Nemesis

Chalmers Johnson

In his prophetic book Blowback, Chalmers Johnson linked the CIA’s clandestine activities abroad to disaster at home. In The Sorrows of Empire, he explored the ways in which the growth of American militarism and the garrisoning of the planet have jeopardised the US’s stability. Now, in Nemesis, he shows how imperial overstretch is undermining the republic itself, both economically and politically.

Delving into new areas — from plans to militarise outer space to Constitution-breaking presidential activities at home and the devastating corruption of a toothless Congress — Nemesis offers a striking description of the trap into which the dreams of America’s leaders have taken the country.

Drawing comparisons to empires past, Johnson explores in vivid detail just what the unintended consequences of the US’s dependence on a permanent war economy are likely to be. What does it mean when a nation’s main intelligence organisation becomes the president’s secret army? Or when the globe’s sole ‘hyperpower’, no longer capable of paying for the vaulting ambitions of its leaders, becomes the greatest hyper-debtor of all times?

In his stunning conclusion, Johnson suggests that financial bankruptcy could herald the breakdown of constitutional government in America — a crisis that may ultimately prove to be the only path to a renewed nation.