Book Description
John Perkins's sensational New York Times bestseller Confessions of an Economic Hit Man (more than 300,000 sold) revealed just the tip of the iceberg of the secret world of economic hit men and the web of global corruption. Now more economic hit men and investigators tell the whole shocking story.
Customer Reviews:
A Context the Opposite of What We're Told .......2007-08-17
As an ex-international banker who quit banking for the same reasons John Perkins quit being an Economic Hit Man, I can vouch for the truth of every essay in this fine book. The underlying truth is: the world is increasingly run by the corporatocracy, and it has negligible concern for either the poor countries it purports to help nor the environment in which it functions. The truth is the opposite of what we would like and pretend to be true. And the corporatocracy doesn't just behave as it does in foreign, underdeveloped countries, it behaves the exact same way here at home. The mortgage scandle is the same kind of hustle - selling bad debt to unsophisticated borrowers and investors. The only difference is that the poor people who default on their mortgages don't have natural resources the lenders can now take. Fascism redux.
This is a brilliant book. One can already see how the corporatocracy is ignoring it. It will be interesting to see how it plays out.
The Dark Underbelly of International Economics.......2007-06-27
In CONFESSIONS OF AN ECONOMIC HIT MAN, John Perkins outlined his 20-year career as agent of the government and multinational corporations as they attempted to (and succeeded in) exploiting lesser-developed countries. That book, published by Berrett-Koehler in 2004, painted a rather gloomy picture of the dark side of globalization - in theory, a worthy endeavor.
A GAME AS OLD AS EMPIRE, edited by Steven Hiatt with an introduction by Mr. Perkins, continues the story of this exploitation, abuse, and waste in the name of "globalization." Let me say - as an aside - that I remain a proponent of globalization within the context of responsible stewardship. Removing barriers to trade, offering educational, vocational, and economic opportunities to men and women of all nations, is a good thing. Done properly, economic development and stewardship offers the possibility of true societal progress, ennobling humanity, enriching lives, nurturing the environment and increasing business activity and profits.
Unfortunately, the reality is far different from the ideal. The shortsightedness and greed of political and leaders - focused only on personal enrichment or the next quarter's operating results - leads to a culture of global exploitation. The pattern is familiar: special interests descend like locusts, consume everything in their path, and then move on, leaving a wake of destruction, degradation, and despair.
The book presents a compelling exploration of these economic and human abuses through other voices, most of those voices from men and women that participated for a time in the dance of exploitation for their temporal masters. The individual essays focus on a number of issues ranging from the stranglehold of foreign debt, the culture of ineptitude and corruption in many aspects of international banking, and the unconscionable extraction of natural resources (as in the Congo) at the high cost of human life and economic prosperity.
A GAME AS OLD AS EMPIRE is expectedly one-sided in that it shows only the abuse and corruption of international economics. There are many businesses that operate with high-principles and integrity (while maintaining high earnings for both its management as well as other constituents). However, the book serves an important purpose in that it shows that all is not sunshine and roses in the global economy. There is corruption, waste, incompetence, and short-sightedness that is unacceptable from not only a human standpoint, but from a business valuation perspective as well. I would recommend this book to anyone who seeks to undertake an intelligent study of the state of international economics in the real world.
A revealing survey.......2007-05-10
A GAME AS OLD AS EMPIRE: THE SECRET WORLD OF ECONOMIC HIT MEN AND THE WEB OF GLOBAL CORRUPTION comes from the author of the best-selling CONFESSIONS OF AN ECONOMIC HIT MAN and expands upon the prior book's theme. Where CONFESSIONS was fueled by the author's revelations of economic secrets, A GAME AS OLD AS EMPIRE is joined by other journalists and investigators who tell their own stories of a world-wide web of deliberate corruption, even narrowing topics down to specific countries and how they've been subverted. The result is a revealing survey which expands well upon the popular theme of CONFESSIONS and which deserves a spot in any academic or community library's business, economics, or social issues collection.
A Story that Deserves to be Told.......2007-05-08
This book should be mandatory reading for college students. Through the various essays--written by real people involved in the various aspects of modern empire--the reader gains an understanding of the real work (and damage) done by multilateral development agencies,offshore banks, and global trade organizations. If we want to build a better world and a better future for our children, it is critical we all understand how these various institutions of the global elite affect the global poor.
Weighty, serious reading.......2007-04-29
Well, I certainly can't add more to the details of the book than what C. Middleton said, but I would like to say a few words comparing this to the first book, since in many ways it is the successor to John Perkins' entertaining first-person tale, "Economic Hitman".
"Old As Empire" is a collection of stories reporting on the global economic condition that are not far from the type of writing you might see read in Foreign Affairs magazine or Noam Chomsky's books. The tales, which are told in the third-person as often as the first, have little entertainment value; they're almost pure information, revelations of capitalist corruption and warlord dominance that are contemporary and all too relevant in exposing how the world actually works.
If "EHM" felt a bit light and historic, this collection of stories is weighty and newsworthy - but don't go looking for a spy angle on this one. If you're a serious foreign newshound, this is good stuff - but for all the talk of revealing personal stories about "other EHM's", there really aren't many - it's mostly about corruption at the company and government level, rather than a collection of James Bonds doing the bidding of their corporate masters like EHM was.
Average customer rating:
- Calculations are only as good as your numbers
- Pants on fire?
- Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed.
- Very Interesting
- History as Science Fiction
|
History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
Anatoly Fomenko
Manufacturer: Mithec
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History: Fiction or Science? Chronology 2 (Chronology)
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History: Fiction or Science? Astronomical methods as applied to chronology. Ptolemy's Almagest. Chronology III
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They Cast No Shadows: A Collection of Essays on the Illuminati, Revisionist History, and Suppressed Technologies
ASIN: 2913621058 |
Book Description
Recorded history is a finely-woven magic fabric of intricate lies about events predating the sixteenth century. There is not a single piece of evidence that can be reliably and independently traced back earlier than the eleventh century. This book details events that are substantiated by hard facts and logic, and validated by new astronomical research and statistical analysis of ancient sources.
Customer Reviews:
Calculations are only as good as your numbers.......2007-08-03
Yes, we can all agree that mainstream history is nearly 100% BS due to politics, economics, ego, problems with dating techniques, and various conspiracies. Agreed. But, I've been researching the distinct possibility that human history (in terms of civilizations) are much more ancient than we've been told, so coming across this book was very interesting to me. I wondered how Fomenko could be wrong (if at all) because he is very persuasive in his presentations. Then it dawned on me. If at previous times in prehistory, due to the various catastrophies that are well documented (comets, asteroids, planetary disruptions, plasma discharge, pole reversals, etc) the Earth was in a different position in relation to the sun, different tilt on its axis, different orbit, different rotation (in terms of velocity and DIRECTION), and the continents were in different positions, then would this not cause the ancients to see the sky (constellations) differently? In other words, is Fomenko making erronious assumptions about the physics of the Earth in pre-history, which then corrupt his data with regards to dating the relevant astrology? The last event to seriously disrupt our planet occured roughly 3500 years ago, according to other good researchers, so is it possible Fomenko has been confused by this? The vastly different physics of our planet in the not so distant past may explain this confusion, which is not to say the "mainstream" version of history is correct; on the contrary. I am not an expert in these fields, but wanted to see if this idea could spark discussion.
