Super Imperialism: The Origin and Fundamentals of U.S. World Dominance

Description

Michael Hudson's brilliant shattering book will leave orthodox economists spluttering. Classical economists don't like to be reminded of the ugly realities of Imperialism. Hudson is one of the tiny handful of economic thinkers in today's world who are forcing us to look at old questions in startling new ways. Alvin Toffler, best-selling author of Future Shock and The Third Wave This new and completely revised edition of Super Imperialism describes the genesis of America's political and financial domination. Michael Hudson's in-depth and highly controversial study of U.S. financial diplomacy explores the faults built into the core of the World Bank and the IMF at their inception which -- he argues -- were intended to preserve the US's financial hegemony. Difficult to detect at the time, these problems have since become explicit as the failure of the international economic system has become apparent; the IMF and World Bank were set up to give aid to developing countries, but instead many of the world's poorest countries have been plunged into insurmountable debt crises. Hudson's critique of the destructive course of the international economic system provides important insights into the real motivations at the heart of these institutions - and the increasing tide of opposition that they face around the world. Title......Page 1 Table of Contents......Page 3 Preface to the Second Edition......Page 5 Introduction......Page 15 Part I: Birth of the American World Order: 1914 – 1946......Page 51 1. Origins of Intergovernmental Debt, 1917–21......Page 53 2. Breakdown of World Balance, 1921–33......Page 72 3. America Spurns World Leadership......Page 94 4. Lend-Lease and Fracturing of the British Empire, 1941–45......Page 133 5. Bretton Woods: The Triumph of U.S. Government Finance Capital, 1944–45......Page 151 6. Isolating the Communist Bloc, 1945–46......Page 176 Part II: The Institutions of the American Empire......Page 191 7. American Strategy within the World Bank......Page 193 8. The Imperialism of U.S. Foreign Aid......Page 231 9. GATT and the Double Standard......Page 262 10. Dollar Domination through the International Monetary Fund, 1945–46......Page 279 Part III: Monetary Imperialism and the U.S. Treasury Bill Standard......Page 303 11. Financing America's Wars with Other Nations' Resources, 1964–68......Page 305 12. Power through Bankruptcy, 1968–70......Page 323 13. Perfecting Empire through Monetary Crisis, 1970–72......Page 342 14. The Monetary Offensive of Spring 1973......Page 362 15. Monetary Imperialism: The 21st Century......Page 391 Notes......Page 408 Index......Page 427