The SHOCK Doctrine: The Rise of DISASTER CAPITALISM

In THE SHOCK DOCTRINE, Naomi Klein explodes the myth that the global free market triumphed democratically. Exposing the thinking, the money trail and the puppet strings behind the world-changing crises and wars of the last four decades, The Shock Doctrine is the gripping story of how America's "free market" policies have come to dominate the world-- through the exploitation of disaster-shocked people and countries.

At the most chaotic juncture in Iraq's civil war, a new law is unveiled that would allow Shell and BP to claim the country's vast oil reserves.... Immediately following September 11, the Bush Administration quietly out-sources the running of the "War on Terror" to Halliburton and Blackwater.... After a tsunami wipes out the coasts of Southeast Asia, the pristine beaches are auctioned off to tourist resorts.... New Orleans's residents, scattered from Hurricane Katrina, discover that their public housing, hospitals and schools will never be reopened.... These events are examples of "the shock doctrine": using the public's disorientation following massive collective shocks -- wars, terrorist attacks, or natural disasters -- to achieve control by imposing economic shock therapy. Sometimes, when the first two shocks don't succeed in wiping out resistance, a third shock is employed: the electrode in the prison cell or the Taser gun on the streets.

Based on breakthrough historical research and four years of on-the-ground reporting in disaster zones, The Shock Doctrine vividly shows how disaster capitalism -- the rapid-fire corporate reengineering of societies still reeling from shock -- did not begin with September 11, 2001. The book traces its origins back fifty years, to the University of Chicago under Milton Friedman, which produced many of the leading neo-conservative and neo-liberal thinkers whose influence is still profound in Washington today. New, surprising connections are drawn between economic policy, "shock and awe" warfare and covert CIA-funded experiments in electroshock and sensory deprivation in the 1950s, research that helped write the torture manuals used today in Guantanamo Bay.

The Shock Doctrine follows the application of these ideas though our contemporary history, showing in riveting detail how well-known events of the recent past have been deliberate, active theatres for the shock doctrine, among them: Pinochet's coup in Chile in 1973, the Falklands War in 1982, the Tiananmen Square Massacre in 1989, the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, the Asian Financial crisis in 1997 and Hurricane Mitch in 1998.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• athletics
• business
• communications
• computer
• science
• economics
• engineering
• health
• humanities
• language
• math
• media
• medicine
• performing
• arts
• physical
• social
• visual

[blaquemark]

This should be MUST READ by everyone...

[okbeachwrestling]

Good Information - Thanks for the video!

[ExquisiteDoom]

@hamzyboy It seems to me Friedman watched Chile closely under shock therapy. Also seems to have been behind it, Milton's ideas were great but his applications were ad-hoc and forever harmed the image of free market capitalism by depicting fascism and military fascism as if it were free market. Disgraceful, but just like Greenspan sold his austrian economic soul to the Fed, Milton sold his to his own ideological nemesis; government. Glad to see not everyone falls for this piece of propaganda.

[1210catman]

Disaster capitalism or Croney Capitalism, orCorporatism, is at war with Free market Capitalism, freemarket capitalism calls for no interference from government, Disaster Capitalism depends on government and the military industrial complex or natural disasters with government interference to reach its ends,it degenerates into remodeling cultures to be compliant and be good consumers.

[hamzyboy]

This is repugnant and a distortion about what friedman's ideas are all about ! There's no such thing as a free lunch! Friedman never advocated torture and totalitarianism but was a champion of freedom. Shock therapy did work in economics ,look at Chile, Poland,Germany in 48', Bolivia...what's irresponsible is for governments to spend more than their revenues and to use the printing press and hyperinflation.To quote him " Capitalism is a necessary condition for freedom but not a sufficient one "

[sibzianna]

This is taking place in Cedar Rapids, Iowa RIGHT NOW since the 2008 floods!

[BeFree108]

@jkirk1626 "So, capitalism didn't exist in America" No. Predatory exploitation and propagandized consumerism did. And exported to third world countries was military and covert support for dictatorships and death squads to maximize US business interests.

[BeFree108]

@jkirk1626 Communism was never at war with Capitolism. Thats propaganda. Communism has always been at war with predatory imperialism pretending to be democracy.

[Rhal95]

@jkirk1626 You should read it. Perhaps the most suprizing part of The Shock Doctrine is the bibliography. Its really extensive, and contains a lot of de-classified CIA documents.

Is The Shock Doctrine biased? ya, a bit. She leaves out the reason all of those countries got into financial crisis in the first place, But don't think is condemning free enterprise. She simply documented how "free enterprise" was used to steal.

[photo986]

In the late 50's the CIA had secret brainwash project code named MKUltra. They paid a Dr Cameron in Montreal to carry it out. He injected LSD Mixed with other drugs, Massive electric shocks and weeks of sleep as a brain wash tape played. It was horrific. I am telling my story on You Tube called youkilledyourmother

[WolYou]

tier0008: You have to forgive the people from the USA. They have been deluded by the media for about 50 years. They have been conditioned to wince whenever they hear the word "socialism" or "communism". Basically, the USA inhabitants have not the faintiest idea about the content of those terms. They dont know what life outside USA is alike. The kind of "freedom" people in the USA have is to choose a brand. Thats whats freedom is in their mind.

[tier0008]

Yes.

And you got your facts from CNN.

Here is a fact for you.

while you and your friends owe more on the home than it's worth.

Hundreds of thousands more.

People i eastern Europe own their home free and clear. Thanks to socialism.

But of course according to cnn we have no middle class.