Pants on fire?.......2007-07-19
Will people ever read before spamming? Yes, Jesuits could not rewrite world history alone, they had help. Anyway, Dr Prof Acad A.Fomenko does not point to jesuits as the driving force of world wide history manipulation in published volumes 1,2,3;, actually he barely mentions the poor devils. Check it with 'Search inside' feature, please. China is rarely mentioned either, in fact, Dr Fomenko is completely eurocentric. Right, his theory contradicts all mainstream schools of history, because in their actual state they are all built on blatantly erroneus chronology. You don't need a mysterious cabal (conspiracy) to falsify history, the falsification is its modus operandi. It is inherent to history(ians) to falsify (distort) events, as it is inherent to humans to boast as it is inherent to power (authority) to legimize itself by referrring to glorious past made to its own order. Dr Prof Fomenko and team have identified scores of instances of such manipulation in Russian, European, etc.. history, and delivered valid statistical proof thereof. His own 'reconstruction' is completely another story. Forget c14 as a valid method of dating. W.Libby has initially discovered a brilliant method of INDEPENDENT dating. Too bad, c14 method has become a joke after a forced marrige with dendrochronology with consensual chronological scale inbuilt. Radiocarbon method can't stand blind tests, but is so very productive as a rubberstamp.
Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed. .......2007-04-09
There is no doubt that history as most know it is a sham, & institution's version of History both University & Church is fradulent & inaccurate. Everything was established with an agenda, The real "Dark Ages" are now when we have access to incredible amounts of information past authorities & more important 'common folk' didn't have but our institutions & educators are slow to evolve because of what has ignorantly & arrogantly been taught for too long. This is on many subjects not just Chronology.
For anyone to question "Why would a Mathematician have anything credible to say of History?" The answer is from Dr. Fomenko's preface in the book: "It would be worthwhile to remind the reader that in the XVI-XVII century Chronology was considered to be a subdivision of Mathematics." These volumes could possibly be some of the most important works to date & should be read by everyone with an interest in History, especially professors & educators who have a duty to the public. I have read both books & must say that 'Chronology 1' has some very eye opening & revolutionary information. Even if these volumes are part true the implications are profound & opens the doors to further investigations & questions which must be done. I speak several different lanquages & must say the logic Dr. Fomenko uses with "inflection" of words & words being read from left to right in one region & right to left in another then written backwards, the removal of vowels & get down to basics of words, or different cities & locations having the same name etc. is correct. Vowel usage has always been optional & varied, actually complicating linquistics & study. The first thing one has to understand is that words never had a fixed spelling in history like we do now, the spelling of words was mutable & regional, as well as names & titles of people were vast, varied & changed, NOTHING WAS FIXED or understood linear. Matters of Life & Death as well as financial profiteering yesterday & today were & are made with ignorant, illogical & conspiratorial views of history & reality, it's time people get closer to the Truth & society collectively grow up.
Very Interesting.......2007-03-07
It is a good proposal and I believe it will mature into something even better in the future. I think it deserves to be read.
History as Science Fiction.......2007-01-10
Anatoly Fomenko has written a very intriguing book, full of pictures, charts, and computer 'proof' of his thesis: backwards of AD900 we don't really know what happened or when. Between AD900 and AD1600 there is more certainty, but there is still a lot of fuzzy ground, and things don't get reliable until we get past the 1600's where the printing press made it very difficult for the perpetrators of this timeline manipulation to change anything that had been committed to print. The Dark Ages did not happen. Books were burned for a reason. One organization has doubled the actual length of its existence by expanding the real chronology. Read why.
I had always wondered why Christ died about AD33 and yet men waited until the 11th century to form the Knights Templar, the Cathars, etc and go after the Holy Land by force. Why the 1000 year gap? Turns out there wasn't more than a 10-12 year gap and he proves it using astronomy. This also implies that the planet is not as old as we have been told, and current Christian and other creationist scientists are already championing that idea without being aware of Fomenko's book. The two groups, creationist scientists and the Russian mathematical analysts corroborate each other. Fascinating.
Of course, all this flies in the face of what we have been told traditionally is the 'proper' chronology of western civilization, and most readers will experience 'cognitive dissonance' in reading this book. It means that our history going backwards from AD1600 becomes progressively more incorrect and unreliable until it cannot be trusted at all... in the space of 700-800 years.
Naturally, the curious, open-minded reader will want to know WHO did this, WHY, and did any of the events we think of as really ancient ever happen?
Dr. Fomenko is a respected scientist/mathematician at Moscow State University who has already answered these questions to the satisfaction of his initially skeptical colleagues. Most of them are now believers, a few still refuse to believe (the usual diehards), and of course the western press has ignored Fomenko's work -- for obvious reasons when you read the book. The ones who perpetrated this chronology ruse have a lot to answer for. They are still with us. That's why this book is a well-kept secret.
I gave the book a 4-star rating because I was unable to check out some of his claims; those I checked were as he said. But if even 1/3 of his claims are true, this punches a big hole in what we think is our history, the meaning of western civilization, our educational process (for repeating the ruse as gospel), and the trustworthiness of the organization that perpetrated this ruse, well-intentioned or not.
This book relates to current research into a Young Earth paradigm, to John Keel's discoveries about our planet, and Fr Malachi Martin's insights (in his now out-of-print books). We are indeed sheep who are manipulated and kept ignorant -- for a reason. While knowing what these men have to say may be the "booby prize" (as in: 'what can you do with this knowledge?'), it will provide interesting reading. Didn't someone say: "...and the Truth will set you free."?? For you to judge if this book contains the truth.
Amazon.com
In a phrase coined by Captain Arthur Connolly of the East India Company before he was beheaded in Bokhara for spying in 1842, a "Great Game" was played between Tsarist Russia and Victorian England for supremacy in Central Asia. At stake was the security of India, key to the wealth of the British Empire. When play began early in the 19th century, the frontiers of the two imperial powers lay two thousand miles apart, across vast deserts and almost impassable mountain ranges; by the end, only 20 miles separated the two rivals.
