Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #18697 in Books
• Published on: 2003-02-20
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 192 pages

Synopsis
John Pilger is one of the world's most renowned investigative journalists and documentary film-makers. In this fully updated collection, he reveals the secrets and illusions of modern imperialism. Beginning with Indonesia, he shows how General Suharto's bloody seizure of power in the 1960s was part of a western design to impose a 'global economy' on Asia. A million Indonesians died as the price for being the World Bank's 'model pupil'. Ina shocking chapter on Iraq, he allows us to understand the true nature of the West's war against the people of that country. And he dissects, piece by piece, the propaganda of the 'war on terror' to expose its Orwellian truth. Finally, he looks behind the picture postcard of his homeland, Australia, to illuminate an enduring legacy of imperialism, the subjugation on the First Australians.

Customer Reviews

How the 'Great Game' is played, at home and abroad
John Pilger has been an investigative journalist for many decades. He is known as being impassioned; some might say emotionally manipulative. The way his books work - and this one is no exception - is that he describes an event, such as life in Iraq or Aboriginal Australia, he interviews people on the receiving end of Western policy and then he confronts the politicians with his evidence, culled from both first hand interviews and academic and/or independent research organisations.

The New Rulers of the World follows this pattern. The subject matter is nothing new but then again, the crimes described in it are old ones, given modern doctrinal disguises, such as cloaking imperialism in the language of 'humanitarian intervention'.

If you are already familiar with Pilger's work, then this is a fine addition to the canon. If you've never read any of his books then this would be an excellent starting position, covering as it does several faces of contemporary exploitation, including Indonesia, Australia (Pilger lives in London but is an Australian) and the Middle East.

John Pilger's analysis shares much in common with Noam Chomsky, who also locates anti-democratic policy making in entrenched structures of power within Western institutions. Consequently, his work is often dismissed (and often by people who won't read it), as shrill, blame-America-first, soft-on-terrorists, anti-Americanism. This ideological rhetoric would have been equally appropriate under Stalinist Russia, with outsiders being denounced as anti-Russian stooges of Western imperialism.

Unlike Chomsky, however, Pilger writes beautifully. Chomsky can often be quite dense to read, full of sarcasm, with lengthy, meandering sentences. Pilger's work is clear and concise, though equally fact-filled, yet the warmth of humanity of many he interviews shines through in his conversations. This might be a difference of style and not substance, it could be argued but the passion of Pilger's work is undeniable.

As with much that is deemed 'controversial' or 'dissident' and beyond the realms of polite expressible discourse, all that can be asked is that the book be read honestly and then to make up one's own mind.

solid book from Pilger
Constistent in quality by Pilger's standards.

A lone voice in the dark though...

Fearless outspoken worldclass investigative journalism
This was the first Pilger book I read. A friend gave me his copy who insisted I read it immediately. This was completely out of character for him and so I read it and haven't felt the same about the world since.
Pilger relentlessly fills the pages of this remarkable book with assertions that seem incredulous compared to our sanitised media coverage of the world. But what makes this undismissable is that he references almost every painful fact. Respectfully and uniquely treating his readership as peer reviewers of his work rather than accepting automatons.
Pilger's unveiling of some of the world's worst comtemporary injustices is a beacon of truth in the stormy world of political corruption, greed and mass manipulation. This sort of book takes both enormous effort as well as immense courage to publish and demands the attention of a far wider readership.
I have read most of the other reviews on this website and they all seem to have given this book the maximum 5 star rating. If you've come this far I respectively ask you how can you not read it now?