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Review of book discussion by Lucia Wilkes Smith, W A M M
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Armed Madhouse by Greg Palast, Dutton/Penguin, June 2006
WAMM’s book discussion group found Armed Madhouse to be a page-turner! Greg Palast, an experienced investigative journalist, inserts himself into the report in a role reminiscent of a brash gumshoe detective. The style is especially inviting for insiders—those familiar with many of the facts – who welcome a bit of irony and humor. The book is brilliant, and glib. An initial clue is the title, taken from a line in Allen Ginsberg’s beat-generation poem “Howl”—“The soul should not die ungodly armed in a madhouse.” Palast’s book probably wouldn’t be very useful in persuading a potential convert toward a left-leaning perspective, but it is accessible and easy reading for the weary contemporary activist.
Several of the WAMM discussers occasionally were annoyed by a bit of sloppiness with facts and attributions scattered among the larger truths presented. They were forgiving, however, and generally charmed by Palast’s tone and specific insights. In particular, the section on “Peak Oil” offers important analysis. A deep and abiding schism that divides US neocons from big oil interests is revealed and defined logically. WAMM readers gathered new understanding of the ways the US controls oil prices and availability internationally through its close alliance with Saudi Arabia, a strong force within OPEC. Palast reasons that the US exerts greater leverage when there is “state control” than when oil production is privatized.
There are history lessons, too. Who among us recalls, or ever learned, that it was the British who waged the first chemical attack on a civilian population—the Kurds. There are revelations about the Minnesota-based Cargill Corporation that may be new to locals. And what about that “No Child Left Behind” program? The WAMM book group encourages readers to discover details presented by Palast and to enjoy therapeutic laughter along the way.
You’re also invited to join in the next book discussion at 10:00 a.m., Saturday, November 4. Start reading Power, Terror, Peace, and War by Walter Russell Mead now!
December’s book choice is Crossing the Rubicon by Michael Rupert and Catherine Austin Fitts. |
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Word UP!
. . . the United States, for generations, has sustained two parallel but opposed states of mind about military atrocities and human rights: one of U.S. benevolence, generally held by the public, and the other of ends-justify-the-means brutality sponsored by counterinsurgency specialists. Normally the specialists carry out their actions in remote locations with little notice in the national press. That allows the public to sustain its faith in a just America, while hard-nosed security and economic interests are still protected in secret
—Robert Parry, investigative reporter and author
One of the saddest lessons of history is this: If we’ve been bamboozled long enough, we tend to reject any evidence of the bamboozle. We’re no longer interested in finding out the truth. The bamboozle has captured us. It is simply too painful to acknowledge—even to ourselves — that we’ve been so credulous.
—Carl Sagan
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© 2006 Women Against Military Madness. All rights reserved.
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Complete November 2006 Index - click here
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