Peter Hopkirk, a former reporter for The Times of London with wide experience of the region, tells an extraordinary story of ambition, intrigue, and military adventure. His sensational narrative moves at breakneck pace, yet even as he paints his colorful characters--tribal chieftains, generals, spies, Queen Victoria herself--he skillfully provides a clear overview of the geographical and diplomatic framework. The Great Game was Russia's version of America's "Manifest Destiny" to dominate a continent, and Hopkirk is careful to explain Russian viewpoints as fully as those of the British. The story ends with the fall of Tsarist Russia in 1917, but the demise of the Soviet Empire (hastened by a decade of bloody fighting in Afghanistan) gives it new relevance, as world peace and stability are again threatened by tensions in this volatile region of great mineral wealth and strategic significance. --John Stevenson
Book Description
THE GREATGAME: THE EPIC STORY BEHIND TODAY'S HEADLINES
Peter Hopkirk's spellbinding account of the great imperial struggle for supremacy in Central Asoa has been hailed as essential reading with that era's legacy playing itself out today.
The Great Game between Victorian Britain and Tsarist Russia was fought across desolate terrain from the Caucasus to China, over the lonely passes of the Parmirs and Karakorams, in the blazing Kerman and Helmund deserts, and through the caravan towns of the old Silk Road-both powers scrambling to
control access to the riches of India and the East. When play first began, the frontiers of Russia and British India lay 2000 miles apart; by the end, this distance had shrunk to twenty miles at some points. Now, in the vacuum left by the disintegration of the Soviet Union, there is once again talk
of Russian soldiers "dipping their toes in the Indian Ocean."
The Washington Post has said that "every story Peter Hopkirk touches is totally engrossing." In this gripping narrative he recounts a breathtaking tale of espionage and treachery through the actual experiences of its colorful characters. Based on meticulous scholarship and on-the-spot research, this
is the history at the core of today's geopolitics.
Customer Reviews:
Rousing good story.......2007-08-29
Am not qualified to judge the scholarship but, as someone who grew up on tales of derring-do in the Khyber Pass, this is a fascinating detailing of the larger reality behind the Kipling-esque "Great Game" tagline. And, as an account of two imperial powers duking it out back and forth across Central Asia, it is not without relevance to an age when Afghanistan, and impenetrable Waziristan are still a part of the puzzle and there remains no lack of imperial hubris and ignorance in dealing with the folks there (evidenced by the recent announcement of an Administration plan to spend $700-800 million "winning hearts and minds" in Waziristan - it's like some people never learn!) The geniuses behind that decision should spend a little summer reading time with Mr Hopkirk and the imperial experience of that bit of history.
Well written account of the "first Cold War".......2007-04-30
"The Great Game" is an enjoyable read and the 600 pages go surprisingly quickly. I read this as background for an upcoming trip to the region and from the perspective of the post-Cold War era, it's amazing how so many dynamics of the Cold War were in place over 100 years earlier. The chess moves of the British and the Russians and the many intrepid "explorers" provide plenty to hold the reader's interest. I would have given it 5 stars, but the references aren't well tied to the text, so it's unclear to the lay man how to evaluate the scholarship. Hopkirk certainly has a track record, however, there always are disputes in the attempt to piece together history.
One of the best history/adventure books available today!.......2007-04-23
Hopkirk is the master of the Middle East history books! FAST READ!! and I am a slow reader!
Hopkirks BEST book yet! HIGHLY RECOMMENDED, it's like being there!
More Tedium From Peter Hopkirk.......2007-04-11
"Reads like a novel" ??? Come on, folks! The yellow pages of any phone book are far more exciting. This text takes a subject of great potential, & reduces it to the dried up dust of a Central Asian desert. I am disgusted with Mr. Hopkirk, because I truely love real History. This author is only one of the sorry crowd who destroy interest in even the most eager seeker. Our schools are full of them. This text belongs to the times when books were sold by the pound, rather than the content. As a former teacher - & lifelong seeker after the amazing truths of history - I consign Mr. Hopkirk to the dust bin.
Amazing that it is actually true!.......2006-12-15
This is truly one of the best books I have ever read. It takes the reader from 1814-1914 and walks through the conflict that embroiled central Asia for a century. It looks at how the British tried to defend their empire (notably India) by using proxies in Pakistan and Afghanistan. If you are wondering how the divisions are set up in the Middle East and central Asia today they are born during the Great Game. The book reads like a spy novel and is so well written you will not even notice you are reading history. The story takes you in and you wonder why there has not been a movie yet. It is amazing to see what these people went through and the things that were done in the line of duty for empire on both sides. Highly recommend and note that this is really part one of three of an official trilogy so make sure you see the other great books on the Great Game
Book Description
A sourcebook unearthing the ruins and secrets of the fallen empires of the Forgotten Realms campaign setting.
For the first time, the secrets of past empires of the Forgotten Realms world are chronicled in one comprehensive sourcebook. For players, this book contains new options for characters wishing to delve into ancient ruins, including new feats, prestige classes, magic, and equipment. For Dungeon Masters, this book contains new material associated with ruins, including rules for how to build and sustain a ruin-based campaign, more than a dozen detailed adventure sites with maps, and new monsters and artifacts.
Customer Reviews:
Absolutely Splendid!!!.......2006-09-18
I found this title the best supplement ever written. That says a lot, since this series has been around since 1987. At last, in one volume, the history of this magical world is laid bare. I have speculated and wondered in the past why the world is like it is. This volume has given up most of those secret! I stand in awe of most of them. This is the flower of Realms lore. Most are not intended for most gamers. I read the novels and continue my illustrations outside this "gamers" world.
I can only say that the Forgotten Realms have come alive at last with a rich and frightening history in its past. Long live Netheril!
Excellent!.......2005-12-14
If you're interested in the history of Faerun, this is a excellent book. It goes into great detail and has a lot of extras, like relics and historical weapons. Great art and a good read.
Excellent Resource.......2005-05-14
Very well detailed and has a great amount of information that can be used in adventures. I would give it 4.5 if I could because of the usual lack of REAL MAPS that Wizards of the Coast seems to neglect. Great book though and a must have for DM's and Players in the forgotten realms.
Relevance is the key.......2005-04-14
I greatly looked forward to this book and was not disappointed. The Forgotten Realms is extremely rich in history that has been developed over the long years of its publication and this is truly a comprehensive source of that. The authors have touched on just about every area I can think of and they have done it well.
The book is divided into several sections, each dealing with a different geographic or cultural area. For instance, one section deals with the crown wars (wars between elves almost exclusively) and the elven nations involved (which covers a large area of Faerun) while another area covers the North and includes detail on several elven realms that had little part in the crown wars. They have timelines for each section of the book.
To be clear though, these histories are given not as a tool to play during those times, but as reference points to incorporate the locales of these ancient empires into the current timeline and an existing campaign. They bring the histories up to the current timeline and give you a good idea of what is going on in the ruins of these empires and the doings of the decedents of these empires.
