Armed Robbery
Marine Corps, Major General Smedley Butler was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor twice for separate acts of outstanding heroism. In 1933, he delivered a speech entitled: “War is just a racket.”
Iraq is a classic example of the shock doctrine, and that Butler’s statements are more valid today than they were in 1933. In Iraq, we had a military strategy called Shock and Awe. It was a military strategy designed to maximize disorientation of the people of Iraq. Richard Armitage, the former deputy undersecretary of state said that the theory was that Iraqis would be so shocked, they would be easily moved from point A to point B. The Iraqis were supposed to be easy to control, but it didn‘t work out according to their plan.
The three kinds of shocks in “The Shock Doctrine,” are shock of the crisis, an economic shock therapy program, and if people don’t submit the third shock is torture.
Naomi Klein was in Iraq that first year of the occupation reporting for “Harper‘s Magazine.” She spoke with a worker at a vegetable oil company, one of the largest state owned factories. He said that they were opposed to privatizing the company, but felt they had only two choices. They could either burn it to the ground or they would blow themselves up inside it. That was the level of determination against Paul Bremer’s policies.
The Iraqis perceived the present situation as a continuation of the war. The word that best describes what happens when a country is invaded under false pretense, and their assets are grabbed is looting. This was a corporate takeover of Iraq with guns or to put it more accurately armed robbery. The Iraqis responded as if their country was being looted and not as if it was being restructured.
Iraq is a classic example of the shock doctrine, and that Butler’s statements are more valid today than they were in 1933. In Iraq, we had a military strategy called Shock and Awe. It was a military strategy designed to maximize disorientation of the people of Iraq. Richard Armitage, the former deputy undersecretary of state said that the theory was that Iraqis would be so shocked, they would be easily moved from point A to point B. The Iraqis were supposed to be easy to control, but it didn‘t work out according to their plan.
The three kinds of shocks in “The Shock Doctrine,” are shock of the crisis, an economic shock therapy program, and if people don’t submit the third shock is torture.
Naomi Klein was in Iraq that first year of the occupation reporting for “Harper‘s Magazine.” She spoke with a worker at a vegetable oil company, one of the largest state owned factories. He said that they were opposed to privatizing the company, but felt they had only two choices. They could either burn it to the ground or they would blow themselves up inside it. That was the level of determination against Paul Bremer’s policies.
The Iraqis perceived the present situation as a continuation of the war. The word that best describes what happens when a country is invaded under false pretense, and their assets are grabbed is looting. This was a corporate takeover of Iraq with guns or to put it more accurately armed robbery. The Iraqis responded as if their country was being looted and not as if it was being restructured.
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