Book Club: Understanding the War Industry with Christian Sorensen
In July 2023, World BEYOND War will be holding a weekly discussion each of four weeks of Understanding the War Industry with
the author Christian Sorensen as part of a small group WBW book club
limited to a group of 18 participants. Christian will send each
participant a PDF copy of the book. We'll let you know which parts of
the book will be discussed each week along with the Zoom details to
access the discussions.
When: For one hour on four Wednesdays, July 5, 12, 19, 26, 2023. The time is 18:00 UTC (similar to GMT) and Wednesday
at 8 a.m. in Honolulu, 11 a.m. in Los Angeles, 1 p.m. in Mexico City, 2
p.m. in New York, 7 p.m. in London, 9 p.m. in Moscow, and 9:30 p.m. in
Tehran.
Where: Zoom (details to be shared upon registration)
This is a small group series with limited space of up to 18 people.
Sign up to reserve your spot and allow for enough time to receive the book. We look forward to reading and discussing this important book with you!
About the Author:
Christian Sorensen is a researcher and author focused on the U.S. war
industry. His academic background is in translation and international
relations. A military veteran, he contributes frequently to independent
media outlets.
About the Book:
The War Industry infests the American economy like a cancer, sapping
its strength and distorting its creativity while devouring its treasure.
Stunning in the depth of its research, Understanding the War Industry
documents how the war industry commands the other two sides of the
military-industrial-congressional triangle. It lays bare the multiple
levers enabling the vast and proliferating war industry to wield undue
influence, exploiting financial and legal structures, while co-opting
Congress, academia and the media. Spiked with insights into how
corporate boardrooms view the troops, overseas bases, and warzones, it
assiduously delineates how corporations reap enormous profits by
providing a myriad of goods and services devoted to making war, which
must be rationalized and used if the game is to go on: advanced
weaponry, drones and nukes; invasive information technology; space-based
weapons; and special operations—with contracts stuffed with ongoing and
proliferating developmental, tertiary and maintenance products for all
of it.
Reviews:
“To an ever-increasing extent, the business of America is the
business of war. But although Americans live in the shadow of a war
economy, few understand the full extent of its power and influence.
Thanks to Christian Sorensen’s deeply researched book into the
military-industrial complex that envelops our society, such ignorance
can no longer be an excuse.” —ANDREW COCKBURN, author of Kill Chain: The Rise of the High Tech Assassins.
“A devastating account of American militarism, brilliantly depicted,
and exhaustively researched in an authoritative manner. Sorensen’s book
is urgent, fascinating reading for anyone who wants to save the country
and the world from political, economic, and ecological disaster. Its
message is so convincingly delivered that it will change many open minds
forever and for the better.” —RICHARD FALK, International Lawyer
“Have you ever wondered why the United States is always at war? This
meticulously researched book lays out in painstaking detail exactly how
our nation has been captured by a war industry that profits from endless
conflict and pursues profit at all costs. It will shock you, infuriate
you, and hopeful inspire you to help dismantle the grotesque killing
machine that steals our resources, wreaks havoc around the world, and
leaves the merchants of death laughing all the way to the bank.” — MEDEA BENJAMIN, codirector, CODEPINK for Peace
“I’m adding Christian Sorensen’s new book, Understanding the War Industry
, to the list of books I think will convince you to help abolish war
and militaries… [It is] not so much analysis as an effort to persuade
through the repetition of examples, countless examples, naming names and
laid out over hundreds of pages. The author admits that he’s only
scratching the surface. But he’s scratching it in lots of different
places, and the result ought to be persuasive for most people”—DAVID SWANSON, World BEYOND War
“Christian Sorensen is the Seymour Melman of the 21st century,
dissecting the military-industrial-congressional complex and providing
us a way to understand this convoluted machine which exploits and
oppresses the entire world…” —WILL GRIFFIN, founder and director of The Peace Report.
“It has long been obvious that America’s numerous, hugely expensive
and destructive and seemingly perpetual wars of choice have not been
intended to serve any interests of the vast majority of the American
people. In
Understanding the War Industry, Christian Sorensen
presents detailed and thoroughly documented evidence to convincingly
support his conviction that the dominant force among those seeking war
for the sake of war is the pursuit of profit maximization by the
corporate “war industry”. He concludes: “There will be no escape from
interminable wars until this reality is recognized and resisted.” This
book offers a major contribution to that struggle.”
— JOHN V. WHITBECK, International Laywer
Buying one ticket covers all four sessions plus the book.
There are incredible book clubs also planned for August, September, and October. You can sign up for them now, have plenty of time to receive and read the books, and not risk seeing them sold-out when you try to register at the last minute. Here they are:
https://worldbeyondwar.org/bookclubs
World BEYOND War is a global network of volunteers, chapters, and affiliated organizations advocating for the abolition of the institution of war.
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