On top of all of this rich history and information is a great deal of good crunchiness. There are several prestige classes, all of which seem well balanced and a great section on new spells and magic items. They even have specifics on mythal creation which is just plain cool to me. Going back to the integration of the past to the present, there is a section about Hellgate Keep and there they specify magic items of goodly races know to have been lost by fallen heroes there (items from the PGtF and this book).
All in all, a great tool for ANY dungeon master running ANY Realms Campaign for its information on ruins (dungeon - hint, hint) and its balance of historical information and crunchy bits. By far one of the most useful Realms products for any edition.
The misty past of Faerun, now yours to discover.......2005-03-19
I always loved the 3.5 (3.0) Forgotten Realms accessories, but I must say that this book is perhaps the best in the series.
This books gives you a +10 competence bonus to your Ancient History(Faerun) skill, as it offers you in-depth knowledge on almost all of the great empires of the past. You can learn all, about the great elven empires, about the history of the Sword Coast, about the phaerimm manace, etc.
Also, you will find some great feats, prestige classes and spells in the book. Some of them are not really for players, but for the DM (and to the NPCs). Players will also find it interesting, if for nothing else, then to add some flavour to the game.
I found it also great that young DMs get some help in a separate chapter to create adventures based on the "ancient theme". Of course, even old DMs, like myself can learn a lot from it.
Book Description
Celebrate the 30th anniversary of
Star Wars with this special
Star Wars Miniatures Game set featuring characters from across the entire
Star Wars saga, including several characters from the classic film trilogy(A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back, and Return of the Jedi). This 60-miniature set has square bases to highlight the longevity of the story set in a galaxy far, far away.
Each Alliance and Empire booster pack contains seven randomized, prepainted plastic miniatures, a stat card for each miniature, and a set checklist.
Customer Reviews:
Great Expansion Set... FULLY COMPATABLE with Previous Minis Sets.......2007-05-29
"Alliance and Empire" is the seventh expansion set for the Star Wars Miniatures game, which started with the Rebel Storm Starter set back in September, 2004 (see more about the minis game itself in my addendum below). This set was released to coincide with the 30th anniversary of Star Wars. As such, these figures have a special square bases with "Star Wars" written on the front. HOWEVER, THIS SET IS STILL FULLY COMPATIBLE WITH THE OTHER STAR WARS MINIS SETS. There are 60 different figures in this set. Each booster comes with seven durable, pre-painted minis (including one rare OR one very rare figure).
The first thing I look for in any expansion set are how many characters I recognize from the movies (vs. those that appeared only in the books). I am particularly interested in figures from the original trilogy, and I am happy to say that there are at least 40 figures from the original trilogy in this set. Most are interesting and/or more powerful variations of earlier figures (for example, Boba Fett, Lando Calrissian, Jabba, Wampa, R2-D2 with C-3PO, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Princess Leia, Chewbacca, Darth Vader, Imperial Governor Tarkin, three different versions of Han Solo, and three different versions of Luke Skywalker). But, some of the figures have never been released before (for example, Wicket the Ewok, Ewok Hang Glider, and Jawa on Ronto). Notably, there are even a few great new common and uncommon figures from the original trilogy in this set (for example, Death Star Trooper, Death Star Gunner, Rebel Commando Strike Leader, Talz Spy, and a variation of the Ewok with a bow -- rather than just melee attack).
The rest of the figures are either from the prequel, the books, or generic/minor characters (however, some of these characters are also very good -- especially for use in the Star Wars RPG).
In sum, this expansion set is excellent for those interested in the original trilogy, and fair for those interested in the prequel.
ADDENDUM: (Please note that I include this addendum at the end of all my Star Wars minis reviews, so if you've read it before, there is no need to read it again.) If you want to play the Star Wars minis game as it was designed to be played, it is best to have at least one starter (each starter comes with game instructions, a map, a D20, terrain tiles that are very helpful and add great variety to the game, and more). I like the Rebel Storm Starter the best because it's from the classic era/trilogy, but the Clone Strike and Revenge of the Sith starters from the newer movies will also work. If you don't want to invest in a starter, you can also get one of the three "Ultimate Missions" books, as each comes with a double sided map and a few smaller terrain tiles (again, I like the Rebel Strom Ultimate Missions book the best because it is also from the classic era/trilogy). Or, you can buy the "Attack on Endor" scenario pack, which comes with TWO double sided maps (in addition to a scaled AT-ST that is fully usable in play). The main point here is that you'll need some type of map/grid. If you don't want to buy a Star Wars one, generic ones are also available at most gaming stores (you can use your imagination to set the scene, or draw terrain with an erasable marker right on the grid). Of course, the minis are also useful for the roleplaying game (RPG) - in which case you may not need a starter or map, but will likely need the "Core Rulebook" instead. Finally, they are just fun to collect for those who like all things Star Wars!
Book Description
This exclusive, official strategy guide, written with the full cooperation and support of Ensemble Studios and Microsoft Game Studios, features:
- Strategies and tips straight from the game's creators
- Expert analysis of each civilization's strengths and weaknesses
- Detailed military and economic strategies
- In-depth statistics for everything in the game
- Step-by-step walkthrough of the single-player campaign
- Hardcore multiplayer tactics for every game mode
Customer Reviews:
How refreshing! A good strategy guide at last........2006-07-25
In a word: exceptional! I don't play many real time games, so a good strategy guide is a must for me. This one is really, really good. I wish the author wrote for some other games I foolishly bought.
And now the rant: Most strategy guides I've purchased in the last 5-6 years are not worth the price of the paper they're printed on. And a lot of games that don't have one, truly should. I wonder if anyone else has noticed how rare good, clearly written, complete, illustrated game manuals have become?
Anyway, if you're thinking of buying this guide: do!
Good game, but no storyline.......2006-06-11
Online play and single player play are both very good. The variety of difficulty levels, maps, opponents, and development of card decks is fun and let's the game keep from getting stale. Other game features are good, like the naval combat. The graphics are excellent. The combat units don't require micro-management to do their thing, which is also good. The only weak point: storyline for the campaign missions sucks.
A brilliant strategy guide.......2006-03-20
Filled with many helpfull tips and tricks anyone who plays Age of Empires 3 needs this guide.
I don't care if you say you are plenty good at this game already(I was), there will surely be something in that will make AoE 3 even more fun to play! It features:
Great and in-depth analysises of each civilization as well as strategies for them(even the native americans!).
Great economic and militaristic strategies as well as multiplayer strategies from the experts.
A helpful appendix showing every unit, shipment, and upgrade and what each one does.
Step by step walkthrough for the single player campaign.
Great strategies and suggestions for your home city as well as telling you what cards are keepers and what ones are not and so more.
The thing I loved most about this guide is that(though the suggested strategies are killer) I was never given the feeling that I had to play the game just like those suggestions said as so many other guides do. You can always mix in your own touch creating a new(and maybe improved)strategy.
