Sunday, August 29, 2004

Harper's Magazine: Must Buy Issue

The September 2004 issue of Harper's magazine is a must buy--well worth the $5.95. This issue is a must for two superb historical mappings:

Lewis H. Lapham's "Tentacles of Rage" Charts the rise and success of the neo-conservative propaganda machine out of the ashes of the 60s Barry Goldwater campaign. Lapham, as an insider to the elite structure, and a long-time writer/publisher, provides a wealth of information about this behind-the-scenes media machine.

Naomi Klein's "Baghdad Year Zero" connects the dots in the neoconservative planning of a private, tax-free, free market, regulation-free paradise in Iraq and the reasons for the continuing acceleration of violence in Iraq. You know, despite my opposition to the War in Iraq, I desperately needed to retain a bit of idealistic belief that my government was trying to do the right thing in its war against Iraq and that it wasn't strictly a cut-and-dry imperialistic rape of Iraq. Klein's article provides an extensive behind-the-scenes look at the build-up, institution, and continuing effects, of the Iraq take-over... it is heartbreaking to read this essay, but it is very important that we learn about this process (remember our democrat candidate also supports this war) so that we can put an end to official pillaging of foreign countries in the name of democratic liberation.

I can't reproduce these articles and they are not online, but I do highly recommend Wisconsin Public Radio host Kathleen Dunn's interview with Naomi Klein in which they discuss the article and the imperialist project in Iraq.

Thanks Harper's and Wisconsin Public Radio ... even though I will once again lose sleep.

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