Failed States: The Abuse of Power and the Assault on Democracy by Noam ChomskyMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
The premise of this book is that America is no great hero of democracy at home or abroad. While Chomsky makes his case, the book is so heavy-handed and doesn't examine counterarguments or nuances. We are to believe all our leaders are evil or sold out completely? While I agree with his ideas and policy aims, I think the reality of being a political leader is a lot more complicated.
The best chapter was Chapter 6 about all the ways that we're undermining democracy at home. Of course, some intellectuals argue that increased democracy is not what we need, but leaders that are independent of special interests. Special interests might always have an edge in a democracy with free speech, even if the influence of direct money on politics were limited. Chomsky doesn't examine any of these differing views.
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Other tags: Honduras, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Haiti, Venezuela, Indonesia, Vietnam, Sudan
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