This guide is the only one that I have that is not a prima's official; it's also the best. For twelve bucks this 280 page guide is a must have for anyone who owns AoE 3. Even if they don't love the game this guide will shed new light on it and get them begging to play.
A brilliant strategy guide.......2006-03-20
Filled with many helpfull tips and tricks anyone who plays Age of Empires 3 needs this guide.
I don't care if you say you are plenty good at this game already(I was), there will surely be something in that will make AoE 3 even more fun to play! It features:
Great and in-depth analysises of each civilization as well as strategies for them(even the native americans!).
Great economic and militaristic strategies as well as multiplayer strategies from the experts.
A helpful appendix showing every unit, shipment, and upgrade and what each one does.
Step by step walkthrough for the single player campaign.
Great strategies and suggestions for your home city as well as telling you what cards are keepers and what ones are not and so more.
The thing I loved most about this guide is that(though the suggested strategies are killer) I was never given the feeling that I had to play the game just like those suggestions said as so many other guides do. You can always mix in your own touch creating a new(and maybe improved)strategy.
This guide is the only one that I have that is not a prima's official; it's also the best. For twelve bucks this 280 page guide is a must have for anyone who owns AoE 3. Even if they don't love the game this guide will shed new light on it and get them begging to play.
Great Guide.......2006-02-25
I am a big age fan since AOE II. This guide has helped me get up to speed on AOE III quick. I especially like the strategies for each civilization as laid out in chapter 5 . I also found the cilization strategies from members of the AOE III team in chapter nine very helpful.
Average customer rating:
- Check and see
- Suprise! Suprise!
- Prescient St Augustine?
- Something of a disappointment
- Romulus courts Helen, Paris founds Rome, Moses goes to Troy..
|
History: Fiction or Science? Chronology 2 (Chronology)
Anatoly T Fomenko
Manufacturer: Delamere Resources LLC
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 2913621066 |
Product Description
`History: Fiction or Science? Chronology 2` is the second volume of the most explosive and astounding tractate on history ever written - however, every theory it contains, no matter how unorthodox, is backed by rock solid scientific data. The book is easy and pleasant to read; it is well-illustrated, contains hundreds of charts, graphs and illustrations, copies of ancient manuscripts, and countless facts attesting to the falsity of the chronology used nowadays. You will be amazed to discover: - That the chronology universally accepted today and taken for granted is simply wrong; - That ALL methods of dating of ancient sources and artefacts known today are erroneous or non-exact; - That there is not a single document that could be reliably dated earlier than the XIth century; The Author refers to the Middle Ages as the Antiquity and proves mutual superimposition of the Second and the Third Roman Empire, both of which become identified as the respective kingdoms of Israel and Judah. Furthermore, he asserts that the famous reform of the Occidental Church in the XI century by Pope Gregory Hildebrand was the reflection of the XII century reforms of Byzantine emperor Andronicus who in his turn identifies with Jesus Christ. The Trojan war counted by Homer happened only as late as of the XIII century A.D. and the great poet actually lived in XIV century A.D. No stone in history of Antiquity is left unturned. Literally. This book is the beginning of a major correction to the chronology we live with.
Customer Reviews:
Check and see.......2007-06-21
I don't care what other people say of this book. Those affirmig it's fake, they hadn't ever read it. Or have some special reasons to do so. "Living is easy with eyes closed, misunderstanding all you see..." This book won't make you feel comfortable. It'll make you feel free. It'll make you feel you're "not the only one" to feel you'd been lied to for centuries.
Suprise! Suprise!.......2007-03-22
Here is a serie of books which turns "the whole world" upside down. I learned a lot of it and I hope that a new book from A.T. Fomenko will follow very quick. A absolute must for everybody who is interested in history or even a little bit from it.
Prescient St Augustine?.......2006-02-05
We can so far divide the New Chronology into the following three parts:
a) The verifiable theory that proves consensual chronology wrong with the aid of astronomy, statistics and mathematics;
b) The new chronology hypothesis based on a new understanding of known historical facts and the most likely logical explanation of the most obvious inconsistencies inherent in the official version of history;
c) The history conjectures, that is experimental historical reconstructions based on assumptions that the authors believe to make sense in the light of their research and linguistic parallels - void of ironclad factual support to date.
Fomenko's theory complies with the most rigid scientific standards as a whole:
It gives a coherent explanation of what we already know.
- It is consistent: independent lines of inquiry all lead to the same conclusion.
- The predictions it makes are confirmed empirically.
Fomenko goes by the following axioms:
- Chronology is the basis of history;
- Human evolution has always been linear, gradual and irreversible;
- The "cyclic" nature of human civilization is a myth, likewise all the gaps, duplicates, "dark ages" and "renaissances" that we know from consensual history;
- The accumulation of geographical knowledge as reflected in cartography is a gradual and irreversible process;
- The chronological distance between a given manuscript and the events described therein is proportional to the amount of distortions it contains;
- There is no "useless" information in authentic ancient sources.
Why the mainstream historians do not shower mathematician Academician Dr.Prof Fomenko with thanks and laurels?
The Russians:
Because Fomenko asserts that there was no such thing as the Tartar and Mongol invasion followed by three centuries of slavery, providing a formidable body of documental evidence to prove his assertion. The so-called "Tartars and Mongols" were the actual ancestors of the modern Russians, living in a bilingual state with Arabic spoken as freely as Russian. The ancient Russian state was governed by a double structure of civil and military authorities. The hordes were actually professional armies with a tradition of lifelong conscription (the recruitment being the so-called "blood tax"). Their "invasions" were punitive operations against the regions that attempted tax evasion. Fomenko proves that Russian history as we know it today is a blatant forgery concocted by a host of German scientists brought to Russia by the usurper dynasty of the Romanovs, whose ascension to the throne was the result of coup d'état, charged with the mission of making their reign look legitimate. Fomenko proves Ivan the Terrible to be a collation of four rulers, no less. They represented the two rival dynasties - the legitimate rulers and the ambitious upstarts. The winner took it all! Over some 30 years of controversy, Russian historians have made a most remarkable transition - they were initially accusing the young mathematician Fomenko of anticommunist dissident activity and attempts to deface the historical legacy of Soviet Russia; nowadays the middle-aged mathematician is accused of adhering to "pro-communist Russian nationalism" and defacing the proud historical legacy of Great Russia.
