Chalmers Johnson - Nemesis - The Last Days of the American Republic

Zahir Shah, king of Afghanistan, 111

Zaitchik, Alexander, 210

Zapatero, José Luis Rodriguez, 10, 154

Zawahiri, Ayman al-, 112

Zawhar Kili camp, 119

Zery, Muhammed al-, 129–30

Zhou Enlai, 54–56

Zia-ul-Haq, Mohammed, 112–13, 115–17

Zimansky, Paul, 47

Zinni, Anthony, 15

Zulus, 74

About the Author

CHALMERS JOHNSON, president of the Japan Policy Research Institute, is the author of the award-winning Blowback and The Sorrows of Empire . A frequent contributor to Harper’s Magazine, the London Review of Books , and the Nation , he appears in the 2005 prizewinning documentary film Why We Fight . He lives near San Diego.

The American Empire Project

In an era of unprecedented military strength, leaders of the United States, the global hyperpower, have increasingly embraced imperial ambitions. How did this significant shift in purpose and policy come about? And what lies down the road?

The American Empire Project is a response to the changes that have occurred in America’s strategic thinking as well as in its military and economic posture. Empire, long considered an offense against Americas democratic heritage, now threatens to define the relationship between our country and the rest of the world. The American Empire Project publishes books that question this development, examine the origins of U.S. imperial aspirations, analyze their ramifications at home and abroad, and discuss alternatives to this dangerous trend.

The project was conceived by Tom Engelhardt and Steve Fraser, editors who are themselves historians and writers. Published by Metropolitan Books, an imprint of Henry Holt and Company, its titles include Hegemony or Survival by Noam Chomsky, The Sorrows of Empire by Chalmers Johnson, Crusade by James Carroll, How to Succeed at Globalization by El Fisgon, Blood and Oil by Michael Klare, Dilemmas of Domination by Walden Bello, War Powers by Peter Irons, DeviVs Game by Robert Drey-fuss, In the Name of Democracy, edited by Jeremy Brecher, Jill Cutler, and Brendan Smith, Imperial Ambitions by Noam Chomsky, A Question of Torture by Alfred McCoy, Failed States by Noam Chomsky, and Empire’s Workshop by Greg Grandin.

For more information about the American Empire Project and for a list of forthcoming titles, please visit www.americanempireproject.com

A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER, NEMESIS IS CHALMERS JOHNSON’S “FIERCEST BOOK – AND HIS BEST (ANDREW J. BACEVICH).

In his prophetic book Blowback, Chalmers Johnson linked the CIA’s clandestine activities abroad to disaster at home. In The Sorrows olEmpire, he explored the ways in which the growth of American militarism and the garrisoning of the planet have jeopardized our stability. In Nemesis, the bestselling and final volume in what has become known as the Blowback Trilogy, he shows how imperial overstretch is undermining the republic itself, both economically and politically.

Delving into new areas—from plans to militarize outer space to Constitution-breaking presidential activities at home and the devastating corruption of a toothless Congress— Nemesis offers a striking description of the trap into which the reckless ambitions of America’s leaders have taken us. Johnson confronts questions of pressing urgency: What are the unintended consequences of our dependence on a permanent war economy? What does it mean when a nation’s main intelligence organization becomes the president’s secret army? Or when the globe’s sole “hyper-power” becomes the greatest hyper-debtor of all time?

Writing “as if the very existence of the nation is at stake” (San Francisco Chronicle), Johnson offers his most bracing and important exploration of the crisis facing America.

‘IN THE THIRD VOLUME IN JOHNSON’S BLISTERING TRILOGY. HE WANTS THE SCALES TO FALL FROM AMERICAN EYES SO THAT THE NATION CAN SEE THE TRUTH ABOUTTTS ROLE IN THE WORLD. HIS IS A PATRIOTS PASSION: HIS MOTIVE IS TO SAVE THE AMERICAN REPUBLIC HE LOVES.’’

—JONATHAN FREEDLAND, THE NEW YORK REVIEW OF BOOKS

“LET US HOPE THE HISTORIANS OF WHATEVER FUTURE EMPIRES MAY ARISE WILL HAVE CAUSE TO FILE JOHNSON’S GLOOMY PROGNOSTICATIONS UNDER ADMIRABLY INTENDED BUT ERRONEOUS—AND NOT UNDER PROPHETIC AND ASTOUNDINGLY PRESCIENT.”

—TROY JOLLIMORE, SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE