Taking a close look at the dense fabric that our government weaves between war, state power, and economics, this collection of essays reveals the growing authority—and corruption—of the American state. Covering topics from the Lyndon Johnson presidency to the provocatively titled article “Military-Economic Fascism” on the military-industrial-congressional complex, it argues that the U.S. government consistently exploits national crises and then invents timely rhetoric that limits the rights and liberties of all citizens for the benefit of the few, be they political leaders or various industrialists in the areas of defense and security. As its title suggests, this book presents a clear narrative of trends and events—from the United States’ entry into World War II to the origins of income tax—causing individuals to question whether those in power are truly blind to the effects and causes of their policies.
Acknowledgments viii
Introduction 1
Part I The Nature of the State, Democracy, and Crisis Policymaking 9
1 If Men Were Angels: The Basic Analytics of the State versus Self-Government 11
2 Do Slavery and Government Rest on the Same Rationalizations? 25
3 Democracy and Faits Accomplis 34
4 Blame the People Who Elected Them? 47
5 The Song That Is Irresistible: How the State Leads People to Their Own Destruction 51
6 A Dozen Dangerous Presumptions of Crisis Policymaking 68
7 The Political Economy of Crisis Opportunism 75
8 War Is Horrible, but… 98
Part II Closer Looks at Key Actors and Critical Events 113
9 Who Was Edward M. House? 115
10 How U.S. Economic Warfare Provoked Japan's Attack on Pearl Harbor 125
11 Truncating the Antecedents: How Americans Have Been Misled About World War II 130
12 Wartime Origins of Modern Income-Tax Withholding 139
13 A Revealing Window on the U.S. Economy in Depression and War: Hours Worked, 1929-1950 143
14 The Economics of the Great Society: Theory, Policies, and Consequences 154
15 Nixon's New Economic Plan 171
Part III Economic Analysis, War, and Politicoeconomic Interactions 175
16 Recession and Recovery: Six Fundamental Errors of the Current Orthodoxy 177
17 Benefits and Costs of the U.S. Government's War Making 187
18 To Fight or Not to Fight? War's Payoffs to U.S. Leaders and to the American People 193
19 Military-Economic Fascism: How Business Corrupts Government and Vice Versa 204
20 Caging the Dogs of War: How Major U.S. Neoimperilalist Wars End 225
21 Cumulating Policy Consequences, Frightened Overreactions, and the Current Surge of Government's Size, Scope, and Power 242
Part IV Review of the Troops 269
22 Review of War, Revenue, and State Building: Financing the Development of the American State Sheldon D. Pollack 271
23 Review of New Deal or Raw Deal? How FDR's Economic Legacy Has Damaged America Burton Folsom Jr. 278
24 Review of Churchill, Hitler, and "the Unnecessary War": How Britain Lost Its Empire and the West Lost the World Patrick J. Buchanan 281
25 Review of the Pearl Harbor Myth: Rethinking the Unthinkable George Victor 284
26 Review of Unwarranted Influence: Dwight D. Eisenhower and the Military-Industrial Complex James Ledbetter 287
27 Review of Is War Necessary for Economic Growth? Military Procurement and Technology Development Vernon W. Ruttan 290
28 Review of After War: The Political Economy of Exporting Democracy Christopher J. Coyne 294
29 Review of Magic and Mayhem: The Delusions of American Foreign Policy from Korea to Afghanistan Derek Leebaert 304
Index 311
About the Author 323
Overview
Taking a close look at the dense fabric that our government weaves between war, state power, and economics, this collection of essays reveals the growing authority—and corruption—of the American state. Covering topics from the Lyndon Johnson presidency to the provocatively titled article “Military-Economic Fascism” on the military-industrial-congressional complex, it argues that the U.S. government consistently exploits national crises and then invents timely rhetoric that limits the rights and liberties of all ...