The Westerners:
Because Fomenko blows consensual Russian history to smithereens, successfully removing a crucial cornerstone from underneath the otherwise impeccable edifice of World History. Fomenko adds insult to injury, wiping out one by one the Ancient Rome (the foundation of Rome in Italy is dated to the XIV century A. D.), the Ancient Greece and its numerous poleis, which he identifies as the mediaeval crusader settlements on the territory of Greece, and the Ancient Egypt (the pyramids of Giza become dated to the XI-XV century A. D. and identified as the royal cemetery of the Global "Mongolian" Empire, no less). The civilization of the Ancient Egypt is irrefutably dated to the XII-XV century A. D. with the aid of the ancient Egyptian horoscopes cut in stone. He was the first one to decipher and date all such horoscopes, coming up with mediaeval dates in every case. English historians rage at the suggestion that the history of Ancient England was de facto a Byzantine import transplanted to the English soil by the fugitive Byzantine nobility. To reward the English historians who consider themselves the true scribes of World History, the cover of the present book portrays Tintoretto's Jesus Christ crucified on the Big Ben.
The Chinese:
Because Fomenko wipes out the Ancient History of China outright. No such thing. Full point. The compilation of the so-called Ancient Chinese History is reliably datable to the XVII-XVIII century only. It is perfectly recognizable as the Ancient European history, reworked and transcribed in hieroglyphs as yet another historical transplantation, this time performed on the Chinese soil by the loving Jesuit hands. The Chinese are the next in line to go berserk. Chinese history is inevitably bound to get both more ancient and more eventful, proportionally to the growing involvement of China in the world affairs. Chinese historians will keep on finding valid proof of prehistoric Chinese spaceflights until the Politburo orders them to shut up.
The Arabs:
Too bad. Islam with all its key figures is datable to XV-XVI century A. D. Arabic historians may find consolation in the crucial historical role of the Ottoman Empire in the XVI-XVII century. The trouble is that this empire was initially a Christian state, with Hagia Sophia identifiable as Temple of Solomon, according to Fomenko! We can only guess if the acquisition of Alexander the Great (a Macedonian and a Christian) as the founder of the Muslim World Empire will make Fomenko's theories more acceptable to the Arabic mainstream. He certainly does not spare any holy cows at all, claiming The Stone of Qa'Aba in Mecca to contain the lost Arch of the Covenant.
The Divinity:
Despite of reiterated statement that his theory is all about chronology and not Religion, Fomenko stirs up a whole condominium of wasp nests. His collection of anathemas, fatwa, and other condemnations from all parties concerned is already considerable. Little wonder, considering that the history of religions à la Fomenko looks as follows: the pre-Christian period (before the XI century and JC), Bacchic Christianity (XI-XII century, before and after JC), JC Christianity (XII-XVI century) and its subsequent mutations into Orthodox Christianity, the Catholicism, Islam, Buddhism, and so on.
According to Fomenko we know strictly NOTHING about the events that predate the X century A. D.
St Augustin was prescient when he spoke unto us: "be wary of mathematicians, particularly when they speak the truth."
Something of a disappointment.......2005-09-09
After having read the first volume of this expected series of 7 volumes I was triggered by the thesis of these authors that ancient Greek and Roman history did in fact take place in the Middle Ages. So I started studying medieval history of the Middle East - also known as Islamic history - to find out if the opponents of the ancient Greeks and Romans - the Acheamenid Persians, Sassanids, Scythians, Egyptians, etc. - also have their duplicates in medieval history. My search was disappointing: none of the many medieval Islamic dynasties seemed to correspond to the ancient middle eastern rulers.
However, I did find a close correspondence between Herodotus' Persian kings and medieval events:
- the defeat and capture of an Anatolian king - the Lydian Croesus - by the Persian conqueror Cyrus is identical to the defeat and capture of another Anatolian king - sultan Bayezid - by the Asian/Mongol conqueror Tamerlane;
- the Persian conquest of Egypt by the cruel tyrant Cambyses reds almost exactly as the Ottoman conquest of Egypt by Selim the Grim (note the nickname!);
- Darius the Lawgiver of the Persian Empire looks very much alike to Sulayman the Magnificent, the Lawgiver in Islamic history;
- Xerxes, whose main claim to fame is to be defeated by the Greeks at the naval battle of Salamis, looks like Selim II (the Sot) whose main claim to fame is to be defeated by a Spanish-Italian alliance at the naval battle of Lepanto.
I should have expected Fomenko et al. to arrive at similar conclusions, however, they claim that the Persian kings are the alter egos of the Angevin kings of Sicily whose biographies do not contain the exploits of the Persian kings.
The similiarities I indicate lead to the conclusion that Herodotus must have written his Histories at the close of the 16th century. But this is extremely late, given that Herodotus is "the Father of History", so therefore all other "ancient" histories must have been fabricated even later. Yet, the founders of modern chronology - Scaliger and Petavius - laid their foundations also at the close of the 16th century and had the full corpus of ancient histories already at their disposal.
It seems to me that Fomenko has to address these inconsistencies, maybe in the forthcoming 5 volumes?
Another critique of their book is that the correspondencies between different rulers are often based on a superficial comparison of the biographies; upon a more thorough comparison many details appear that do not correspond at all.
Finally, the authors rely heavily on the works of Gregorovius (1821-1891!!) - his medieval histories of Rome and Athens - as the source of medieval history; these works are - at least in the West - hoplessly outdated and have been superceded by more up-to-date works (for instance, Julius Norwich's trilogy on Byzantine history is not even cited).
Romulus courts Helen, Paris founds Rome, Moses goes to Troy.........2005-07-30
If you agree with Fomenko that Roman chronology is basically the foundation of the entire edifice of global chronology; you would also certainly agree that despite its numerous gaps and inconsistencies, Roman history is the best-documented field of ancient history, and thus a reference scale. But how well is the actual date of the Eternal City's foundation known?
Firstly, Rome is supposed to have been founded by the Trojans who had to flee after the fall of Troy. Some claim Rome to have been founded by Aeneas and Ulysses shortly after Troy had fallen; others are of the opinion that there was an entire dynasty that ruled for 500 years between the fall of Troy and the foundation of Rome.
Well, that's just an innocent 500 years long misunderstanding compared with what heretic Fomenko says, asserts, proves in his second volume: Second Roman Empire, Third Roman Empire, Biblical Kingdom of Israel, Biblical Kingdom of Judah, Holy Roman Empire are stories about basically same events, written from different points of view at different times. The underlying events have actually taken place during xii-xv cy. These histories have been written and perfected by multitude of highly talented humanist and clerical writers of xiii-xvi cy disguised as "ancients" with glorious names like Homer, Pluto, Thucydides etc..Chronology 2.0 beta..
Historians are kindly invited to report the bugs.
Book Description
This supplement delves even further into the background of the Empire as laid out in the main rulebook. Useful for both players and Game Masters. The supplement contains a detailed geography, expanded history and in depth explanation of the politics and new empire centric careers.
Customer Reviews:
Perfect tool for GM.......2007-08-13
This book is one of the best products by Warhammer I have ever seen.
As a GM I use it as often as "Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay: A Grim World of Perilous Adventure" or PH (Player's Handbook). ))
You have lots of useful information on history, politics, society etc of the Empire.
