Publisher's Synopsis
Divide and Ruin: The West's Imperial Strategy in an Age of Crisis is a collection of articles by British author Dan Glazebrook. Originally published by Counterpunch, Z Magazine, the Guardian, the Independent and Asia Times amongst others, these writings illustrate a new strategy deployed by U.S., British and other Western powers following the failure of the Iraq war to stabilise Western hegemony. This strategy employs proxy military forces to foment sectarian division and civil war - backed where possible by brutal aerial bombardment - against any independent regional power deemed a threat to Western strategic and economic imperatives. Glazebrook shows the brutality of the West's racist and exploitative foreign policy against the global South, citing examples from Libya, Syria, and elsewhere in the Middle East, Asia and Africa, and exploring in detail the role of AFRICOM as an imperialist force operating on that continent. Economic and social issues in Britain also come under scrutiny, including an analysis of race and racism in the urban youth uprisings of 2011. Praise for Divide and Ruin: The West's Imperial Strategy in an Age of Crisis "Dan Glazebrook is one of a handful of authors that I depend upon for valuable insight, information and nourishment. While most of the intellectual world is rushing to support the next NATO act of aggression in the name of human rights, Glazebrook shows in this book how it is NATO and the West which are undermining peace, security and human rights throughout the globe." -Daniel Kovalik, Professor of International Human Rights, University of Pittsburgh School of Law "In Divide and Ruin, Dan Glazebrook has expertly laid bare the connections between capitalism, militarism and economic crisis today, and the devastating impact Western foreign policy has had on the nations of the global South. Glazebrook demonstrates that, above all, the imperialist countries are determined to combat the 'threat of a good example', the possibility that the economic policies pursued by Third World states might be effectively determined by their own citizens in their own interests, and not by Western capitalists and their hangers-on." -Dr. Zak Cope, author of Dimensions of Prejudice: Towards a Political Economy of Bigotry and Divided World Divided Class: Global Political Economy and the Stratification of Labour under Capitalism. "Dan Glazebrook gives clear analysis of very nuanced and layered world affairs. He reports and exposes the excesses of imperialists while enlightening a growing critical mass of people concerned about what their governments do in their name. This work is an important read for anyone seeking understanding and a more equal and free world." -Brian E. Muhammad, Contributing Writer, The Final Call "Dan Glazebrook analyses a new strategy employed by U.S. and British imperialism since the end of the 'Cold War'. Due to its decline in the global economy and unable to sustain the Bush-like adventurism that led to the Iraq debacle, the Empire, argues Divide and Ruin, seeks now to rely on proxy military forces against those it targets for regime change. The goal is nothing other than the weakening of any country that serves as a regional counterweight to the absolute dominance of imperialism. From Glazebrook's view, U.S. and British foreign policy is a wrecking ball aimed at weakening the strongest and most independent players in the global South." -Brian Becker, National Coordinator, ANSWER Coalition (Act Now to Stop War and End Racism)
