Profit Over People: Neoliberalism and Global Order by Noam Chomsky (PDF)

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Why is the Atlantic slowly filling with crude petroleum, threatening a millions-of-years-old ecological balance? Why did traders at prominent banks take high-risk gambles with the money entrusted to them by hundreds of thousands of clients around the world, expanding and leveraging their investments to the point that failure led to a global financial crisis that left millions of people jobless and hundreds of cities economically devastated? Why would the world’s most powerful military spend ten years fighting an enemy that presents no direct threat to secure resources for corporations? The culprit in all cases is neoliberal ideology—the belief in the supremacy of “free” markets to drive and govern human affairs. And in the years since the initial publication of Noam Chomsky’s Profit Over People: Neoliberalism and Global Order, the bitter vines of neoliberalism have only twisted themselves further into the world economy, obliterating the public’s voice in public affairs and substituting the bottom line in place of people’s basic obligation to care for one another as ends in themselves. In Profit Over People, Chomsky reveals the roots of the present crisis, tracing the history of neoliberalism through an incisive analysis of free trade agreements of the 1990s, the World Trade Organization, and the International Monetary Fund—and describes the movements of resistance to the increasing interference by the private sector in global affairs. In the years since the initial publication of Profit Over People, the stakes have only risen. Now more than ever, Profit Over People is one of the key texts explaining how the crisis facing us operates—and how, through Chomsky’s analysis of resistance, we may find an escape from the closing net.

User’s Reviews

Reviews from Amazon users which were colected at the time this book was published on the website:

⭐If you read this book, you’ll find yourself double-checking the dates at the end of each section: 1994, 1996, 1997, 1998. But the book reads like it’s all about today, 2015 – secret trade deals, fast track, the veil of secrecy, the corruption of democracy to the point of near extinction, privatization, austerity measures forced upon the poor and middle class, mass surveillance and collection of personal information, an ever-widening wealth-gap between the 99% and the top 1%, accumulation of wealth by dispossession, union busting, public socialized risk and costs in totally unbalanced ratio to private profit margins and corporate economic control, low and lowering wages, unemployment, out-sourcing manufacturing jobs, rolling back environmental protections and human rights progress, trade union suppression, personhood for corporations (15years before Citizens United), behind-closed-doors trade treaties agreed upon by powerful international trading cartels and corporations but never ratified by the US Congress in violation of the Constitution. And there’s more!From cover-to-cover, the book is an expose of the secret government that controls the world – this is not some imaginary paranoid conspiracy theory from the John Birch Society or the Tea Party, but it’s an invisible government with no accountability to public democratic institutions, no elected officials except those elected board members selected by private stockholders, bankers and international finance lobbyists having no allegiance to nation-states, loyal only to the principles representing international business, profit, wealth and power. Sound familiar?There is no “good news” in this book. But Chomsky attempts to end his book of gloom on a slightly up-beat tone by observing that the public, in fact, WAS able to delay, or at least postpone, an important Clinton-driven trade deal during his administration called the Multilateral Agreement on Investment (MAI). Chomsky points to this “victory” and ends his book with this timely warning dated August 1998: “One should attend carefully to the fear and desperation of the powerful. They understand well the potential reach of public action.” The powerful invisible government (in the US, a “virtual Senate”) is determined to prevent the public from seeking a more free and just world by gaining understanding how the system is rigged, and putting that intelligence to work effectively against rich and powerful globalized special interests. They will do everything within their power to prevent that from happening. That’s an understatement!

