GRITtv: The Secret Global Empire(s): Russ Baker & John Perkins
U.S. history has seen many presidents elected on a wave of progressive promises, only to see them compromise again and again once in office, caving to the very interests, military and corporate, that they railed against so effectively. Barack Obama is only the latest to get elected on a promise to end a war and take care of working people, only to preside over an administration stacked with Wall Street types and wind up continuing a war he wanted to wind down. John Perkins is the author of "Confessions of an Economic Hit Man." Russ Baker wrote "Family of Secrets: The Bush Dynasty, the Powerful Forces That Put It in the White House, and What Their Influence Means for America." They argue the only weapon we have is public opinion and public pressure -- and we need to bring it to bear not just on the government, but on the corporations.
Email this page
Comments
Lora Flanders (Military Industrial Complex)
they get what they want by rising up, and we by voting with our dollars because they are still citizens, and we have become consumers. don't forget the companies sell there slave labor products to us for high profit. they slave, we buy.
Who Are the Real Villains?
It appears to me that the corporations are just obfuscation for the real villains in this scenario. We all know that the wealthiest 1% of Americans own half of everything in America. Isn't it interesting that these people have become richer by precisely the same amount as the national debt during the period that that debt has been accumulated? Hiding behind the corporations are real people living extraordinarily lavish lifestyles, and accumulating wealth at an exponential rate. These are the people who directly profit from the deaths of 46,000 Americans who die form a lack of health insurance every year. These are the people who derive profit from as many as 7 million American children going to bed hungry at night. I think railing against the corporations and the government is exactly what these people want us to do because it keeps them personally out of the limelight. Even if "we the people" managed to bankrupt BP over what they have done in the Gulf for example, do we really think it would diminish those lavish lifestyles and that accumulated wealth? It is like playing whack-a-mole, or like Arthur Anderson becoming Accenture. A great example of this is what is going on in Greece at the moment. Apparently London is experiencing a real estate boom as wealthy Greeks (fleeing the sinking ship) buy up extravagant high end properties in a dubiously safer haven. No, the big question here is "Who are the real Villains?" and how to convey the truth of the matter to the victims of their callous and amoral actions. The Military Industrial Complex use fear as its primary sales tool, and now the banking and insurance industry have caught on as to how well that works also. These are now the people who can take away your job, your house and your health and even your life, whenever it is profitable for them and their shareholders to do so. Historically, when the wealthy applied sufficient pressure to the populace, violence and revolutions have occurred, but there is one significant difference with the situation at the present time. The rise of private standing armies like blackwater (or whatever they have changed their name to). While they are the most prominent, they are one amongst many similar organizations owned and operated for the benefit and profit of the wealthy. It is like the eighth wonder of the world to me as to how such a small group of people can oppress and maintain that oppression over the rest of us. Are they really that much smarter than we are, or is it just that they are capable of ruthlessly suppressing any sense of morality and justice?
Passe and Outdated
these guys are passe and outdated.....they may as well have lived in the 60s when nobody knew much about resistance. You talk about all failures, Laura is calling you to task.........on what does not work like choosing whee you shop. what crap.The corps have won
Interview the Mob Instead
you would be better off interviewing the mafia
Obama is really Bush #44 though he tries not to
excellent video.
The Secret Global Empires
This interview affirms my belief that the only thing that will save the people is the people. And, the only way the people can save themselves is by withholding as much of our sweat, energy, and money from the Military/Industrial Complex. WE are the batteries that keep this system going. Only WE have the power to unplug ourselves (as much as possible) from the system and create local communities in which to plug ourselves into. WE need to create new ways of living that supports small, local, healthy, and sustainable economies. There are groups out there that have been working on this for years: the sustainability movement, the permaculture movement, the transition towns movement, and other movements whose aim is to remove as much of our life energy from this system that is killing us. Great piece! Now, you need a follow-up on the solutions.
Post new comment