This study exposes the support that administrations in Washington have given right-wing dictatorships that committed terrorism especially during the cold war and war on terrorism. It offers a critique of this latter war; and the studyrsquo;s portrayal of the earlier war serves as necessary background for understanding and evaluating the latter war. It rejects the narrow definition of terrorism insisted on by Washington that exempts terrorism committed by governments (state terrorism) from the definition; and for political reasons restricts the term solely to the private terrorism committed by private individuals or non-governmental organizations. Every one of the six truth commission reports used in the studymdash;one each for El Salvador; Chile; Argentina; and South Africa and two with remarkably similar conclusions for Guatemala-- found that the governments were responsible for the great preponderance of terrorism and other acts of repression that occurred in their respective countries; much more so than the guerrillas. In El Salvador; Guatemala; and Chile the governments were found to be guilty of over 90 percent of the acts of terrorism and other acts of repression. Sponsored by the United Nations; successor governments to those that committed state terrorism; or the Catholic Archdiocese of Guatemala City; each of these reports is based on thousands of interviews mostly with surviving victims or their families and friends. All of the truth commission reports charged that the state terrorists committed unimaginable; unspeakable acts of cruelty and terrorism; what the truth commission for Argentina characterized as an ldquo;encyclopedia of horror.rdquo; Advertised as a defense against communism and sometimes swayed by other motives-- racism in South Africa and Guatemala and anti-Semitism in Argentina-- the basic motive for the state terrorists was discovered to be the preservation of the status quo and the prevention of social change. They hunted down; tortured; terrorized; and murdered peasants; workers; students; teachers; priests; and nuns. The truth commission for Guatemala sponsored by the United Nations found the government of that country guilty of genocide. With some exceptions; a compliant national media engaged in self-censorship; even passing on the government inspired lies that held the guerrillas; not the government; responsible for the bulk of the atrocities. This and other evidence suggest that the so-called war on terrorism is a partial war that fails to target the main perpetrators; the state terrorists. The incomplete definition insisted on by Washington shields it from being accused of being a supporter of terrorism. Washingtonrsquo;s support for state terrorist regimes typically has taken the form of training their troops in ldquo;counterinsurgency;rdquo; now ldquo;counter-terrorism;rdquo; and by providing funds and loans; military equipment; and diplomatic backing. The study indicates that Washington helped the Saddam Hussein regime and the apartheid regimes in South Africa successfully develop weapons of mass destruction. Saddam used poison against the Kurds and the Iranians. The racists in Pretoria produced six nuclear weapons; which they destroyed; following a request from Washington; before handing over the government to Nelson Mandela. In order to assure the continuing Kuwaiti financing of Saddamrsquo;s war of aggression against Iran (1980-1988); the Reagan administration put the American flag on the ships of the sheikdom to protect them from Iran. This administration also became a co-belligerent in Saddamrsquo;s ldquo;oil war;rdquo; sinking half of the Iranian navy. It is arguable that without this aid Saddam would have been defeated and deposed by Iran in 1988. The support for Saddam by the Reagan administration and by that of the elder Bush in its early years puts in perspective Washingtonrsquo;s later moral claims for initiating wars against the dictator. Support for Saddam in the Iran-Iraq war also serves the reader as an introduction to what is to come; as
#1932691 in eBooks 2010-02-04 2010-02-04File Name: B0037B6Q9I
Review
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. "THE POWER OF YES" IS THE POWER OF ACCURACY AND TRUTHBy Joseph B. Hudson Jr.TuesdayNovember 30. 2010Sirs:After 32 years of the practice of law. thebulk of which was in the areas of large-scalesyndicated loan faciilties. State and Localand Municipal public finance (both tax-exemptand taxable). large-scale project infrastructurefinance. and structured financial products.I can only say that the playwright David Harehas somehow - and almost miraculously. for alayman - "hit the nail squarely on the head"with regard to the origins of the current"Great Meltdown."On a par with the great Ms. Gillian Tettsrecent work. "Fools Gold." (Ms. Tett is currentlythe Financial Affairs editor of The Financial Timesof London). this book is - or should be - mandatoryreading for anyone who wishes to see exactly whathappened to "the genius of laissez-faire economics"when it was allowed to run amok in an ideologicallybased perfect storm of deregulation.We are back. as it were. in late 1933 - having notremembered history. and having been condemned torepeat it.Three cheers for David Hare! He richly deservedhis KBE honors.J. B. Hudson. Jr.. Esq.Fallbrook. CaliforniaUnited States of America0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Another Hit for HareBy EPluribusUnum100My experience of David Hare plays is that they are often hit and miss: for every "Plenty" or "Amys View" you get a "My Zinc Bed" or "Breath of Life"--and the writing in the plays is not significantly better or worse. just some of the plays "work" better than others. Mr. Hares most recent play before this one. "Gethsemane." I found VERY disappointing. but this new one. "The Power of Yes." seems a return to form. If you liked "The Permanent Way" and "Stuff Happens" then dont hesitate to pick this one up. Again Hare constructs his narrative from public records and interviews he recently conducted--this time adding himself as a character on stage to tie the material together. The result is informative. entertaining and compelling. For the non-British reader a little research will help your appreciation of the "drama" immeasurabley"--e.g. finding out about Fred Goodwin--former head of Royal Bank of Scotland who many in Britain believe was almost single-handedly responsible for the financial melt-down there. But even without such knowledge the play is enjoyable. The image of Hare interviewing the billionare who met with Alan Greenspan both before and after the crisis will stay with you:Soros: When we met...it was before the crisis. and...he said. Markets are imperfect but they bring such benefits that you have to live with the fact that from time to time they collapse. so you just pick up the bits. But then I saw him again recently--after the crisis...He said What I said in June no longer applis. Yes. but even at the first lunch....when he said. The benefits of the market are so great that you have to live with the price. even then I had an answer...I said. Yes. but Alan. the people who end up paying the price are never the people who get the benefits.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Clarity. understanding. wisdomBy L. J. ThomasYou can. like me. read book after book on the causes of the Great Recession.Read them. discuss them. try to learn from them. and end up mired in a quicksand of details that dishearten and diminish.Not this play by David Hare.Read this play; let the ideas settle in your mind.The gritty detail is embedded in a lucid intelligence that communicates with such clarity it is like a pearl.The final words of the Power of Yes are filled with the kind of wisdom we need to speak truth to the beneficiaries of the financial disarray that continues to mire us all.