⭐What’s not to like about Noam Chomsky? He’s a progressive (some would argue, a Left Libertarian or even an Anarchist, and they wouldn’t be wrong). His comments are well reasoned, well researched, and well spoken. This is a man who needs no teleprompter or crib sheets. He is a man who speaks his mind, whether what he says is popular or not.In “Proft Over People”, Dr. Chomsky discusses the rising threat of fascism, also known more properly as corporatism, which is spreading throughout the world; creating essentially a global corporate system based on neoliberalism. He discusses at length what is happening throughout the world—be in in South Africa, Latin America, or the US— which is either glossed over by the corporate media, or more often than not, simply not reported and ignored and the manipulation of so-called “free markets”. Dr. Chomsky details NAFTA, and the effect of the Zapatista Uprising and the South American natives; the UN; and efforts by a handful of corporate giants, using the US government as cover, to create market monoplies.”Profts Over People” is meant to enrage, shock, and illuminate the reader. At a short 166 pages, it does just that. So, are you ready to delve behind the headlines? Are you willing to peak behind the curtain to see what’s really happening? If you are, start with this book.

⭐The book, Profit over People by Noam Chomsky, Linguist turned political / social critic, is an indictment against the process of globalization currently in vogue. Supporters of U.S. International policy and trade agreements beware. If you agree with present policy then this book is not for you. However, if you seek to examine your views, or if you need data to utilize as a critique of current policy then Noam Chomsky offers a strong expose of capitalism and globalization.The book revolves around several major themes, including an examination of neoliberalism, its definition, history, and how it is utilized in current policy. Next, Mr. Chomsky turns to how consent for neoliberalism is manufactured through institutions such as the media. He ends with a critique of U.S. Foreign policy especially in Latin America, the NAFTA agreement, and insights into the Zapatista rebellion in Chiapas Mexico during the 1990’s.Mr. Chomsky uses neoliberalism as a pejorative term to connote the practices of economic liberalization, privatization, free trade, open markets, and deregulation. In ‘Profit over People’ it is defined “as the policies and processes whereby a relative handful of private interests are permitted to control as much as possible of social life in order to maximize their personal profit.” Neoliberalism is based on the economic theories of Friedrich Hayek, Milton Friedman, and the policies of Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher.At the time of ‘Profit Over People,’ Neoliberalism had been the dominant economic paradigm for a couple decades. In his critique of this paradigm, Mr. Chomsky observed that it was being used to justify the corporate domination of the civic and public life of nations including the U.S. He also noted that through neoliberalism, capitalism was being equated with democracy and supporters were using this perspective to advocate for deregulation policies as well as international trade agreements. He insinuated that at the same time corporations were manufacturing consent for economic liberalization their real goal was to attempt to gain control of international markets. A quote from the introduction illustrates this theme;“….as Chomsky points out, markets are almost never competitive. Most of the economy is dominated by massive corporations with tremendous control over their markets and that therefore face precarious little competition of the sort described in economic textbooks and politicians speeches. Moreover, corporations themselves are effectively totalitarian organizations, operating along nondemocratic lines.”Contemplating the issues Mr. Chomsky raises it is difficult to be objective with him because his argument is so one-sided. He does not have one good thing to say about the effects of globalization or trade agreements. There definitely are some negative effects of globalization, yet it raises red flags in the mind of a discerning reader when positive effects are overlooked. For example, he is very critical of NAFTA and provides evidence in support of his argument, yet his critique is before NAFTA even went into effect.Still, although a little outdated, and opinionated, Profit over People provides important insights into the process of globalization, and who gains from the process. Mr. Chomsky raises legitimate concerns about current trends in global development, and the forces behind it. This is why I consider ‘Profit over People’ a book worth reflecting on.

⭐The work of Noam Chomsky is essential reading for those of us who care about the self-destructive direction the world is taking. In my view the world cannot afford to continue to vote for right governments that not only seek profit before people, but in so doing hasten the destruction of this planet.

⭐If I’m being honest this is my first venture into the mind of Chomsky.. However I found it very inspirational and insightful, he writes with the lay person or non economist in mind. Having read Stiglitz and various others I find that I can recommend Chomsky to anyone from any political community. Even bought it for a friend

⭐Many people should read it!

⭐I like what he’s saying, but my word this guy needs a proofreader. Glaring mistakes on nearly every page interrupt the flow of the text. It’s as if it had been translated from Russian to English, by an Inuit.

⭐A very well respected writer intelligent read indeed

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