Behind the Invasion of Iraq

Rating:
Summary: No Illusions
Review: "Behind the Invasion of Iraq"is a short,concise explanation of the motivations behind the assault on Iraq.It leaves no doubt as to the impetus for the "war"(dealing with the issues of oil,supremacy of the dollar and imperial rivalry are particularly enlightning)and destroys the official rationals for the attack.

Radical analysis at it's best.This is one book you need in order to understand the reasons for the actions of the US ruling establishment,particularly the reactionary element,not just in the middle east but in the world.

Rating:
Summary: Book Description
Review: "This book contributes significantly to the conversation seeking to understand the international forces at play in the threatening war on Iraq." - NELSON MANDELA

"Behind the Invasion of Iraq . . . synthesizes the seemingly disparate threads of the US war drive in a blistering indictment of American foreign policy . . . The effect is of puzzle pieces clicking into place." - COUNTERPUNCH

Since September 11, 2001, there have been many accounts of the ways in which the alignment of global power is changing or will be changed by the U.S. "war on terrorism." Most of them take as their starting point the options facing the wealthy and powerful nations of the world seeking to control an ever larger share of the world's resources. Behind the Invasion of Iraq is written from a different perspective, and one that makes possible a far more comprehensive point of view.

Its authors, the Research Unit for Political Economy, based in Mumbai, India, are rooted in the politics of a Third World country which has long been on the receiving end of imperialist power. As a consequence, they have a more sober view of the workings of global power. In clear and accessible prose, weighing the evidence carefully and tracing events to their root causes, they move beyond moral outrage to a clear view of the process being set in motion by the U.S. led invasion of Iraq. They show that the invasion of Iraq is a desperate gamble by a section of American capital to secure their hold on power that is driven by the wish to stave off economic crisis through military means. Their efforts will not end with Iraq, but will require the recolonization of the Middle East.

Behind the Invasion of Iraq exposes the idea that war will bring democracy to the middle East as so much propaganda. In a context where so many rulers are themselves clients of the United States, the war is aimed not at the rulers but at the masses of ordinary people whose hostility to imperialism has not been broken even by corrupt and autocratic rulers. This book describes the remaking of global power with a truly global awareness of what is at stake.

Table of Contents

Preface
1. Introduction
2. Western Imperialism and Iraq
From Colony to Semi-Colony
Towards Nationalization
The Iran-Iraq War
The Torment of Iraq
Return of Imperialist Occupation
3. The Real Reasons for the Invasion of Iraq-and Beyond
The Current Strategic Agenda of the United States
Home Front in Shambles
Military Solution to an Economic Crisis
4. Rehabilitating Colonialism
Notes
Index

Rating:
Summary: Behind the Invasion of Iraq
Review: Interesting book that derived from a series of articles in the "Aspects of India's Economy" magazine edited by the The Research Unit for Political Economy in Mumbai.

Interesting in the fact that the book is written from an Asian point of view, although importantly not Muslim.

"Behind the Invasion of Iraq exposes the idea that war will bring democracy to the Middle East as so much propaganda. In a context where so many rulers are themselves clients of the United States, the war is aimed not at the rulers but at the masses of ordinary people whose hostility to imperialism has not been broken even by corrupt and autocratic rulers. This book describes the remaking of global power with a truly global awareness of what is at stake.

What's really at stake is US control of global markets. The report reveals that the US economy is now facing a nightmare scenario: A crisis of overproduction has crippled US GDP, resulting in monstrous trade and budget deficits, even as a potentially disastrous deflationary spiral appears to be under way worldwide.

Meanwhile, superpower rivals Europe, Russia and China are mounting a vigorous challenge to US economic preeminence, which is further threatened by the euro's emergence as a credible alternative to the dollar as global reserve currency. (All this is exhaustively detailed in the RUPE report, which draws its most telling evidence from the mainstream financial press.)

In this context, the US sees confiscation of the world's richest oil-producing regions as a magic bullet. While securing its own access to petroleum supplies for the foreseeable future, it can simultaneously defend dollar hegemony and restructure Middle East markets for the exclusive benefit of US-based corporations.

Which brings us to the crux: Direct American control of oil would render any potential challengers for world or regional supremacy perpetually dependent on US forbearance. In RUPE's words, "once it has seized the oil wells of west Asia the US will determine not only which firms would bag the deals, not only the currency in which oil trade would be denominated, not only the price of oil on the international market, but even the destination of the oil."

