greed fueled businessmen.

To perfectly sum up this book “Perkins exposes practices that are the equivalent of a psychopath who tempts a child with candy in order to lure the child into his car, except that instead of one child at a time, these psychopaths rape and ravage whole nations of people; millions suffer because of a greedy few”.

The Secret History of the American Empire: Economic Hit Men, Jackals and the Truth About Global Corruption is written by John Perkins and Published by Penguin Group, New York, New York. Copyright 2007.

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