Very Informative.......2007-08-03
This book helps with the background, history, beliefs, people breakdowns, and other useful informationon the Empire. the map could be a little more expansiveas some things in descriptions are not shown onthe map, but otherwise it is quite interesting and one of the first books a Gamemaster should get if running in the Empire.
A Great Sourcebook.......2007-05-14
Too many roleplaying games release expansions that are little more than addenda to the rules comprising of pages upon pages of extra classes, feats and the like with setting information getting a few paragraphs here and there. Sigmar's Heirs reverses this trend - mechanics and rules take a backseat to the exploration of the Empire. All of the Imperial provinces are covered in detail, including local sites of interest, personalities and the like. The Empire itself is also covered including religion, politics and history. The core rulebook isn't required to derive use from this book, it's great for pleasure reading or as an idea mine for your game.
A great resource.......2006-04-21
This is a great resource for those people who aren't as familiar with the setting. It also brings those familiar to the setting form older books up to date with the current time line. While I'd have like to see a little more for the price it's invaluable for the GM. As well as a fun read for the player with a bit of extra cash who wants to understand the setting better.
Great Information Book for WFRP.......2006-03-14
I was very please with SH and the background material it provided. Not having many supplements from WFB or from v1, SH provided excellent history on the provinces of the empire. Additionally it talked about the current state of the provinces after the Storm of Chaos.
The one thing I was hoping to have in the book it a bit more maps, paticular of each province.
For new players, this book will be a very good addition to the core rules. Longtime players of v1 and WFB will like the updates for the SoC stuff and consolodated information, but it is not a must buy.
Book Description
“The most clear and engaging history of the deadly, historic partnership between Western powers and political Islam.”—Salon.com
Devil’s Game is the first comprehensive account of America’s misguided efforts, stretching across decades, to dominate the strategically vital Middle East by courting and cultivating Islamic fundamentalism.
Drawing on extensive archival research and interviews with dozens of policy makers and CIA, Pentagon, and foreign service officials, Robert Dreyfuss follows the trail of American collusion from support for the Muslim Brotherhood in 1950s Egypt, to links with Khomeini and Afghani jihadists, to longstanding ties between radical Islamists and the leading banks of the West. The result is as tragic as it is paradoxical: originally deployed as pawns to foil nationalism and communism, extremist mullahs and ayatollahs now dominate the landscape, thundering against freedom of thought, science, women’s rights, secularism—and their former patron.
Chronicling a history of double-dealing, cynical exploitation, and humiliating embarrassment that continues to this day, Devil’s Game reveals a pattern that, far from furthering democracy or security, ensures a future of blunders and blowback.
Customer Reviews:
Complements Web of Deceit.......2007-06-21
Robert Dreyfuss interviewed me once, for a piece in WIRED or Mother Jones, and I remember him as a serious, methodical person. It is no surprise to find him producing this meticulously documented and objectively constructed history, a perfect complement to Web of Deceit: The History of Western Complicity in Iraq, from Churchill to Kennedy to George W. Bush, on whose Amazon page I have a more detailed review of the overall topic.
The author captures the essence in his own introduction: the US was so focused on anti-communism and anti-Soviet campaigns that it deliberately chose to sponsor extreme rightist Islamic fundamentalists, fascists in their own way as the extreme right in America is today (see American Fascists: The Christian Right and the War On America).
The author is very specific in addressing how the US feared "nationalism, humanism, secularism, socialism" in its obsession with countering the Soviets, and so it chose to aid Islamic fundamentalists who opposed those more rational and publicly-oriented altneratives. In essence, the premise of the invasion of Iraq, that we are doing it to spread democracy, is yet another big lie--we have been denying democracy to the Arabs every since Roosevelt met with the Saudi king and formed a pact with the devil himself.
I totally agree with the author as he documents and sums up his own view that "A war on terrorism is precisely the wrong way to deal with the challenge posed by political Islam."
The author offers four prescriptions for US action, and at the end here I list some relevant books that provide a broader context:
1) Remove the grievances--US troops in Saudi Arabia and Iraq, support for Israel's genocide against the Palestinians, support for Israel's plans to attack Iran
2) Abandon imperial pretentions in the Middle East
3) Refrain from seeking to impose preferences--political, economic, cultural, or religious, on the region
4) Stop making bellicose threats against Islamic nations from Iran to Sudan (and I would add, to Algeria, Morocco, Nigeria, and others)
I am reminded by this book of the common sense prescriptions in Imperial Hubris: Why the West is Losing the War on Terror. The raw fact is that the global literature is coming around to three points of view that are inter-related:
1) Bin Laden is largely right and on firm grounds in taking on both the debauched Saudi regime and the amoral unilaterally invasive US
2) Dick Cheney has committed so many high crimes and misdemeanors, with similar high crimes at the operational level (warrantless wiretapping on Americans, rendition and torture of all others) that America has lost all moral legitimacy both at home and abroad
3) We have the wrong global strategy, indeed we have no global strategy--we are trying to put out a forest fire with a hammer.
Some of the reviewers jump to conclusions, for example, the CIA was NOT really trying to ramp up the war in Afghanistan, until Congressman Charlie Wilson made it his personal vendetta. There is a much larger context within which American incompletence at world affairs can be judged, and it includes the shortcomings of the US educational system, the corruption of the US electoral system, and the grotesque dysfunctionality of the "winner take all" US system of governance. I hope some of the books below--or at least my reviews of them--will provide addtional context for this excellent work. See Web of Deceit for detailed comments I choose not to repeat here--the two books are a good combination with some overlap.
The American Empire Project has produced some really first-rate books on their chosen theme, and for this they are to be praised.
Charlie Wilson's War: The Extraordinary Story of How the Wildest Man in Congress and a Rogue CIA Agent Changed the History of Our Times
The Black Tulip: A Novel of War in Afghanistan
Wilson's Ghost: Reducing the Risk of Conflict, Killing, and Catastrophe in the 21st Century
Resource Wars: The New Landscape of Global Conflict With a New Introduction by the Author
Breaking the Real Axis of Evil: How to Oust the World's Last Dictators by 2025
The Unconquerable World: Power, Nonviolence, and the Will of the People
The Sorrows of Empire: Militarism, Secrecy, and the End of the Republic (The American Empire Project)
The Devil's Game doesn't go far enough and much of it is based on half-truths:.......2007-05-04
The Devil's Game doesn't go far enough and much of it is based on half-truths:
At first I was very excited when I finally received the "Devil's Game" in the mail. Unfortunately Dreyfuss' book was a big disappointment. Let's face it, political science books are nothing more than conspiracy books, and when there's a conspiracy the author should try to get to the crux of the enigma. By circumventing around the fact that the Bush family has been tied to the bin Ladens through companies such as the defunct BCCI Bank and Carlyle Group (an aerospace weapons company who engages in heavy arms dealing around the world, while buying out weapons manufacturers) is very surprising to me.
