| In his two most recent books, American Dynasty and | | | | even as the world economies are demanding more. |
| Wealth and Democracy, Kevin Phillips has perhaps | | | | One little know fact in all of this, as other Middle East |
| rightly earned the prestigious moniker of America's | | | | supplies are being exhausted, is that Iraq is the last |
| premier analyst and critic. Now, in his new release, a | | | | large pool of oil on the planet. And all of this still virtually |
| doom and gloom tome some 480 pages long, Kevin | | | | untapped, near the surface. American Theocracy |
| Phillips assails three overlapping, growing, forces that | | | | describes how Iraq has never been able to pump |
| threaten to rain on the parade of the American way | | | | much of its oil, with U.N. sanctions in the 90's, war with |
| of life. Actually, American Theocracy : The Peril and | | | | Iran in the 80's and so forth. With the thinly disguised |
| Politics of Radical Religion, Oil, and Borrowed Money in | | | | cloak of spreading democracy and fighting terror, it is |
| the 21st Century, at $26.95 retail is still a great value | | | | of little surprise, given our history of petro-imperialism in |
| because it is really three books in one, with just enough | | | | the Middle East, and the fact that there is an estimated |
| threads woven between the very different but often | | | | one trillion dollars in estimated profits for the (American) |
| interrelated fabrics to help illustrate the upcoming | | | | companies who will pump it, that we found ourselves |
| perfect storm. | | | | with troops in Iraq. |
| Kevin Phillips, as a former Republican strategist and | | | | Complicating matters further, Part II of this book |
| observer for over 30 years, has a keen sense of the | | | | explores the unprecedented rise in evangelical religion |
| current political and economic landscape. When | | | | and its surging influence in American politics, especially |
| contrasted against his commanding historical | | | | under the presidency of George W. Bush. Kevin Phillips |
| perspectives, the author is aptly able in his book to | | | | believes Republicans view the world in apocalyptic |
| show how past world powers, from the Roman to the | | | | terms and endeavor to shape domestic and foreign |
| British empires, have faced and failed the same critical | | | | policy around fundamentalist religion. This undue |
| circumstances the United States currently faces at the | | | | influence of faith over fact, and religion over (prudent) |
| beginning of the 21st century. American Theocracy | | | | reason has resulted in inept policies, which only serve |
| demonstrates that essentially every world dominating | | | | to weaken our respect, prestige and effectiveness in |
| power is lured by the sirens of global over-reach and | | | | the world. This zealous underpinning has put us on a |
| ultimately falls into the traps of resource depletion, | | | | collision course with much of Islam, swelling the ranks, |
| runaway debt and the wars of militant religion. | | | | ironically, of terrorists, not to mention many other |
| In Part I of American Theocracy, Kevin Phillips looks at | | | | miscalculations, putting us in peril of a self-fulfilling |
| the ramifications of our preocupation of oil, past and | | | | prophecy. American Theocracy describes how we |
| present. The book maintains that American supremacy | | | | are endangering our future, as virtually every war is |
| was derived by our exploitation and effective use of a | | | | fought over resources or religious ideology. We seem |
| newly useable form of energy on the world stage. | | | | to be running out of the former and have an over |
| While other nations were trapped in their inertias of | | | | abundance of the latter. |
| coal, wind and water infrastructures, America quickly | | | | In Part III, American Theocracy contends what is the |
| realized the versatility of this black gold and leveraged | | | | traditional hallmark of an overextended world power: |
| a nation around it. In fact, with only roughly five percent | | | | over consumption and massive public and private debt. |
| of the world's population, Americans still consume over | | | | Huge trade deficits, trillions of dollars in national debt |
| 25 percent of the world's oil. But supply of this precious | | | | and financial speculation, made worse by the influence |
| resource has always been a concern. American | | | | of big business and Wall Street on Washington only |
| Theocracy points to World War II especially, which | | | | serve to exacerbate the problem. The Republican |
| was waged by Japan and Germany to secure their | | | | Party, once the icon of sound fiscal policy, has |
| hold on this vital fossil fuel for modern economies. The | | | | discarded its ideals by mortgaging our country's |
| book takes care to explain that America itself has | | | | financial health and future to the whim of other |
| been heavily involved in its own petro-imperialism over | | | | countries in order to fund and maintain our status quo |
| the last century. Moreover, the life blood of our | | | | around the world. |
| economy is becoming more difficult to find and extract | | | | |