RUPE's argument here is powerful but complex, and this summary is necessarily an extreme oversimplification. But the overall thrust is quite clear: The US invasion of Iraq needs to be understood not as an end in itself but as the means to an end -- the foundation of a New American Empire."


Rating:
Summary: What a crock
Review: Okay, so if "the US *has* to turn Iraq into a colony" then when's that happening? I guess U.S. citizens won't need a passport or visa to visit, kinda like traveling to a Middle Eastern Puerto Rico, like a 51st U.S. state? Hmmm, so then this whole plan to turn power over to the Iraqi people again June 30, that must *actually* be a lie, right? *Actually* there's a secret plan to not turn over power and keep Iraq as a U.S. colony? Uh huh. I believe that about as much as I believe the people who thought, and still think, the war was *actually* about Americans stealing Iraq's oil. Yup, uh huh. Whatever.

Rating:
Summary: The book for those who what a full understanding of Iraq.
Review: The collaborative effort of the Research Unit For Political Economy, Behind The Invasion Of Iraq is a sharply focused and informatively critical look at America's motives for launching the invasion of a Saddam Houssain and Baath Party dominated Iraq. Taking into account Iraq's history and relationship with the West, within the context of modern-day economic crises and strategic agendas for staging an invasion, Behind The Invasion Of Iraq is commended as being a sober, carefully researched and immediately relevant treatise -- especially now that the national debate has moved on to post-invasion reconstruction issues and a growing possibility of collateral invasion of Syria.

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Summary: WELL RESEARCHED FACTUALLY CORRECT BOOK
Review: The Research Unit for Political Economy (R.U.P.E.), located Bombay India is a registered public trust. It operates on voluntary labor and limited finances raised from personal contributions. It is not associated or influenced by any political wing of India or any other country.

RUPE analyses theoretical and empirical levels of various aspects of the economic life of India and its institutions. The journal published by them does an excellent job to present esoteric information in a simple manner to enable people to understand the actual mechanics of their every day economic life.

Behind the Invasion of Iraq is an exception to their usual array of topics published in their journal titled "Aspects of India's Economy".

They have done an excellent job in presenting a comprehensive view of the invasion of Iraq. I feel the book is great because unlike conspiracy theory books, RUPE states facts and also quotes the sources from where it gathered the information. Hence this is factual eye opener rather than speculation.

I feel this is one of the few books that have done justice to put different pieces of the puzzle (economics, finance, foreign exchange and military invasions) together with historically correct data. Now an average person on the street will have an understanding of global politics and its ramifications on their life.

This book has also been commended on many military intelligence websites. No doubt it is well-researched publication.

Rating:
Summary: Blame America First
Review: This short book carefully and clearly explains why the US *has* to turn Iraq into a colony. The book begins with a brief history of Iraq in the modern era, then turns to US attacks on Iraq since the 1980s. In the final section, the authors tie the need for oil to the capitalist economies in the Western world --- without "our" oil under "their" desert, our economy doesn't work.

For anyone interested in understanding the current war --- or those interested in a quick introduction to US imperialism --- this book is highly recommended.

Rating:
Summary: A comprehensive analysis of American foreign policy
Review: When I initially purchased this book, I was skeptical that it would be another rant in a long line of far left-wing "America is the new Nazi empire" publications that have overloaded the academic arena during the past few years. While this writing does not go out of its way to justify the invasion on purely moral grounds or glorify America in its entirety, it does a very good job at presenting the facts in a professional manner. It presents the invasion of Iraq as an important piece in the larger puzzle of American foreign policy, both politically and economically vis-a-vis the rest of the world. There are a few occurrences of anti-Americanism in the book, but not enough to completely turn off the reader. The book also presents a nice background of history and it's scary when the reader realizes how America uses and will use other nations to serve its own purposes. The information flows are a bit choppy sometimes, but the quality of the information itself makes up for any anomalies in the presentation format.

Overall, I recommend this book for those who, like myself, have questions and doubts as to any of the real reasons behind the invasion of Iraq and perhaps looking for a glimpse into the economic and political future of the United States.

So as to not make anyone wonder about my political leanings, I consider myself to be a centrist Democrat/Republican (depending on the issue). I'm glad that Saddam is gone; I do believe that he is arguably a Middle-East version of Hitler and that had he been allowed to, would have acquired some form of weapons of mass destruction. Therefore, I think that the war in Iraq is justified for these reasons given the pathology of Saddam and his sons. However, I do not believe that that the American federal government is being completely forthcoming in its plans for a post-Saddam Iraq or the entire Middle East region for that matter.