I found myself inquiring as to why Dreyfuss doesn't mention any of this in his book.
Most Americans are aloof to these facts, and Dreyfuss makes no attempt to clear things up. This book leaves more questions than answers. How is a reader who is unfamiliar with Middle Eastern politics going to ascertain what is really transpiring when Dreyfuss doesn't mention the fact that George H.W. Bush is still a consultant and stockholder for Carlyle Group?
Moreover, the fact that Dreyfuss promulgates that Al'Qaeda is a real terrorist organization is nothing more than CIA propaganda, considering Osama bin Laden is a CIA asset. The bottom line is that Al'Qaeda doesn't exist and Dreyfuss knows this fact because he contributes to MSNBC.
Journalist Michael Moran (who is MSNBC's international editor) wrote and in-depth article about bin Laden's ties to the CIA, and ISI (Pakistani intelligence) during the Afghan Wars in the 1980's.
And if you skim through the overwhelming evidence, you'll quickly see that even an eight-year-old child could easily ascertain that Al'Qaeda is really the CIA perpetrating false flag operations.
Dreyfuss scratches many quandaries on the surface. One issue in particular is the Faustian financial owners of the banking institutions that are orchestrating the events he's discussing. In chapter 7 "The Rise of Economic Islam" Dreyfuss mentions many banks that were and still are involved in funding the Islamic extremist, but what he fails to mention are the names of the individuals who own these banks.
And there isn't enough mentioned about the arms manufacturers, military contracting companies, and energy companies that are scamming billions of dollars from the American people and all the other countries in the world. By circumventing around these quandaries, Dreyfuss fails to make the proper connections needed to ascertain how the U.S. Government correlated its hegemonic involvement with Fundamentals Islam. If he bothered to mention the Trilateral Commission and Bilderberger's involvement things would have been much clearer.
Remember, the people who are really giving the orders for terrorist attacks own the corporations and control your government!
YES MY FRIENDS!!!
The orders come from the top of the oligarchic capstone! And Dreyfuss knows it and he's not naming names in this book.
Anyway, a couple of banks that Dreyfuss sights in his book are Citibank and Chase Manhattan, but not once did he mentions that David Rockefeller controls both banks and that Shaukat Aziz is the former Vice President and head of the global private banking division of Citibank, and in 1999, Aziz became Prime Minister and Finance Minister of Pakistan. The bottom line is the banks are becoming exorbitantly wealthy off these wars in Iraq, Afghanistan and Palestine and it dates back to the crusades.
I will state what I did like about this book was that Dreyfuss gives a wonderful historical thesis about the history of the conflicts in Egypt, Iran, and a little is mentioned about Israel's role in the whole scheme of events.
Unfortunately he sugarcoats over Zionist involvement, and the fact that he refers to the 9/11 attacks, as blowback is an insult to our intelligence. 9/11 was our Reichstag Fire!
Also, there isn't much about Saddam Hussein's CIA connections.
Furthermore, Dreyfuss sights that in 1957, President Dwight D. Eisenhower's CIA Director Allen Dulles and Secretary of State John Foster Dulles forged an alliance with Saudi Arabia's Wahhabi pan-Islamic movement, which caused the Muslim Brotherhood to reemerge in the hopes of assassinating Egyptian president Nasser. But what isn't mentioned is that the Dulles brothers were members of the Knights of Malta, a secret society that has strong ties to the Vatican.
So how deep is the Vatican's involvement is a question that should have been raised?
Insofar as the Afghan Wars are concerned I've contemplated that Dreyfuss missed the mark on that issue also. The official story is that the U.S. financed and aided the Muhajadeen in an effort to expel the Russians from the region. The gruesome truth is that the U.S and the USSR were really allies in the Cold War.
YES THE COLD WAR WAS A SCAM!
The U.S. was funding both Russia and the Muhajadeen in the conflict. Additionally, the Russian government looted the Russian treasury, bankrupting the country.
So the inquiry is, is Dreyfuss lying about the events in the Cold War, or is he just ignorant of the facts?
There's a lot missing in this book. Overall this isn't a bad place to start your research if you're new to this subject. However, I personally recommend that you read Craig Unger's "House of Bush House Of Saud" first. Unger's book offers a much clearer picture of events in Saudi Arabia.
Best Read in Political Economy or History I've Had in Years .......2007-03-01
I do a fair amount of this sort of reading and a great deal of research quality reading on the Middle East in particular, yet I found that this book put things together for me far far better than anything I've prefiously come across. Suddenly, after a great deal of reading on the Middle East I feel like I have a strong foundation in the fundamentals which have been at work through the history of the late 20th and early 21st centuries in the Middle East. Thank you Robert Dreyfuss !!
Also, as other reviewers have pointed out, it's very well-written and well-referenced. It is very helpful in understanding what is going on in the Middle East today (March 2007).
Thought-Provoking!.......2006-09-18
Devil's Game" is an account of our efforts over six decades to cultivate the Islamic right in an effort to dominate the Middle East. Dreyfuss contends that this is greatly to blame for the emergence of Islamist terrorism in the 1990s.
In the 1950s, the enemy was not only Moscow, but also Third World emerging nationalists in Egypt and Iran. Thus, the CIA tried to overthrow Nassar, despite his immense popularity, because of his independence vs. the Cold War, and worked with the Muslim Brotherhood - a member even tried to assassinate Nassar. Meanwhile, in Iran the CIA got the most political ayatollahs to support an overthrow of the elected government (it had nationalized oil assets) and restore the Shah (the U.S. got 40% of oil rights in return); what was not recognized at the time was the key importance of a young ayatollah involved - Khomeini's mentor, as well as Khomeini himself. In the '60s Arab socialism spread from Egypt to Algeria, Syria, Iraq, and Palestine. To counteract this seeming threat the U.S. joined with Saudi Arabia to export its Wahhabi religious right and Muslim Brotherhood factions. Even after the Iranian revolution of '79, the U.S. failed to recognize that Islamism was a dangerous force.
Carter's inauguration alarmed the Shah and encouraged Iranian opposition groups - both due to U.S. pressures and memories of Kennedy's earlier thoughts of replacing the Shah with a less authoritarian regime. Sensing blood the clergy began to mobilize the wealthy landed population against land reform, the Shah was overthrown, and soon we were in the midst of the 444-day hostage crisis.
Dreyfuss's most stunning account, however, involves the CIA's assistance to Afghan rebels PRIOR to the Soviet's invasion, and that it was INTENDED to provoke that reaction. Then, to help insure that the Soviet military was then bled to death, the CIA helped train insurgents, sent billions to Pakistan for allocation to insurgents, and even allowed recruiting within the U.S. The Afghanistan insurgency also led to the development of strong funding from private sources within Saudi Arabia, as well as the
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